Another Filipino-American was attacked for wearing a veteran's hat in San Francisco, California, adding to the growing list of hate incidents against the Asian American community.
Ron Tuason, 56, a former combat engineer, was waiting at a bus stop at Plymouth and Ocean Avenues on March 13 when a man suddenly yelled racial insults before punching him multiple times, according to a report from KPIX5.
The attacker reportedly told him to go back where he came from and said he was the cause of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“When he noticed me, he got aggressive and charged across the street, ‘Go back where you came from, you caused this problem... Do you want to get hurt? You’re not a veteran, I’m a veteran,'” Tuason told KPIX 5.
"Do you want to get hurt? You’re not a veteran. I’m a veteran," he recalled the man asking.
Tuason added he tried to take a video of the incident with his phone, but the suspect knocked it out of his hand.
“Because of the color of my skin, and because I like to wear a hat that says I served. People who are minorities are often neglected, overlooked, invisible... We served,” said Tuason.
The suspect was located by the authorities shortly after the assault, the report said.
He was identified as Victor Brown, 53, and was arrested for assault, battery with the hate crime enhancement, resisting arrest, and possession of narcotic paraphernalia.