April 6, 2008
13-Year-Old Arrested in Columbia Student's Death
A 13-year-old boy was arrested and charged with second-degree manslaughter in the Friday night death of a Columbia graduate student. According to a Daily News source, the boy bragged to his 15-year-old friend before chasing Ming-Hui Yu, "Look what I do to this one."
The teen and his friends apparently hassled Yu, a 24-year-old Ph.D. student in statistics and a teaching fellow, at the median at Broadway and 122nd Street. The Post reports one "punched him in the face, while the other kept watch." (The Daily News adds that the police are "don't believe it was robbery. It was some sort of altercation."--Yu still had his wallet and backpack.) In an attempt to escape them, Yu ran into the street, where he was hit by a Jeep. Yu later died of his injuries.
The 13-year-old's aunt said, as he was led out of the precinct, "It was a mistake," while another relative said, "pray for him." The police are still looking for his accomplice, as well as examining surveillance footage from the area. Zhou Changyia, one of Yu's roommates told the Post, "They're just kids. It's hard to say what to do with them."
Yu had just walked his girlfriend home to her 123rd Street and Broadway apartment; Chao Sun told reporters, as friends gathered at a memorial outside Yu's apartment on 121st Street, "He’s a really nice guy, and he’s worried about others. I can’t imagine he would do anything to harm other people." Yu had graduated from the University of Science and Technology of China and was the public relations head of Columbia University's Chinese Students and Scholars Association. The Chinese Consulate is working to help his parents travel to NY.
Columbia president Lee Bollinger issued a statement, mourning Yu's loss and refers to Columbia-area safety (Morningside Heights is safe, but "it is nevertheless imperative that we all take reasonable precautions appropriate to life in a large metropolitan environment"). Read it below:
Dear Members of the Columbia Community:I am writing to share very sad news about one of our graduate students.
Last night a PhD student in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Minghui Yu, was struck by an automobile two blocks north of our main campus at 122nd Street and Broadway while he was apparently fleeing an attempted robbery on the sidewalk. The student was taken to St. Luke's Hospital but passed away as a result of the severe injuries he had sustained.
An NYPD investigation is underway and is being supported by the University's Department of Public Safety which, last night following university procedures, circulated an alert to student affairs deans at all of our schools with information about possible suspects in the attempted robbery.
As a community we mourn the loss of one of our members, and especially of a young person with much to look forward to in a life of promise. The University's counseling services are available to anyone who feels he or she could benefit from expert support in response to this deeply sad event. Please do not hesitate to visit Counseling and Psychological Services on the 8th floor of Lerner Hall today from 1-5 p.m., or call at any time 212-854-2878 if you feel such assistance would be helpful to you.
While incidents of crime have been significantly reduced in New York over recent decades, and the area of Morningside Heights is within one of the safest precincts in the city, it is nevertheless imperative that we all take reasonable precautions appropriate to life in a large metropolitan environment. Our Department of Public Safety has worked closely with the NYPD in safeguarding members of our University Community and offers a range of services – including safety escorts, evening shuttle buses and directed patrols – that help ensure students, faculty and staff can both be, and feel, secure while living, studying and working here. We constantly review and seek to improve public safety operations. If you would like more information on these services, go to: www.columbia.edu/cu/publicsafety, or call 212-854-2797.
The family of the graduate student has been notified. We will begin plans for a memorial event on campus. For today, I know we are united as a community in mourning the tragic loss of a young life.
Lee C. Bollinger
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"They're just kids. It's hard to say what to do with them."
I don't know, raise them? Teach them not to do stupid shit like this? Oh wait, the parents are retards too.
What a shame. I feel for Yu's friends and family.
Same thing, up to the running into the street, happened to a friend of mine, who is Asian. My buildings cameras recorded the battery: 5-6 black teens sneak up behind him while he is walking and talking on his phone and one punched him in the side of the face. He chases them, they scatter. There was no hint of robbery, just violence for violence's sake. These kids are not Jean Valjean. The only solution seems to be locking extremely violent youths up for life. Past a certain point, there is no hope of rehabilitation.
Horrible.
My Asian husband was punched in the face after being taunted by a pack of punks on the E train at Spring Street at 7 in the evening. I suspected then and even more now that Asian males are a targeted class in New York.
A friend in the NYPD told me that the 13-year old is still proud the "chinese fuck is dead."
