Death on the Subway: A stranglehold shakes New York

The man shouted, “I have no food, I have nothing to drink, I am fed up.” Then the 30-year-old African-American, who was later identified as Jordan Neely, said he didn’t care if he ended up in jail. “I’m ready to die.”

Scene from this outbreak: a New York subway train, somewhere in the maze of tunnels beneath the skyscrapers of Brooklyn and Manhattan. Regular visitors to the largest city in the US know that such incidents are not uncommon. Usually they remain peaceful.

However, this episode ended differently on Monday. A passenger, a 24-year-old white male, overpowered the screaming Neely and held him in a chokehold. The man, a military veteran, didn’t let go even when Neely passed out. Spectators, as shown in an eyewitness video, let him do it. When Neely was taken to a hospital by the alerted police, he was dead.

How did it come to this? New Yorkers disagree

Now New York wonders: how did it get to this point? Since more than 8 million people live in the big city, the answer to this question is not clear. Many New Yorkers say: Terrible! They are outraged that the strangler was not immediately arrested. The investigation is ongoing, police said recently. Left-wing MP Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez spoke of a murder case.

But the other half of the population is not surprised that a subway passenger took matters into his own hands. These New Yorkers point out that the feeling of safety in the subway has deteriorated sharply since the corona pandemic. People like Neely are also responsible for that. He used to wow passengers with performances, but recently he was homeless and suffered from mental health issues. His presence upset other passengers.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said he remains committed to keeping “people with serious emotional problems” off the subway. The murder of Jordan Neely shows that he is still a long way from this goal. (aargauerzeitung.ch)