The Black Indiana man beaten by a group of white men and called a slur in a viral video said Thursday he hopes good can come from his misfortune.
“I just want to make sure it doesn’t happen to anybody else,” James Simmons said in an outdoor meeting with reporters in Fort Wayne.
Simmons was referring to his experience at Pike’s Pub, a bar just outside of Fort Wayne, on Friday, May 30. In the footage shared on social media, the group tackles Simmons to the ground and someone throws a chair at him. Simmons was treated at a local hospital for his injuries.
On Thursday, Simmons met with authorities to share what happened. Later, joined by Pastor Carlton Lynch of Benton Harbor, Michigan, Simmons told reporters that he has been encouraged by the public support he’s received. Various individuals have wised him well and local officials have promised to serve justice. A community activist also has launched a Change.org petition pressing officials to press charges.
“It’s very heartwarming,” he said. “I didn’t know I was so supported.“
A representative from the Allen County, Indiana, Sheriff’s Department told Black News & Views Thursday that the investigation has had a boost by Simmons’ decision to speak with the department. Initially, Simmons and witnesses at the scene were saying nothing to authorities who responded to the incident that night, Lt. Adam Griffith said.
“The officer (who was on the scene) walked in the bar at one point and said, ‘Did anybody see anything when it comes to the fight?’ and nobody specifically said anything. He did the same thing outside where he asked if anybody had seen anything,” Griffith said.
Since then, the FBI has accepted the county’s request to help with the investigation and Simmons has spoken with the sheriff’s department and Fort Wayne Mayor Sharon Tucker, Griffith said.
“My confidence (in the investigation) has grown every day this week,” Griffith said.
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Multiple telephone calls to Pike’s Pub have been met with only a long-ringing phone.
Bar owner Kelley Rost, who said she was not at Pike’s Pub at the time of the incident, told WANE 15, “There are two sides to every story.”
The incident comes at a time when Black Americans say race-based crimes and aggressions against them are on the rise.
Federal statistics seem to support some of this.
In 2023, the most recent year for which data is available, the numbers of hate crimes in the United States rose, and crimes against Black Americans made up 51.3% of those crimes—more than three times higher than the next highest category, according to the FBI.
Sarah Goings-Almo, a Fort Wayne resident who has been sharing the Change.org petition on social media, told Black News & Views that racial tension is nothing new in her community.
Goings-Almo said the recent attack “is a stark reminder of the deep-seated issues that have been simmering beneath the surface for decades.”
