VIDEO: Elderly Asian man attacked, humiliated while collecting cans in San Francisco neighborhood
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Disturbing video showing an elderly man collecting cans in San Francisco's Bayview neighborhood and then being assaulted and reduced to tears is gaining attention around the world.
The video, originally posted to Instagram over the weekend, has since been deleted by the user but has been re-posted by others.
Since being re-posted, it has received hundreds of thousands of views and comments calling for help.
San Francisco Supervisor Shamann Walton, who represents the Bayview District, condemned the incident on Monday.
The city leader is vowing to continue efforts to implement programs like expanding the Vision Zero plan to combat violence in neighborhoods and lobbying for more resources to unify communities.
"Elder abuse is taking place," Walton said. "We're working on getting somebody intermittently who can work with our office to coordinate how to respond to and prevent and intervene in violence in our district as a whole."
Also part of the solution is the city's Community Ambassadors program, formed in 2010 in response to two high-profile, racially motivated attacks on Asian seniors.
Members of the multi-lingual team ABC7 News spoke to in nearby Visitacion Valley wished they were present for what happened over the weekend and believe they could have helped the situation.
"Yes, I think so. If Johnny, the one who speaks Chinese on my team, could have been here to talk to him, to tell him what was going on and help him get out of there," said Schevonne Baty, the community ambassador team lead for Visitacion Valley.
While racial slurs can be heard in the video, San Francisco police have not yet called the incident a hate crime.
Police are investigating and trying to locate and identify the victim and witnesses.
Offers to help the victim and his family are pouring in from all over the world and from high-profile celebrities, but funds can't be given out until the victim is identified.
SFPD encourages those who knew anything about the incident to call their anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444
