2 killed in stabbing on MAX train in Northeast Portland as man directs slurs at Muslim women, police say
Updated on May 26, 2017 at 10:18 PM
Posted on May 26, 2017 at 6:00 PM
Gallery: Deadly MAX stabbing, May 26, 2017
BY JIM RYAN
The Oregonian/OregonLive
Two men were killed in a stabbing on a MAX train Friday when they tried to intervene as another man yelled racial slurs at two young women who appeared to be Muslim, including one wearing a hijab, police said.
A third passenger who tried to help was also stabbed, but is expected to survive, said Portland police spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson.
Officers arrested the suspect as he ran from the Hollywood transit station into the neighborhood near Providence Portland Medical Center in Northeast Portland, Simpson said. Police are still working to identify him and the three men stabbed.
The suspect was ranting about many things, using "hate speech or biased language," and at one point focused on the young women, Simpson said.
The suspect then turned on the passengers who tried to help, Simpson said.
"In the midst of his ranting and raving, some people approached him and appeared to try to intervene with his behavior and some of the people that he was yelling at," Simpson said. "They were attacked viciously."
One good Samaritan died at the scene and another at the hospital, he said. The third victim was undergoing evaluation, but didn't suffer life-threatening wounds, he said.
"These were folks just riding the train and unfortunately got caught up in this," he said.
It's not clear why the man was yelling, Simpson said.
"He was talking about a lot of different things, not just specifically anti-Muslim," Simpson said.
"We don't know if he's got mental health issues," Simpson said. "We don't know if he's under the influence of drugs or alcohol or all of the above."
The FBI said Friday night that the federal agency "will certainly be looking at the facts and evidence as the investigation unfolds to determine whether there is any potential federal violation."
"At the core of the FBI's mission is the belief that every person has the right to live, work and worship in this country without fear," the agency said in a statement. "Hate and bigotry have no place in our community, and we will not allow violence in the name of hate to go unanswered."
Evelin Hernandez, a 38-year-old Clackamas resident, said she was on the train when the man began making racist remarks to the young women. Some.men tried to quiet him, she said, and he stabbed them.
The attack occurred about 4:30 p.m. on a MAX Green Line train as it was heading east. A train remained stopped on the tracks at the Hollywood/N.E. 42nd Avenue Transit Center as police investigated.
Simpson said police want to talk to the young women and other witnesses to the rampage. They understandably left the scene, but can help fill in what happened, he said.
"It's horrific," he said. "There's no other word to describe what happened today. For the victims, our thoughts and prayers are with their families. ... For the witnesses, there is no other word."
Portland Muslim community reacts to fatal stabbing
Friday marks the start of Ramadan, a monthlong fast observed by most of the world's 1.6 billion Muslims.
"Our thoughts are with the Muslim community," Simpson said. "As something like this happens, this only instills fear in that community. We have already reached out previous to this incident to our Muslim community partners and the different imams about extra patrol during Ramadan. We want to reassure them that that will continue."
Portland is home to a rough estimate of about 50,000 Muslims of different ethnicities.
"This appears at least to be an isolated incident based on what we know at this point," Simpson said.
Officers tried to save the man who died on the train, he said. Police have recovered the knife, he said.
Simpson thanked witnesses who called 911 and reported where the suspect went and what he was wearing.
"It was really critical to us taking this man into custody. (He was) obviously very dangerous based on his actions," he said.
TriMet said the Blue, Green and Red MAX lines were disrupted and that the transit center was closed. Buses were running between Northeast Seventh Avenue and Southeast Main Street, according to the agency.
Updated on May 27, 2017 at 1:20 AM
Posted on May 27, 2017 at 0:15 AM
Gallery: Deadly MAX stabbing, May 26, 2017
BY EDER CAMPUZANO
The Oregonian/OregonLive
The fatal stabbing of two men in Northeast Portland by a man shouting racial slurs Friday evening was met with sorrow by the Muslim community, marring what's usually a celebratory time: the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan.
The suspect was yelling "hate speech or biased language" at two young women, spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson said. One of the women was wearing a hijab.
Three men tried to intervene and were stabbed, two of whom died from their wounds. The third is expected to survive.
The suspect has not been named.
Harris Zafar, author of "Demystifying Islam: Tackling the Tough Questions" and frequent commentator on CNN and Fox News, told The Oregonian/OregonLive Friday night that he found the event "tragic and concerning." He has lived in Portland for 31 years.
