An Art Dealer Says Teens Attacked Him for His MAGA Hat. Now, He’s Accusing Police of Anti-Trump Bias Because They Haven’t Found Proof

A Manhattan art dealer is claiming he was attacked by a group of
teens who targeted him for wearing a red “Make America Great Again”
baseball hat. Claiming that the police have been unable or
unwilling to locate his attackers since the Tuesday
assault, Jahangir “John” Turan says he is speaking out to the
media in the hopes of getting justice.

Turan, who owns the David Parker gallery in midtown, suffered a
black eye, bruises, and other swelling to his face after he was
assaulted while walking on Canal Street, near West Broadway, just
above Tribeca around 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 30.

The gallerist told NBC News he
had purchased the red MAGA hat earlier that day at the Trump Tower,
which is located just one block from his West 57th street
gallery. Indeed, Turan posted the entire process of going to the
Trump Campaign Store on Facebook Live, narrating his arrival and
the process of picking out the individual hat.

The assault, which was undocumented, occurred later the same day
when he was going to meet a client while wearing the hat. Turan
says that he passed a group of “kids,” approximately 18 to 20 years
old, when a young woman flipped his hat into the street. As he bent
down to retrieve it, he says, the rest of the group allegedly
started assaulting him, shouting anti-Trump statements including
“Fuck Trump” and smashing his head against a pole.

Police have been unable to track down the alleged attackers,
partly because Turan could not provide any descriptions.
The New York Daily
News reported that the NYPD said it had no reason to doubt
his story, but added that two law enforcement sources told the
paper that there was “some skepticism about the alleged
Trump-hating gang attack, and said it might just have been a brawl
between him and another person.”

For his part, Turan has expressed frustration with the police.
“Of course I’m [angry]—why do you think I went to the media?”, he
told the Daily News. “I felt angry after Tuesday and
Wednesday, when I didn’t see them doing anything. Two days, no
arrests. I think some of these cops are anti-Trump.”

According to a gallery listing page, David Parker Gallery is a
primarily secondary market dealer selling prints and multiples by
artists including Salvador Dalí, Andy Warhol, Mr. Brainwash,
Takashi Murakami, and Keith Haring.

Turan did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The
New York Police Department sent artnet News a copy of the incident
summary, which reads:

On Tuesday, July 30, 2019 at approximately 1850 hours police
responded to a 911 call of an assault in 321 Canal Street within
the confines of the 1st Precinct.  Officers were informed
by a 35-year-old male victim he was walking when he was punched in
the head by unknown individuals in an unprovoked manner. 
There is no description of the individuals and the victim refused
medical attention on scene.  The investigation remains
ongoing.

Background:  The victim states he was wearing a “Make
America Great Again” hat

The post An Art Dealer Says Teens Attacked Him for His MAGA
Hat. Now, He’s Accusing Police of Anti-Trump Bias Because They
Haven’t Found Proof appeared first on artnet News.