NYC Ecuadorians assaulted in possible hate crime

It was approximately one month ago that an Ecuadorian immigrant was killed by a group of teens on Long Island. The murder of Marcelo Lucero brought to light the dark side of racism being faced by the growing Latino population in New York City’s eastern suburbs.

Now comes word of another sickening assault on Ecuadorians; this time, it was in New York City proper and allegedly involved homophobic and anti-Latino insults:

Investigators said 31-year-old Jose Sucuzhanay was walking home with his brother Romel early Sunday morning when one of them stopped to give the other his coat at the intersection of Kossuth Place and Bushwick Avenue.

That's when investigators said a group of men jumped out of an SUV and beat them with a glass bottle and baseball bat while yelling anti-gay and anti-Latino slurs.

Romel was not seriously hurt, but Jose was taken to the hospital where he is on life support.

"My brother is in critical condition. He has to go through brain surgery. He's okay there. But right now he's not moving, he's not talking, he's in very critical condition. And we hope he will recover," said Sucuzhanay.

Hate crime charges could be leveled against the attackers though that will be the least of their problems should Jose Sucuzhanay die.

It should go without saying that such heinous, cold-blooded assaults are inexcusable whether it be in such a diverse metropolis as New York City or in outlying suburbs. We’ll keep an eye out for any further developments.

Image- The China Post (“People file past the open casket bearing the body of Marcello Lucero at the Congregational Church of Patchogue in Patchogue, N.Y., Saturday, Nov. 15.”)
Sources- The Latin Americanist, NY1, City Room, newsday.com