The kid crawls to the top of the pile in China to get killed by a bunch of deadenders.
Where is Al Sharpton now?
13 years old and kids thinking living the gangsta life is cool and the right think to do because they don't know any better.
The black community needs to wake up and realize violence is not "cool".
these kids need to sit back and think WWBOD - What would Barack Obama Do? Obama 08
Why are blacks so violent? At only 13 years old, we can all agree that this kid is going to be a career criminal/murderer.
The other night this week, after having dinner I saw two black kids on East Broadway in chinatown wrecking havoc. They found three of those long fluorescent light tubes and they decided to throw them at store windows. After the last tube, one of them tried to trip an old chinese lady as she was closing up shop. This is all I've witnessed as I walked out of the restaurant. Who knows what else they've done before and after. They're simply animals.
Blacks should have a permit before they are allowed to have children. They must prove that they are able to properly raise a child and pronounce the word "ask". To endorce this all black women should be forced on birth control and all black men should have their tubes tied (it can be untied, yes?). The black violence is just ridiculous.
This is just tragic all around. You have these teen aggressors who are likely submerged in a hip-hop subculture in which thuggishness and hyper-machismo are valued, but they've also absorbed the beliefs of mainstream society, which sees Asian men as being unmasculine, and therefore are easy targets for these black male teens to prove their (distorted view of) manhood (which involves dominance, often by violent means) to themselves and to their peers. I'm sure none of them expected Yu to run out into traffic and get struck and killed by a motorist. And I can't imagine what must be going through the mind of the driver of the vehicle.
The family of the teens are either in a state of denial (the "not my kid" mind-set) or have admitted their helplessness and that only a Higher Power can help them now ("Pray for him"). And what about the teens' parents? In many cases, the parents do all they can to raise their kids right, but their kids still end up defying them and doing wrong. In this particular case, I feel that the teen boys should be locked up or otherwise penalized in a way that will hopefully scare them straight.
As far as the family of Yu, I can't imagine what it must be like to get news from American that your only son has been killed. Horrible.
This is just a tragedy all around.
The real tragedy here is that this kid will probably spend only a year or two in juvie hall...
The Bell Curve in action.
Does this kid now qualify for a loan from Reverend Al Sharpton's National Action Network? Or perhaps a grant?
Where's Al Sharpton?
And if a single Columbia student avoids crossing at an intersection with anyone black loitering in the median, they'll still be called racists.
PS: Can't wait for the Law & Order dramatization of this incident where the black youths will be magically turned into white neo-nazis.
The little fuckers should be drowned.
#16
Bernie,
Ever notice how all the criminals in advertisements (for home alarms or car insurance or whatever) are white?)
I don't think asians are unmasculine cause all we get in movies and televison are them doing kung fu. these kids are criminals cause society doesn't give a fuck about them. They were probably born to lower income welfare recipients who curse everyone who has a better life than them. when they try to get a better life for themselves they are probably turned away because they don't have the education, ambition, or will to succeed. then they have kids, not for the sake of family but for revenge. this isn't social darwinism, it's genetic darwinism. They know that their kids will be the scourge of society, the society that spurned them. It's genetics as retribution. at the end of the day Old moneybags whitey will have one child who they put through harvard and a poor disenfranchised african will have 4-8 kids, all unruly and angry and one day that african kid will put a bullet through the head of the white harvard kid and go to jail. that leaves 7 of his brothers left in the world to take over while whitey perishes. Europe and Japan have a negative population rate and declining birth rates among them because they are focused on careers and making money and living life and use birth control. poor countries like mexico and africa just breed like crazy. They will wait you out. once you die and your children die who gets your stuff? the kids of poor people.
Everyone should carry side arms like in the old west. There would be a lot less violence and a lot more dead assholes.
I was about to say that I wished all Asians knew kung-fu. Isn't kung-fu cool or something in "hip-hop" culture? I would have loved to hear how Ming-Hui Yu instead of being killed kicked the shit out of the pieces of shit and left them paralyzed for the rest of their lives. Hopefully they get raped in prison and have horrible hemorrhoids for a long time.
This is not a tragedy all around. It's a tragedy for Yu and his family not for the kid involved. This kid is going to go to juvie then around 25 he'll realize the error of his ways and do something extremely mediocre with his life to make up for it. In the meantime Yu is still dead. If anything there it's no tragedy for this kid, only for Yu.
