Many of you have probably received the email. Flying around the internet, it describes a horrible attack on Ashwani Nagpal, the respected owner of Leela Lounge. I actually thought it was a hoax at first, but called the Lounge to verify and was informed that yes, it was true.
Early December 23, 2006, individuals who were present at a holiday party at Leela Lounge attacked both Mr. Nagpal and his friend and co-worker, Asheesh Mathur. Thankfully, both Mr. Nagpal and Mr. Mathur escaped the incident alive; however, Mr. Nagpal suffered injuries to the head and Mr. Mathur, a fractured nose and cracked jaw. During the course of these assaults, racial and ethnic slurs were directed to at least one of the victims. It is chilling to realize that members of the South Asian and Greenwich Village community could suffer this sort of violent crime by patrons at their own establishment.
Please see the full press release here.
So what exactly happened? Was it a private party? If yes, then how did these men get in? If it was a desi party, then who were these people hurling racial insults? Rumors and speculation have fueled this already tragic story, so in the hope of understanding what happened, I met Mr. Nagpal last Wednesday at a meeting held to discuss possible paths of action.
In a nutshell, Mr. Nagpal hosted a private party that turned out to be larger than expected. Late in the night, a rather raucous group of people jostled a glass case by the entrance, tipping over (and breaking) a statue inside. When Mr. Nagpal asked them to calm down, they responded violently.
Mr. Nagpal suffered a concussion, and while he was still unconscious, they threw his body over the bar. (It’s quite a distance away. It’s a miracle he’s not more hurt.) A friend tried to help, and, as mentioned in the press release, ended up with a fractured nose and jaw. Of the roughly 10-12 people involved, 5 were arrested and released the next day due to no prior convictions, being upstanding members of society (I’m fuzzy on the legalese here), etc. There is court date set for February 20th.
Please see the press release for details on the indictment and what you can do to help.
Until then, this case needs additional witnesses. If you were at Leela Lounge that night, please come forward. I noticed comments from someone who was present that night at Brooklyn Masala’s blog post on this. Please come forward, since the more witnesses, the stronger the case, and the more likely it will be that justice is served.
As for the racially charged nature of this case and the ethnic slurs…This has not been fully ascertained, so again, if you were there and heard something, please step up. Mr. Nagpal is very reluctant to focus on this aspect since he would hate to think that this incident taints Leela Lounge in anyway. It will be a venue that is safe for sepia people and welcoming of all others. We almost had a meetup there awhile ago actually.
However, I have to say that Ashwani Nagpal exudes gentleness and serenity, and I’m horrified that something like this could happen to a man in his own restaurant.
Please stay tuned for further updates and posts as the scheduled court date draws near.
UPDATE: from Brooklyn Masala: There will be a fundraiser tomorrow at Leela Lounge: Leela Lounge One West 3rd St. between Broadway and Mercer Sat. Jan. 20th at 9 pm
Cicatrix.
” If you haven’t experienced racism, go read up at least 300 years worth of other peoples’ experiences at your nearest library “
In case you missed it I said in my first comment on this post;
” Or is it because you have been reading too many books or watching documentaries that catalogue the atrocities committed in the past by White people on indigenous people? It’s good to know what happened in the past to make sure it doesn’t get repeated but I really believe some of you unwittingly refuse to live in the present. I am not denying there isn’t any White racism. I am just saying it’s blown way out of proportion.”
Did you not figure where I was going with this? I won’t dare to rebut what else you say because it might get me banned here and that sure will disappoint the legions of my fans who hang on to my contrarian words for enlightenment. Contrarian because the course, that the posts and subsequent friendly comments take, are usually very predictable. It might surprise you that I also believe for example that Dinesh D Souza, Hannity, O’Reilly and other conservative talk show hosts have the combined intellect of a dead bird. But you won’t find that out because there’s rarely an argument about that here. I have been pointing to the general direction this incident has taken and I have also rightly pointed out how some here are desperately looking for the hate crime angle. If all else being equal suppose the only two witnesses who have come forward had instead said that this attack was indeed racist – will all of you still have waited for the results of the investigation? Please answer me honestly.
Brooklynbrown –
I think I made a mistake by not proving your lack of credibility by bringing up two instances. Trust me I decided against it at the last minute.
[REMAINDER DELETED BY ADMIN. ENOUGH, YOU GUYS. STAY ON TOPIC AND TAKE YOUR INDIVIDUAL VENDETTAS OFF-BOARD.]
