➤ NYPD AGGRESSION, from p.6
for mass arrests — we intervened to try and deescalate
and prevent that. Most importantly,
there seems to be a lack of leadership when the
City needs it the most.”
By the time activists reached Union Square,
the Daily News reported, there were hundreds
of police offi cers equipped with bicycles and,
just as activists were about to disperse, offi cers
barrelled in with their bikes to push individuals
deeper into Union Square Park. Reporter Roger
Stern of 1010 WINS was knocked to the ground
and told the Daily News that he did not understand
why offi cers charged a peaceful demonstration.
The NYPD, meanwhile, chimed in on Twitter
at 9 p.m. posting a photo of a chain and alleging,
without any video evidence, that a police offi
cer was “pushed to the ground” and the chain
was “pressed against his throat.” The police
then warned that the department “will be reviewing
this incident, and bring any additional
perpetrators to justice.”
On the morning of November 6, Mayor Bill de
Blasio hesitated to criticize the police department
when asked by Brian Lehrer of WNYC
about the NYPD’s response to the protests the
night before.
The police’s actions during the evening drew
widespread criticism from progressive queer
politicians who reiterated their displeasure over
TWITTER/ @JUMAANE WILLIAMS
The NYPD moved aggressively on LGBTQ and allied demonstrators
in the Village on the evening of November 5.
the City Council’s hesitance to signifi cantly cut
the police budget over the summer.
Out queer Queens City Council candidate
Tiffany Cabán issued a written statement condemning
the NYPD’s actions and emphasizing
the need to bring drastic reforms to the city.
“Last night we again witnessed the NYPD
brutalize people who were practicing their Constitutional
right to protest in defense of Black
lives and in defense of our democracy,” Cabán
said. “We saw the NYPD accost and assault our
public advocate, Jumaane Williams. The public
advocate is the second-most powerful position
in the City, and is meant to be a check on the
mayor, who is supposed to be in charge of, and,
a check on, the NYPD. The police did not care.”
Cabán continued, “We continue to be in a
moment of reckoning. We must end white supremacy.
We must end racism and racialized
capitalism. We must end our prison industrial
complex. We cannot legislate around the edges.
Yes, here in New York, we will immediately
fi ght to take away the police forces’ weapons of
war, and we will fi ght to remove them from credentialing
our press corp, from occupying our
schools, and from responding to our neighbors
in mental health crises. But, we know that it
is not enough. We have to listen to Black folks,
Black women, Black trans women, who have
been telling us for generations that the police in
this country do not keep us safe.”
In response to Caban’s additional tweets directed
at the mayor over the NYPD’s actions, out
gay City Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer of
Queens wrote, “DefundtheNYPD.”
Manhattan State Senator Brad Hoylman also
spoke up on Twitter, writing, “Our Public Advocate
@JumaaneWilliams has a long history of
going to protests specifi cally to join with New
Yorkers while de-escalating tensions. There’s no
sense in this, @NYCMayor. Where are you?”
The demonstration was not the only one
during the week that was met with aggression
from the NYPD. Dozens of arrests were made in
Manhattan November 4 on a night when police
were blasted for resorting to “kettling” tactics
in which offi cers disrupted peaceful protesters
by pushing them onto sidewalks and blocking
individuals with bicycles.
Smell gas,
act fast.
If you smell gas, leave the area
immediately and call 911 or
1-800-75-CONED (26633).
For more gas safety tips, visit
conEd.com/GasSafetyTips
GayCityNews.com | November 19 - November 25, 2020 7
/GasSafetyTips
/GayCityNews.com