Everyone should read freakanomics. The author presents a very interesting set of evidence. He basically says that the reason crime has gone down in the past 15 years is because people were allowed to have abortions. Thanks to that lots of single mothers in the inner city didn't have as many kids. Therefore there are way less fuckos than there could have been. Abortion is sick but very necessary for this reason. Some kids should just never come into this world.
That book is about as close to embracing eugenics as any I have read that is not from the 19th century. It's a small wonder how it was not deemed sociological garbage in this day and age.
Word
we should do to them what they do to criminals in China. and as some people like to say, charge their parents with the cost of the bullet.
If there's anyone who thinks this is race baiting, that person needs to go watch that Chris Rock sketch from Bring the Pain on HBO again.
seems like some posters here will enjoy this book
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Camp_of_the_Saints
http://www.amazon.com/Camp-Saints-Jean-Raspail/dp/1881780074
albeit this is set on an international scope
pow! i just got hit in the face by a darky for referencing something he don't know, pow!
"These kids need to sit back and think WWBOD - What would Barack Obama Do?"
You know, Babyhitler, for once, you are on to something. Even though your intent is to somehow hang this incident around Obama's neck as though he is responsible for all black people everywhere, these kids would indeed do well to see Obama as a role model. Obama actually attended Columbia, of course, and he would have seen Yu as a peer. Although he was a very active politico and debater, he was reportedly excellent at viewing his opponents sympathetically and coming up with arguments that somehow validated their right to exist. If only all the kids in New York wanted to be like Obama, this world would indeed be a much, much better place. Racists suck. Obama '08!
27- is that the one where CR talks about putting your money in books? that shit is hilarious! Notice that all the prominent blacks are educated in white schools? chris rock, p diddy, Kanye west, colin powell, and Oprah all were bused to white schools. People should listen to Bill Cosby but they shun him. They listen to Jay-Z. And what does Jay-z do? he makes all this money selling crime, drugs, misogyny, and violence fantasies to his people and then uses that money to get married in a tribeca loft where not one gangsta was invited and almost everyone was white and chris martin from coldplay sang at his wedding. LOL! that's mad gangsta,
I hate it when white people quote Chris Rock. Sorry man, that show was not intended to validate your own racism.
Ha, I've found that being gangsta has nothing to do with race. Its all about not giving a shit about anyone but yourself. I remember listening to Biggie for the first time and thinking to myself "Why does he keep talking about robbing black people? Shouldn't he be rapping about robbing whites?"
And babyhitler, have you ever done anything to help these kids become better people? Have you ever considered becoming a big brother? Maybe if you put your money where your mouth is you could have a direct affect on the life of a kid and show him a path that doesn't involve jumping people.
Alternatively you can post racist flame bait on a news site but I don't think that will have the same effect.
#29 - My actual intent is to get more people to vote for Obama. I'm in his Dark Ops campaign team. His first campaign team tries to get people to vote for obama the old fashioned way by canvassing and shit. The dark ops campaign tries to be obnoxious and subtle yet overtly racist against obama and tell people to vote for hilary in a reverse psychology marketing ploy. I tell people something racist, say "vote for Hilary" and that will get people up in arms against hilary and vote for Obama. so far it's working. that's how politics is played my friend. It's sort of like how the black Columbia professor knew she would be in trouble for plagiarizing works and hung a noose in her office and screamed "racist" to get people to rally for her.
matty,
Did you ever consider that these people actually have outs? I grew up in a shitty neighborhood and I didn't go around trying to rob people.
#33 - I don't understand why you are implying what I am saying is racist. There is no racism on the internet cause everyone is the same race. ANONYMOUS! How do you know I'm not black or asian or jewish and what I am saying is just a social experiment where i play devil's advocate a la BORAT and say something offensive just to get dialogue? everyone is fucking a little racist inside. There was a study on eyewitness news that said black people were more subconsciously racist themselves than whites. They would show various pictures of white people and black people and you had to rate them as being friendly or unfriendly within a few milliseconds. Obviously whites were biased against blacks, even though many said they weren't but blacks even were racist against blacks and thought white people's faces were friendlier. I believe the best line was from a david chappelle comedy routine were he says he doesn't believe in racism he believes in percentages of racism. When he goes into a chinese conveniece store and they watch him 9/10 times. that means those chinese are 90% racist against his ass. Think about your own id and think what percentage of racism your own heart holds. I doubt it's 0.
