Philadelphia man stabs two Asian teens, 10 and 15, and a woman in violent spree
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA: Amidst a global pandemic, a war in Europe, and a former president still bent on claiming the 2020 election was rigged, the US is witnessing a massive surge in crime, especially hate crime. On March 6, 2022, a man turned himself in after going on a brutal stabbing spree that resulted in a 10 and 15-year-old being hospitalized, along with a 37-year-old woman. All were reportedly of Asian descent.
Hate crime, particularly targeted towards Asians has skyrocketed in the US, which many experts say is directly linked to Covid-19. In February 2022, GuiYing Ma succumbed to her injuries after being hit on the head with a rock in November 2021 in Queens, New York City. On February 13, Christina Yuna Lee was stabbed to death by a homeless man who followed her to her Manhattan home. On January 24, one woman yelled, "go back to your country" at an Asian woman in Springfield, Illinois.
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These are just some of the many, many, examples of hate crimes targeting Asians over the past year. The Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism noted that hate crime towards Asians had jumped up 339% in 2021 from 2020. New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles were all key contributors to those statistics, but as the news from Philadelphia shows, aren't the only cities where hate crime is a major issue.
Philly stabbings led to 3 hospitalized
According to reports, the unidentified man stabbed three victims in the Mayfair neighborhood on March 6 afternoon. The 37-year-old woman was stabbed several times all over her body, while the two children were stabbed in the back of the head. The three victims were immediately transported to Frankford-Torresdale Hospital, where the minors are thankfully in a stable condition. Reports say the woman though, is in a critical condition.
It is known that all three victims are Asian, but so far police have not confirmed if they were related to each other, or if they were randomly targeted by the attacker. The man has since been arrested after he reportedly turned himself into the 15th district police station. Police did say he was taken to the hospital so that the victims could positively identify him. His name and mugshot have not yet been released. It's also unclear why the man committed the stabbings.
On social media, there are claims the attacker was related to the woman and children, with some saying he was likely a co-worker of the woman victim. However, police have not yet confirmed the link and so it should be treated as a rumor for now. It is believed no racist words were spoken during the attack, which is probably why it has not been classified as a hate crime just yet.
The news led social media users to comment things like "Dear God this madness has to stop" and "wtf is goin on in this effed up city???" A third commented, "I'm shocked. This is my neighborhood. I don't know anyone at all around here like this. I take public transportation I walked the neighborhood this is not the norm."
I'm shocked. This is my neighborhood. I don't know anyone at all around here like this. I take public transportation I walked the neighborhood this is not the norm
— Moon Moss 🌱 (@moonmossington) March 6, 2022