CRIME
Vigil for Yahira Nesby; NYPD Releases Video Footage
Cops have no ID on man sought who was caught on camera near victim’s Brownsville home
BY MATT TRACY
Candles on the sidewalk
lit up vibrant photos of
the late Yahira Nesby, a
33-year-old transgender
woman murdered on December
19. Signs read “rest in power” and
“never forgotten.” Messages highlighting
deadly violence against
transgender women were on display.
A crowd of more than 30 members
of Nesby’s chosen family,
friends, and loved ones gathered
in Brownsville on December 23 for
a somber candlelight vigil honoring
her life outside the apartment
building where she was tragically
shot and killed less than one week
earlier. Among those in attendance
at the vigil were Public Advocate
Jumaane Williams as well as community
members and representatives
of advocacy groups including
Police are seeking to locate this man, thought to be 30 to 35 years old, captured in video footage near
Yahira Nesby’s home the day she was murdered..
the New York City Anti-Violence
Project, the Sylvia Rivera Law Project,
and the DecrimNY coalition.
Coming at the height of the holiday
season, Nesby’s death drew the
attention and sadness of the wider
transgender and non-binary community
NYPD
in New York and beyond.
Celebrities like “Pose” star Indya
Moore took to Twitter in the hours
following her death, writing, “Her
name was Yahira Nesby Aka Yaya.
My thoughts are with her family.
New York fam. Please please please
please be watchful and careful of
these men. I beg of you.”
Nesby’s death has left the community
searching for answers. A
man who was fl eeing the building
at the time of Nesby’s death was
initially taken into custody and
questioned, but was released. On
December 27, police announced
they were searching for an unidentifi
ed man in connection with the
case. The man is believed to be between
30 and 35 years of age, has
a dark complexion, is six feet tall,
and weighs approximately 250
pounds. He was last seen donning
a black shirt with a black jacket,
black jogging pants, white socks,
gray sneakers, and a black winter
hat with white letters on the hat.
Police circulated surveillance
video footage of the person of interest
walking in front of a building
several doors from Nesby’s Rockaway
Parkway apartment house.
Bolsonaro Tells Reporter His Face Looks Gay
Brazil’s president turns to homophobia to distract from family scandal
President Jair Bolsonaro
of Brazil maintained
his reputation of homophobia
on December
20 when he told a reporter that his
“face looks an awful lot like a homosexual’s.”
Bolsonaro’s comments came
in response to questions about a
scandal involving his family after
prosecutors announced they were
probing the president’s son, Senator
Flávio Bolsonaro, for allegedly
hiring aides who did not do the
work they were paid to do. Investigators
are also looking into whether
the employees laundered their
earnings through a chocolate shop
owned by the younger Bolsonaro.
“Your face looks an awful lot like
a homosexual’s, but that’s no reason
to accuse you of being a homosexual,”
Bolsonaro said to the
reporter, whose name has not been
disclosed in media reports about
the comments.
According to Brazilian news
outlet Globo.com , Bolsonaro later
started to express regret in front of
reporters, but quickly made it clear
he wasn’t about to make an apology.
“To whom did I say was terribly
homosexual… is he not here today?”
he asked. “Send him a kiss
from me! It’s just like football: up
front, from time to time, you send
your colleague to the torture
chamber, and then go out for a
drink with him afterwards. Yes, I
make a mistake. I should not have
spoken.”
Bolsonaro is no stranger to homophobia,
racism, and xenophobia
— he once described himself
as “homophobic and very proud of
it” — and he has only escalated his
bigoted rhetoric and actions since
INTERNATIONAL
he took offi ce earlier this year,
mocking gay men by posting a video
of some partying during Carnival
and warning that Brazil should
not become “known as a gay tourism
paradise.” His reputation even
made a mark in New York City,
where he withdrew from an awards
ceremony earlier this year after locals
— including out gay State Senator
Brad Hoylman — expressed
outrage over his presence here.
Bolsonaro also drew attention
during his visit to the White House
on March 19 when he stood next
to President Donald Trump in the
Rose Garden and said, “May I say
that Brazil and the United States
stand side by side in their efforts
to ensure liberties in respect to traditional
family lifestyles, respect to
God, our creator against the gender
ideology or politically correct attitudes
and against fake news.”
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS/ PALACIA DO PLANALTO
Does it show on our faces?: President Jair Bolsonaro
of Brazil is hitting reporters with homophobia
in response to questions about allegations of
corruption surrounding his family.
GayCityNews.com | January 2 - January 15, 2020 5
/Globo.com
/GayCityNews.com