“well said. note to self: never get on cicatrix’s bad side ;)”
Look up to Jilted_Manhood. He’ll always be around ( if not in name, certainly in spirit )!
i was there on saturday, had a few drinks, and mingled with the two people i know in nyc. i walked out of the bar/restaurant with mixed feelings. on the one hand, i wanted more. i wanted there to be dialogue, fliers (on information from emails circulating on this issue), and a pot of money to go to mr. nagpal. to my knowledge, there was none of the above. on the other hand, i went out of my way to find out how the victim was doing and ended up speaking with the co-owner of the restaurant and then mr. nagpal’s friend, ashish. they, in the best words possible, were so thrilled and humbled by the number of people who came to leela that night. they said words can’t describe how it feels to know that young, south asians are supporting them and their friend. maybe it was because i had a drink in me, but the way they said those words made me almost cry. it does feel good when our community rallies against violence, when we do take a stand together. and more often than not, we don’t do enough of that. we find regional/religious/ethnic differences within us to never stand up for each other. so, it was an honor to be there with those who came to help support this man, his friends, and his business. and of course, i told them to pass on my wishes to mr. nagpal for quick and healthy recovery.
he reads hearts and minds by reading a handful of blog comments. sepia mutiny, where do you find such geniuses….
Thanks Jeet ( a witness ) for seconding me in exposing Pied Piper in comment # 46. PP, you would gain some credibility if you answered a few of my questions rather than awkwardly trying your pen at humor.
Thanks also to Saira ( a SAJA member ) for echoing the main point I have made.
Btw, why does Brooklynbrown’s half of the ‘ vendetta ‘ that we share lingers? Why was my rebuttal taken off?
Thank You
I’m late to this discussion but….I bet this is what happened….
1) party is progressing normally. lots of grinding. underage kids puking
2) white boys get very drunk and belligerent because the indian girls arent paying any attention to them. plus the bar is understaffed. they knock over statue accidentally
3) owner of bar is incensed and yells racial epithets at white boys and orders them to eff off. of course its his bar so he can say whatever he wants to. plus its an indian party so he thinks he has numbers in case shit hits the fan
4) white boys are drunk and in no mood to comply. they probably yell back some racial slurs and kick the crap out of bar owner.
Of course this is just a theory but from what i’ve heard I dont think they showed up with the sole intention to make trouble. of course I’m not taking sides but…it all depends on the legal definition of “hate crime”.
This is why every bar needs a big black guy working the door. See how white boys act up then. I feel horrible for this owner, but it seems like he missed bar owner 101.
Jilted, exactly what do you and Jeet think you have exposed? Saying something over and over again doesn’t make it true — and certainly saying nothing (as Jeet has in #46) establishes even less.
Let’s see if you’re willing to try and learn something beyond your own anecdotal experiences. Here’s an article about a 2003 Supreme Court opinion on mixed motive discrimination. The author of the article frames the issues as follows:
Before you start with ad hominem attacks on supposedly liberal judges and people “desparately looking for discrimination,” the author of the Supreme Court opinion was Justice Thomas.
Next, an excerpt from a guide on hate crimes by the American Proscutors Research Institute discussing mixed motives in the context of hate crimes:
This report comes from a prosecutors’ organization, not a community group.
So what was your point again? Oh right, you didn’t have one — rather than responding to any of this on the merits in the first place, you instead resorted to name-calling, finger-pointing, and stupid comments purporting to read people’s minds. Oh, and how could I forget — casual dismissals of people’s “credibility” based on absolutely nothing.
So, are you going to remain true to form, responding this time by attacking Justice Thomas and the prosecutors organization because they are supposedly just “looking for a discrimination/hate angle”? This should be good.
PP,
Let’s not obfuscate the simple issue at hand by bringing up reports/studies that might or might not far fetchedly burnish our respective positions laid out on this post. I don’t deny racism my friend. I refuse to believe it is pervasive in the America of today. That’s what my difference is with you. Mine is not a casual dismissal of people’s credibility. I have been around this blog long enough to justify my opinion of certain commenters.
You said
” Before you start with ad hominem attacks on supposedly liberal judges and people “desparately looking for discrimination,” “
You lose credibility again because you assumed I’d do the above. In one of my comments on this very page I had actually this to say about people who do indulge in such attacks on supposedly liberal judges ;
” I also believe for example that Dinesh D Souza, Hannity, O’Reilly and other conservative talk show hosts have the combined intellect of a dead bird.”
I think we both have said enough. Let the readers decide.
