Sikh taxi driver verbally abused, assaulted outside New York airport

A passerby filmed a video of a man abusing the Sikh cab driver outside the John F Kennedy International Airport in New York. (Screengrab from video tweeted by @navjotpkaur)

In a yet another case of suspected hate crime, an Indian-origin Sikh taxi driver in the United States has been assaulted by an unidentified man, who knocked off his turban and also used expletives against him outside the John F Kennedy International Airport in New York City according to a video on social media.

The undated 26-second video was uploaded by Navjot Pal Kaur on micro-blogging site Twitter on January 4, showing a man assaulting the Sikh taxi driver outside the airport. She said the video was shot by a bystander at the airport. The person can be heard allegedly using expletives against the victim. He repeatedly hits and punches him and knocks off his turban.

This video was taken by a bystander at John F Kennedy International Airport. “I do not own the rights to this video. But I just wanted to highlight the fact that hatred continues to remain in our society and unfortunately I've seen Sikh cab drivers get assaulted again and again,” Kaur tweeted.

Further details about the driver or the cause of the incident were not available.

The video led to angry reactions by the community members. “Another Sikh cab driver assaulted. This one at JFK Airport in NYC. So upsetting to see. But it's crucial that we don't look away. What I am sure of is how painful it is to watch our fathers and elders get assaulted while they're just trying to live an honest life,” Simran Jeet Singh, author and Director for the Aspen Institute's Inclusive America Project, tweeted.

“For those who aren't Sikh, I can't put into words what it means to have your turban knocked off or to see someone else's turban knocked off. It's visceral and gut-wrenching and just so disheartening to witness.”

The National Sikh Campaign said the world is only a few days into the new year and there has already been a hate crime committed against a Sikh.

“No additional details have been released outside of the video, but we know this story too well. A Sikh person goes about their daily lives only to be senselessly attacked by someone. Common road rage between people can escalate when someone who is ignorant of who we are takes their disdain for our turbans and becomes violent,” it said.

This is not the first time a Sikh taxi driver has been assaulted in the US.

An Indian-origin Sikh Uber driver was in 2019 assaulted and racially abused in the US state of Washington in a suspected hate crime. The driver told the police that he believes his race promoted the attack.

In 2017, a 25-year-old Sikh cab driver in New York was assaulted and his turban knocked off by drunk passengers.