Yes I have considered that #35. That's not mutually exclusive to what I am trying to say. These kids aren't victims, Yu was the victim, but change comes with dialogue, mentoring and learning by example. Before you just discount this as a black and white or asian thing, you should consider that it's a matter of right and wrong first and foremost, not race.
These kids didn't know the difference between right and wrong. I don't know who's fault that is, but it is not the fault of them being black.
Change comes from helping kids understand right and wrong. Not trolling on gothamist.
ok, fine, you're not racist you're a neurotic who needs professional help.
better?
#37 - You should watch Lars Von Trier's "DOGVILLE' - It's about an idealistic young woman who suffers from cruelty at the hands of the people she tries to help. Central themes are "should poor and desperate people be held to the same standards of human decency as everyone else?" and "are you yourself patronizing the people you help?". Also by helping others you are also violating the Prime Directive of star trek: no interference with the internal affairs of others. Now, everyone knows that Gene Roddenberry was a pioneer in civil rights so if he's telling us not fuck around with the lives of others then it's good enough for me.
It's thoughtful commentary like this that makes me think Gothamist should just make it easier on Babyhitler, Spearchucker, et al, and add Racist to their "Istaverse".
Of course it's because they're black. Everyone knows that the poor white teens living in the slums of Ireland, Serbia, Poland, Austria, Russia, Scotland, England and Germany, etc., are peaceable, gentle youths who would weep at the thought of violence.
No excuses are made for those poor white kids though.
these kids are racist. i'm sure they don't go out and beat blacks for the hell out of it. i been beaten by racist kids just for kicks before.
anyway there is no white al sharpton or asian al sharpton too bad.
I hope this is a wake up call. anything can happen to anyone.
for all you students from out of state go home and get what you need to get to protect yourself.
Better to be judged by twelve than to be carried by six. From my cold dead hands.
PS: Can't wait for the Law & Order dramatization of this incident where the black youths will be magically turned into white neo-nazis.
Winner!
Terrible this could have happened to anyone.
China has state mandated Abortion usually of girl
babies,That's horrible too but they will put on a
good face at the Olympics.let's not even go to their
records of execution of dissidents.
I was mugged at gunpoint but was to terrified
to run. If this happens release all your property
and follow the perp's instructions.
Don't get possessive it could cost you your life.
In any event I hope with Buddhas Birthday coming
up this family finds peace again.
It's pretty clear that the kids targeted Asian men because they believed that "type" of target would not be a threat. I'm sure this will continue, but I'm hoping that one time they mess with the wrong asian dude, the kind that carries a knife or studies martial arts - there are plenty of them around.
A friend in the NYPD told me that the 13-year old is still proud the "chinese fuck is dead."
I don't get this shit at all. What do black people have against Asians and why? This is clearly a hate crime and needs to be handled as such. Belonging to a victimized minority doesn't somehow exempt you from being a racist. And if this bit of hearsay is in fact true, the kid should be tried as an adult and sent away for a long time. There's no rehabilitating people like that. The total absence of remorse shows he's a psychopath to the core.
And if a single Columbia student avoids crossing at an intersection with anyone black loitering in the median, they'll still be called racists.
The issue for me when getting anywhere near people on the street is not whether they're black or whatever, but whether they're young, male, in a group, and obviously looking for trouble. It's been my experience that those are far more reliable predictors of violence and/or trouble than race. I'd cross the street next to a lone black woman in her forties over a group of drunken white frat boys any day of the week. And yes, I'm a Columbia student.
#20 wrote:
How does a big pile of dead assholes equal "less violence"?Another broken record here:
Calling Rev. Al Sharpton. Sharpton, any comments?
true for the young, male and in a group theory.
any parents out there see who the bullies in the playground are, UWS, UES, Village, see how young males interact.
skateboarders, bmx'ers coming in from NJ and in a group seem to have this mindset, I've seen it.
JMH,
The violence would only occur once. And would serve as a message to others. I was assaulted on the subway by someone who called me a "cracker." I was in fear for my life. Shooting him to death would put a full stop to his racist aggression. I don't support the illegal possession of firearms, but would fervently endorse a rational concealed carry policy in NYC. How many muggers/thugs would chance it when every citizen could legitimately end his or her reign of terror?
#49, go f' yourself. I'm got bigger titties to lick right now.