A black man and a Jewish man who lost relatives in the racially charged Crown Heights riots almost 25 years ago met in Midwood Wednesday to catch up.
Carmel Cato, who lost his son, and Norman Rosenbaum, who lost his brother, reunited at a deli on Coney Island Avenue.
The riots happened in 1991 after a Hasidic Jewish driver lost control of his vehicle and killed 7-year-old Gavin Cato. Three days of violence between the neighborhood's black and Jewish communities ensued.
Rosenbaum was in Australia during the riots, when he says he received a phone call and learned that his brother Yankel had been stabbed to death in the chaos.
Over the years, the two men have become friends, occasionally meeting for lunch, despite living far away from one another.