What to know
Ashish Prashar, 40, said he was in Edmonds Playground in DeKalb Avenue Monday afternoon with his 18-month-old son when his son approached a boy playing basketball. Prashar, who is of Indian descent, said the woman threw her phone and then hot coffee at him and his young son.
NEW YORK — Police are investigating an alleged hate crime attack at a Brooklyn playground, where a father said a woman hurled anti-Islamic remarks, followed by hot coffee, at him and his son.
Ashish Prashar, 40, said he was in Edmonds Playground in DeKalb Avenue Monday afternoon with her 18-month-old son when her son approached a boy playing basketball.
Prashar said a woman approached him and asked if he supported Hamas.
“She says ‘you’re a terrorist,'” Prashar said.
Prashar, a political activist and writer, wore an Arabic Keffiyeh scarf on his daily trip to the park. He said he received the scarf as a gift a decade ago while working in the West Bank under then-British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
“It was a gift from a Palestinian-Christian to me,” Prashar said.
Prashar, who is of Indian descent, said the woman threw her phone and then hot coffee at him and his young son.
“When I turned around, he threw hot coffee in my face, which if I hadn’t left it on the floor would have burned his face,” she said.
The NYPD said Friday that it is investigating the case as a hate crime assault and that it is being investigated by the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force. Police said they do not know the identity of his wife but are searching for her in connection with the incident.
Our sister network NBC New York initially showed a photo of Prashar’s wife, but her face was blurred. Police have since released a photo and video of the woman asking for the public’s help in finding her.
Prashar was not injured during the incident, police said. Prashar said the woman left when a passerby stepped in to help. He said that the next time he comes to the park, he plans to return with friends.
He is not the only person of Indian descent who has been attacked since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas. The Sikh community said they are regularly called “terrorists.” A student had his turban torn from his head and an elderly driver was beaten to death in what has been deemed a hate crime.
“This is again after 9/11,” Prashar said. “As if every person of color is now a target. We have been completely dehumanized by our president and our institutions.”
Prashar once campaigned for President Biden, but blames rhetoric that he says puts him and others in danger.
“No parent should feel unsafe taking their child to a playground because someone decides they are less than human,” he said.
2023-11-11 03:52:54
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