4 Hasidic Jews Busted in Beating of Gay Black Man in Brooklyn
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
By Josh Nathan-Kazis April 23, 2014
The New York Police Department has arrested four Hasidic men in the December beating of a black gay man in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, according to news reports.
The NYPD confirmed to the Forward that four men were in custody, but had no information about what they were being held for.
The December 1 attack took place at 4:30 a.m. on Flushing Avenue in the Williamsburg section. The victim, Taj Patterson, 22, told investigators that he was attacked by a group of more than a dozen ultra-Orthodox men. The attack was witnessed by an MTA bus driver. Patterson required surgery to reattach his retina after the beating.
The arrests were first reported by Yeshiva World News and later confirmed by The Daily News. The New York Post reported that the Hasidic were being questioned by the NYPD’s Hate Crime Task Force.
Why I became the Forward’s Editor-in-Chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
