"I believe that this man came after us because he hated us as Asians. "My wife and little girl said 'I want to get out of the city as soon as possible.
"My trip to Portland, which we had been looking forward to for a long time, was ruined in an instant," Abe said. Ryuichiro Abe, the father and victim in the Eastbank attack, said Kesterson's alleged actions ruined his family's trip to Portland. In light of the recent connection, court documents show Kesterson has now been indicted on 20 counts including charges of bias crime and assault.ĭr. Hwang said he and others were outraged to learn Kesterson was connected to another racially motivated attack against a Filipina woman and others on Easter Sunday. It's devastating to hear that folks can't just go on a bike ride or drive around town without fear of coming under attack." "Both families were just minding their own business. He said his fellow Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are tired of carrying the fear of being targeted. "This hate is changing how we live our lives, and it needs to stop."ĭuncan Hwang, interim director of the Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon (APANO) told KOIN 6 News a 2022 survey of local Asian Americans found that 49% of participants reported witnessing or experiencing hate or bias within the year.Ī D V E R T I S I N G | Continue reading below
We do not feel safe here," Chisao Hata with the Japanese American Museum of Oregon said at the event. "Our elders are afraid to leave their homes and our women are afraid to walk alone. Kesterson also was arrested in early July after police accused him of punching a father and his 5-year-old daughter as they rode bikes along the Eastbank Esplanade on July 2.Īccording to court documents, Kesterson attacked the family from California because he thought they were Japanese. Two men arrested and charged for attacking Asians twice in Portland in a single week.Ī coalition of organizations held a call to action Thursday after Portland became the backdrop of two anti-Asian bias crimes last week.The July 14 demonstration organized by Oregon Rises Above Hate (ORAH) comes less than a week after police arrested Neal Hollis Walker on Friday, July 8, for allegedly targeting a man of Chinese heritage in a road rage incident.ĭylan J.
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