"As a Muslim, it's unnerving to know — being a father, being a husband, being a son — that this could have been one of the many women in our mosque and the greater Portland area," he said.
2 killed in stabbing on MAX train as man directs slurs at Muslim women, police say
Still, Zafar said he was inspired by the men who "had nothing to gain by putting themselves in harm's way."
"Of course, that's immediately replaced by an intense emotion of sadness that they've lost their lives," he said. "My heart goes out to the families of those individuals, who are also now lost in grief."
As news of the stabbing spread across the country, the Center on American-Islamic Relations issued a statement calling on President Trump denounce bigotry targeting Muslims and other minority groups.
"President Trump must speak out personally against the rising tide of Islamophobia and other forms of bigotry and racism in our nation that he has provoked through his numerous statements, policies and appointments that have negatively impacted minority communities," said Nihad Awad, the center's national executive director.
Zafar echoed the sentiment.
"I don't blame Donald Trump —I don't think he's a white supremacist," the author said.
But Zafar added that he believes the president's words on the campaign trail in 2016 policies such as his proposal to ban immigration and travel from six majority Muslim nations has nevertheless empowered those with fringe views.
"Clearly it's been festering and brewing," Zafar said. "And now with the election of President Trump those voices have felt some level of legitimacy."
The biggest problem, the author said, is that too few Americans personally know somebody of Islamic faith. Zafar pointed to a 2014 Pew Research study that found only 38 percent of U.S. residents know a Muslim.
"It's really hard to believe in that rhetoric and harbor ill will if they know someone in that demographic," he said. "If someone knew a Muslim, I don't think they would believe that rhetoric so easily."
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler boarded the inaugural direct flight from Portland International Airport to London before the attack. A spokesman said Wheeler is in communication with police.
City Commissioner Chloe Eudaly issued a statement on behalf of the city, acting in the mayor's stead.
"The City of Portland has a heavy heart right now, and our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends of the deceased and injured," she said. "This is an especially sad and disturbing incident. People lost their lives or were injured because they stood up to hate."
Eudaly thanked witnesses who helped police track down the suspect. She also asked Portlanders to offer their support
to the two women and anyone else who may have been targeted.
"The courage of the people who stood up for them is a reminder that we as a city need to stand together to denounce hate," she said.
http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2017/05/muslim_community_reacts_fatal_ne_portland_stabbing.html
Updated on May 26, 2017 at 10:18 PM
Posted on May 26, 2017 at 6:00 PM
Gallery: Deadly MAX stabbing, May 26, 2017
BY JIM RYAN
The Oregonian/OregonLive
Two men were killed in a stabbing on a MAX train Friday when they tried to intervene as another man yelled racial slurs at two young women who appeared to be Muslim, including one wearing a hijab, police said.
A third passenger who tried to help was also stabbed, but is expected to survive, said Portland police spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson.
Officers arrested the suspect as he ran from the Hollywood transit station into the neighborhood near Providence Portland Medical Center in Northeast Portland, Simpson said. Police are still working to identify him and the three men stabbed.
The suspect was ranting about many things, using "hate speech or biased language," and at one point focused on the young women, Simpson said.
The suspect then turned on the passengers who tried to help, Simpson said.
"In the midst of his ranting and raving, some people approached him and appeared to try to intervene with his behavior and some of the people that he was yelling at," Simpson said. "They were attacked viciously."
One good Samaritan died at the scene and another at the hospital, he said. The third victim was undergoing evaluation, but didn't suffer life-threatening wounds, he said.
"These were folks just riding the train and unfortunately got caught up in this," he said.
It's not clear why the man was yelling, Simpson said.
"He was talking about a lot of different things, not just specifically anti-Muslim," Simpson said.
"We don't know if he's got mental health issues," Simpson said. "We don't know if he's under the influence of drugs or alcohol or all of the above."
The FBI said Friday night that the federal agency "will certainly be looking at the facts and evidence as the investigation unfolds to determine whether there is any potential federal violation."
"At the core of the FBI's mission is the belief that every person has the right to live, work and worship in this country without fear," the agency said in a statement. "Hate and bigotry have no place in our community, and we will not allow violence in the name of hate to go unanswered."
Evelin Hernandez, a 38-year-old Clackamas resident, said she was on the train when the man began making racist remarks to the young women. Some.men tried to quiet him, she said, and he stabbed them.
The attack occurred about 4:30 p.m. on a MAX Green Line train as it was heading east. A train remained stopped on the tracks at the Hollywood/N.E. 42nd Avenue Transit Center as police investigated.
