In a recent development, Harmeet Dhillon, the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Justice, has declared that she and her department will be closely observing the investigation into a brutal assault on a Caucasian man and woman by a group of African Americans in Cincinnati.
The incident, which occurred on Friday night, has sparked widespread outrage after footage of the attack went viral.
According to Gateway Pundit, Dhillon responded to a post by Senator Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio), stating, Our federal hate crimes laws apply to ALL Americans. We @CivilRights will monitor closely how local authorities handle this attack. Nobody in our great nation should be the victim of such a crime, and where race is a motivation, federal law may apply.
This statement underscores the commitment of the Department of Justice to uphold the rights of all citizens, regardless of their racial or ethnic background.
Senator Moreno had earlier criticized Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval for his silence on the incident. He posted, The Mayor of Cincinnati, @AftabPureval, who has an opinion on lots of irrelevant topics, has not issued a statement, let alone a condemnation, of this heinous attack. Instead of dreaming about higher office, which will never happen, he should be ensuring his residents are safe. This post was in response to images from the video that showed a man being attacked by a mob and an unconscious woman with blood streaming from her mouth.
The video that sparked this controversy was originally posted on social media platforms by Cory Bowman, a Cincinnati mayoral candidate and Vice President J.D. Vances half-brother. Bowman, a Republican, came second in a May jungle primary and is set to challenge incumbent Democrat Mayor Aftab Pureval in the November elections.
Bowman's post on social media read, More violence from Friday night in downtown Cincinnati... Cincinnati deserves betterBowman for Cincinnati | #FlipTheNati. His post highlighted the lack of a dedicated dispatcher for the music festival, which was one of the city's largest events of the year, and criticized the city's handling of crime.
Activist Tariq Nasheed posted a video claiming the Caucasian man instigated the attack by slapping an African American man. He stated, A group of white people were arguing with a group of Black people in Cincinnati. And one of the white males decided to slap a Black man in the face. And things went downhill from there.
WKRC-TV reported comments by the police union on the investigation. President FOP Queen City Lodge #69 Ken Kober said, Theyre doing everything they can. These investigators have been working around the clock to identify everybody thats involved, to be able to locate those people, to be able to interview them, to be able to get a true picture of exactly what occurred. Kober urged the public to assist in identifying the culprits, emphasizing that such incidents should not occur in their city.
Bowman, in a statement posted to Facebook and other social media platforms, criticized the city's leadership for their handling of crime and law enforcement. He stated, "This is trickle-down incompetence from the Mayor, City Manager, the majority of the City Council, the Police Chief, and their advisors. Good people in the city, government, and police department are demoralized, feeling theres no hope for change."
Bowman proposed a plan to address these issues, which included eliminating or reducing distracting and costly city initiatives, encouraging the police department to actively engage with the community, returning control of the Emergency Communications Center (ECC) to the police department, and empowering police officers to enforce laws.
Bowman concluded his statement by expressing his lack of confidence in the current leadership and emphasizing the urgency of the situation. He stated, "I, along with many other influential voices, have NO CONFIDENCE in our current leadership. This must be addressed sooner rather than later. Lives are at stake. #FlipTheNati |Bowman for Cincinnati."
This incident and the subsequent reactions highlight the need for effective leadership and law enforcement in Cincinnati. As the investigation continues, it is crucial that justice is served and measures are taken to prevent such incidents in the future.
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