Seth Low Park in Brooklyn’s Chinese community has been frequently rioted by teenagers recently, with youths being stabbed and scooters being set on fire, causing anxiety among surrounding residents. City Councillor Chuang Wenyi said that she had called the city police precinct and the city parks department to report the problem, but it has not been properly handled. Considering the safety of local Chinese community residents, she may take protest actions to express her dissatisfaction.
According to the 62nd Precinct, at around 4:49 p.m. on the 26th, the police received a report that a 22-year-old youth was stabbed several times in Seth Low Park. His chest, abdomen, left arm and left wrist were all seriously injured. He was sent to the hospital and was not in danger of death. In addition, some people recently witnessed a scooter being set on fire in the park.
In response, Chuang Wenyi released a video on the 27th, pointing out that the park is a place where many Chinese elderly people exercise and play chess, and there are also many families with underage schoolchildren walking around, with a dense flow of people. But when she contacted the local city police station and the city park department because she witnessed a teenager holding a knife, she only received the reply that “the police can only issue fines, not arrests”, and even suspected that she had made a false report.
Now that a young man has been stabbed, she feels very angry, and it also shows the dangerous consequences that may result from lack of supervision. She also mentioned that in recent months, the park has often seen teenagers causing riots and disputes, and even riding small motorcycles at high speed in the park, causing people to almost be hit. Now the authorities have never paid attention to the serious consequences of the motorcycle arson.
Zhuang Wenyi pointed out that although she was often told to call 911 when encountering emergencies, reporting the case would delay time, allowing potential suspects to flee long ago. She even called the mayor’s office and the city police department, “but the other party was also indifferent. Every time they simply replied that they would deal with it, but there was no improvement. Every unit refused to deal with it, and now a bloody incident has really happened.” She also lamented that if similar incidents happened in Manhattan, she believed that the authorities would have a more positive attitude. The city government’s neglect of the Chinese community may also be related to the lack of local political power. Even the Chinese community in South Brooklyn had the lowest voter turnout in this month’s primary election. “If this continues, Chinese will always be regarded as second-class citizens.” She said that if the authorities continue to ignore it, she plans to call on community organizations to demonstrate and pressure the city government to hear the voices of Chinese dissatisfaction.