Simpson said police want to talk to the young women and other witnesses to the rampage. They understandably left the scene, but can help fill in what happened, he said.
"It's horrific," he said. "There's no other word to describe what happened today. For the victims, our thoughts and prayers are with their families. ... For the witnesses, there is no other word."
Portland Muslim community reacts to fatal stabbing
Friday marks the start of Ramadan, a monthlong fast observed by most of the world's 1.6 billion Muslims.
"Our thoughts are with the Muslim community," Simpson said. "As something like this happens, this only instills fear in that community. We have already reached out previous to this incident to our Muslim community partners and the different imams about extra patrol during Ramadan. We want to reassure them that that will continue."
Portland is home to a rough estimate of about 50,000 Muslims of different ethnicities.
"This appears at least to be an isolated incident based on what we know at this point," Simpson said.
Officers tried to save the man who died on the train, he said. Police have recovered the knife, he said.
Simpson thanked witnesses who called 911 and reported where the suspect went and what he was wearing.
"It was really critical to us taking this man into custody. (He was) obviously very dangerous based on his actions," he said.
TriMet said the Blue, Green and Red MAX lines were disrupted and that the transit center was closed. Buses were running between Northeast Seventh Avenue and Southeast Main Street, according to the agency.
Updated on May 27, 2017 at 1:20 AM
Posted on May 27, 2017 at 0:15 AM
Gallery: Deadly MAX stabbing, May 26, 2017
BY EDER CAMPUZANO
The Oregonian/OregonLive
The fatal stabbing of two men in Northeast Portland by a man shouting racial slurs Friday evening was met with sorrow by the Muslim community, marring what's usually a celebratory time: the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan.
The suspect was yelling "hate speech or biased language" at two young women, spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson said. One of the women was wearing a hijab.
Three men tried to intervene and were stabbed, two of whom died from their wounds. The third is expected to survive.
The suspect has not been named.
Harris Zafar, author of "Demystifying Islam: Tackling the Tough Questions" and frequent commentator on CNN and Fox News, told The Oregonian/OregonLive Friday night that he found the event "tragic and concerning." He has lived in Portland for 31 years.
"As a Muslim, it's unnerving to know — being a father, being a husband, being a son — that this could have been one of the many women in our mosque and the greater Portland area," he said.
2 killed in stabbing on MAX train as man directs slurs at Muslim women, police say
Still, Zafar said he was inspired by the men who "had nothing to gain by putting themselves in harm's way."
"Of course, that's immediately replaced by an intense emotion of sadness that they've lost their lives," he said. "My heart goes out to the families of those individuals, who are also now lost in grief."
As news of the stabbing spread across the country, the Center on American-Islamic Relations issued a statement calling on President Trump denounce bigotry targeting Muslims and other minority groups.
"President Trump must speak out personally against the rising tide of Islamophobia and other forms of bigotry and racism in our nation that he has provoked through his numerous statements, policies and appointments that have negatively impacted minority communities," said Nihad Awad, the center's national executive director.
Zafar echoed the sentiment.
"I don't blame Donald Trump —I don't think he's a white supremacist," the author said.
But Zafar added that he believes the president's words on the campaign trail in 2016 policies such as his proposal to ban immigration and travel from six majority Muslim nations has nevertheless empowered those with fringe views.
"Clearly it's been festering and brewing," Zafar said. "And now with the election of President Trump those voices have felt some level of legitimacy."
The biggest problem, the author said, is that too few Americans personally know somebody of Islamic faith. Zafar pointed to a 2014 Pew Research study that found only 38 percent of U.S. residents know a Muslim.
"It's really hard to believe in that rhetoric and harbor ill will if they know someone in that demographic," he said. "If someone knew a Muslim, I don't think they would believe that rhetoric so easily."
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler boarded the inaugural direct flight from Portland International Airport to London before the attack. A spokesman said Wheeler is in communication with police.
City Commissioner Chloe Eudaly issued a statement on behalf of the city, acting in the mayor's stead.
"The City of Portland has a heavy heart right now, and our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends of the deceased and injured," she said. "This is an especially sad and disturbing incident. People lost their lives or were injured because they stood up to hate."
Eudaly thanked witnesses who helped police track down the suspect. She also asked Portlanders to offer their support
to the two women and anyone else who may have been targeted.
"The courage of the people who stood up for them is a reminder that we as a city need to stand together to denounce hate," she said.
http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2017/05/muslim_community_reacts_fatal_ne_portland_stabbing.html