I’m not “obfuscating” anything — I’m simply reiterating the only point I think I’ve been trying to make in this thread at all: that discrimination and hate crimes often take place in situations involving mixed motives, and therefore the fact that Jeet or anyone else says that the attack in Leela Lounge was provoked by a fight says nothing about whether bias might have been a motive as well.
That’s the only point I have been making in this discussion at all, and it’s a rather elementary, banal point well-grounded in basic understandings of discrimination, human psychology, and the law. Your principal response — dare I say your only response, at least to me — has been to say that I have a problem with white people and am “desperately looking for the hate angle.” Which is all just so much nonsense.
You want to talk about losing credibility? You lose credibility when you fail to directly and respectfully engage substantives perspectives with which you might disagree in even a remotely intelligent fashion. And you continue not to do so now.
PP,
” Let’s see if you’re willing to try and learn something beyond your own anecdotal experience “
I’d advise you to not make light of anecdotal experience. When the cumulative anecdotal experience of a vast representative sample doesn’t quite square with the results of certain reports/studies it leads to frustration. IMO, it is this frustration that metamorphoses into part of the bread and butter of right wingnuts. Don’t have the time to elaborate on this but I hope you get my point. Besides almost every study/report has as its nemesis yet another study/report.
Jeet and Desildki came up with unvarnished, honest accounts of the incident. To me they were saying ” I don’t think it was racist. ” and you and others interefered by asking ” Are you sure? Think again.”
People, please don’t feed trolls or flame wars.
Chai, thanks so much for this:
I think you’ve expressed a sentiment that most of us feel, and did so beautifully.
Here is a post by Ms. Goel posted on the SAJA Blog cite almost a week ago …
My initial email was intended to reach only my close friends to inform them of the incident after first learning about it. It was circulated beyond my intended scope and because there was nothing in the media, it became the unintended and unqualified “news source” of the story.
Although I am an attorney, I do not practice civil rights law nor work for the government and any reference in my initial email to “hate crime” was more descriptive of my personal opinion and own thoughts on the matter than any type of legal conclusion.
The information we have learned since, through talks with the D.A., is that the D.A.’s office has not decided whether to prosecute this as a “hate crime” under the statute. They are continuing to investigate the matter, build evidence, and seek eyewitnesses that can shed light as to what occurred that evening and what was said. Accordingly, those of us who have volunteered our time to help Ashwani and Asheesh have the understanding, from what we know so far, that although racial animous was a factor that played out at some point in the attack, at least towards Asheesh, we do not yet have the information (nor does the D.A.) to label this as a “hate crime” under the statute. Ultimately, we seek to encourage eyewitnesses to come forward, to educate the community on what occurred so that people can be conscious of what can happen, and to inform those who are in a similar situation as to who to call and which organizations to reach out to. Whether a “hate crime” or not, any violent attack in my opinion is fueled by some type of hate. The fact of the matter is that two members of not only the South Asian community, but the community at large were attacked and one of them happens to be someone I consider a friend. If this crime is ultimately labeled under the law as not a “hate crime”, I find it no less appalling. I am inspired and truly amazed at the way the community has mobilized and given their consideration and time to this. I am truly sorry that Ashwani and Asheesh had to pay the price — but to see such strength and concern in our community — South Asians and beyond — is uplifting.
I emailed NY1 asking them to cover this. Maybe if a lot of us do, they will, and in time for the protest February 20th.
My son was falsely accused of assaulting Mister Nagpal and Mr. Mathur. My son is not a “rich white” kid. I am an immigrant, who adopted my son, from a foreign country. We are NOT rich, we are NOT well connected, “whatever that means.” I am a nurse who works full time, plus overtime, to maintain a fairly decent lifestyle. I work with many people from India and I have always had the utmost respect for these people, whom I found to be honest and upstanding and hardworking people. I am horrified to read postings on this website that describe any white kid as always being “rich”. Is it not a crime for a bar owner to serve minors? Why has this been ignored by the DA? This accusation against my son has caused terrible trauma in my family. My husband who has been fighting cancer for four years is extremely stressed from this dillema. He believes that the law will see the truth. Unfortunately, I believe that an extremely ambitious DA can and will ruin anybodys life in order to get to the top. Five people were identified as assaulting these people. Two have already been cleared of this crime. Seven people are willing to testify that David Falkenstern, my son, did not assault these people. David should not be forced to accept a plea, when he did not committ said crime. I thank desildki for his/her testimony. If this person could contact me I would be forever grateful. Thank you.
Pat Falkenstern