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Karen Fukuhara, best known for her performances on Amazon Prime Video’s The Boys and David Ayer’s Suicide Squad, took to Instagram last Wednesday to share details of an alleged racially motivated attack on her in order to raise awareness about the same.
The American actress of Asian (Japanese) heritage claimed that an unknown man struck her in the back of the head outside an unnamed cafe in what Fukuhara labels as an anti-Asian hate crime.
Karen Fukuhara said that the attack came out of nowhere
Fukuhara, who shared a series of three photos describing the assault on her Instagram profile, noted that she was physically fine. She began her statement by saying:
"Today I was struck in the head by a man (I'm physically fine) & this sh*t needs to stop. Us women, Asians, the elderly need your help."
The actress, who rarely shares details of her private life, noted that a man struck her in the back of the head while she was on her way to a cafe to grab a cup of coffee. She stated that the attack came out of nowhere, and that she did not even make eye contact with the person before the incident took place.
Mentioning that she was doing nothing out of the ordinary, Fukuhara noted that the assault came as a surprise to her as her hat flew off after being struck.
Intimidated by the attacker, Fukuhara decided not to confront him, even though she thought of doing so. She claimed that the attacker must have kept walking after hitting her as he was a few feet away from the actress when she looked back.
The assailant allegedly started coming towards her when she decided to approach him, but she noted that 'it was not worth the risk.' The attacker yelled at Fukuhara, following a few seconds of the two staring at each other, shortly before he walked away.
The actress mentioned that it was the first time she was physically harmed, "although racial slurs and hurtful actions" had been directed at her in the past. She then went on to explain why she felt the need to speak up on the issue:
"I write this, because I've had conversations with multi-racial friends of mine that had no idea these hate crimes happen to everyday, regular people - people that they share meals with. I felt it was important to raise awareness."
Fukuhara believes she got lucky as the man could have come back to hit her again, or have carried a weapon. She said that "the shock of this experience has me thinking about taking self-defense classes."
She expressed her concern regarding women, Asians and elderly people being victims of hate crimes, voicing the need to have such assailants held accountable. Fukuhara concluded:
"But why is this something we as “victims” have to think about? What satisfaction are these perpetrators getting from hitting women, Asians, the ELDERLY? They need to be held accountable. What can we do as a community to prevent these horrible crimes?"
Over 3,500 commentators, including celebrities, showed her their support
The cast of The Boys, including Chace Crawford, Jack Quaid and Laz Alonso, flooded the comment section of Fukuhara's post, standing in solidarity with her. Fellow actors Olivia Munn, Jay Hernandez and Jamie Chung also expressed their disgust at the incident.
Other celebrities who showed Fukuhara their support include fashion designer Jasmine Chong, Canadian actress Sarah Jeffery, Scottish actress Michelle Gomez, and actresses Perry Mattfeld, Kara Wang, and Colby Minifie.
Fukuhara's post was shared on the same day that Barbara Maier Gustern, an elderly Broadway singing coach, succumbed to brain injuries after she was shoved to the ground by a stranger outside her apartment in Manhattan.
On Friday, a 67-year-old woman from Yonkers, New York, was punched over 125 times and stomped on seven times by a man who, according to the police, acted out of anti-Asian hatred. He was later charged with attempted murder and assault..
The news of the assault comes amidst a surge of anti-Asian hate crimes in the United States. In February, the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism issued a study which showed that anti-Asian hate crimes had increased by 339 percent in 2021, as compared to 2020.
