NYPD chief joins Queens offi cials to inform Asian
community about safety resources in Flushing
BY GABRIELE HOLTERMANN
In light of the staggering increase
in Asian American hate crimes,
NYPD Community Affairs Chief Jeffrey
Maddrey joined Councilman
Peter Koo and Queens Borough President
Donovan Richards on a walkthrough
tour of Flushing on Wednesday,
April 14, to talk to local business
owners and residents addressing the
issues facing the Asian American
community.
During a press conference outside
the Sheraton LaGuardia East Hotel,
Koo explained that business owners
and residents alike needed to know
that the NYPD cares about the community’s
concerns.
“They want to stop the Asian hate
crimes, and they want to be part of
the solution,” Koo said.
Koo reported that local businesses
have been the victims of harassment,
bias crimes and racist messages like
“kill Chinese.” Koo wants to make
sure that the Flushing business community
– many of them “mom and
pop” stores – has the information it
needs to stay safe.
“The police cannot solve all these
problems on their own. The police
have to be part of the solution. Our
local merchants need to know that
the police are here to help. They need
to know how to report bias incidents
and hate crimes,” Koo said.
NYPD Chief of Community Affairs
Jeffrey Maddrey emphasized that the
NYPD supported the Flushing community
and that no one should endure
or be subjected to racist attacks,
reminding everyone that New York
City was much better than that.
The NYPD chief urged all communities
to stand against hate and
violence and that the hatred needed
to stop.
“We’re here to strengthen those
partnerships today. And we’re going
to go around here to visit the community
with Community Affairs members
NYPD Community Affairs Chief Jeffrey Maddrey joined Councilman Peter Koo and Queens Borough President Donovan Richards
on a walkthrough tour of Flushing. Photos by Gabriele Holtermann
of the 109th Precinct, members
of the mayor’s office, and our elected
officials to say that we’re standing in
solidarity,” Maddrey said.
Richards pointed out that Queens
county is the most diverse county in
the nation.
“We believe in building bridges,
not walls. We break down walls here
in Queens County because we understand
that our diversity is our
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.10 COM | APRIL 23-APRIL 29, 2021
strength,” Richards said.
He reassured the Flushing community
that they had his support and
encouraged residents to report hate
crimes to authorities.
“If you see anyone attacking anyone,
spreading hate, we need you
to call it in. Don’t hide. We need to
make sure it’s documented as well.
And we need to make sure our community
based organizations are an
essential part of this conversation so
that people feel that they have a voice
there as well,” the borough president
said.
Accompanied by officers from the
109th Precinct, Maddrey and elected
officials toured Flushing. The chief
talked to some business owners, letting
them know that they had a partner
in the NYPD. He told them not to
be afraid to call the NYPD and get in
touch with the community affairs officers
of the 109th Precinct.
“If you don’t call us and we’re not
aware that there’s an issue, we can’t
send the resources. Not only for that
incident but even for a follow-up. You
have to let us know what’s going on,”
Maddrey explained to Maxine, the
owner of Maxine Noodles.
“We definitely learned to speak
up, so you’ll definitely hear from us,”
Maxine responded.
Ikhwan Rim, the owner of IM Jewelry
and radio host of NY Radio Korea,
shared that one of his listeners
asked him how they should react if
they were attacked.
Maddrey advised that the first option
should always be to walk away
and call for help, and if possible, to
record the incident.
However, both Maddrey and Richards
said that safety should always be
a priority. Captain O’Connell, commanding
officer of the 109th Precinct,
added that people shouldn’t stress recording
an incident.
“In today’s times, chances are
there’s a camera watching. Don’t
stress out recording yourself,”
O’Connell said and recommended
calling 911 and remaining at the location
as long as it was safe.
“If you got to run out of there, just
run first. Run to safety, call 911 and
let the police come and let them do
their investigation,” Maddrey said. “I
always speak against using violence
and being physical. I mean, if you
have no choice if you’re in a corner
and you have to protect your life, of
course. But use safety first.”