14 JUNE 4, 2020 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Queens hosts several peaceful protests after
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO, JEFFERY
HARRELL, GRANT LANCASTER, DEAN
MOSES AND ZACH GEWELB
EDITORIAL@QNS.COM
@QNS
Protesters took to the streets of
Queens this weekend — as they
have across the country — to
speak out against the killing of George
Floyd, a black man who died aft er
a white Minneapolis police offi cer,
Derek Chauvin, dug his knee into
Floyd’s neck for over eight minutes.
On Saturday, nearly 1,000 protesters
marched through Jackson Heights. On
Sunday, protesters took to Jamaica’s
streets. And on Monday, protesters
gathered in Astoria Park to mourn
Floyd’s death and call for change.
Despite being only miles from
protests in Brooklyn, Manhattan and
the Bronx that became violent aft er
sunset, protests in Queens remained
relatively peaceful, with few clashes
between police and protesters.
But the message in Queens was the
same as the message heard in Brooklyn
and beyond — police violence against
black people must stop.
“I’m tired. I’m tired of seeing it, I’m
tired of living it, I’m tired of being in
fear,” Jamaica resident Malaika Brutus
told QNS on Saturday in Jackson
Heights. “Something has to change.”
On Saturday, May 30, protesters
gathered in Diversity Plaza on
Roosevelt Avenue and Broadway, before
making their way up Broadway,
stopping traffi c for several blocks.
Protesters chanted “no peace, no
justice,” and “say his name: George
Floyd!” with their fi sts in the air as police
offi cers wearing riot gear gripped
tightly to their batons, shadowing the
marchers every move. There were
times when the demonstrators went
head to head with the offi cers, screaming
that they are tired of the abuse and
the deaths.
But for most of the march, the
atmosphere was rather peaceful and
calm in comparison to the fracas that
unfolded Friday night outside Brooklyn’s
Barclays Center.
Activists handed out water, masks
and snacks as the marchers wound
their way toward the 115th Precinct.
As the Queens group passed along a
residential block, neighbors rang out
cowbells in support of the eff ort.
Several Q32 bus drivers showed
their support with loud honks, along
with many others stuck in traffi c due
to the protest. The Transit Workers
Union Local 100 have made public
statements in support of the Black
Lives Matter protesters, with one
driver refusing to allow the NYPD to
transport arrested activists at Friday’s
protest in Brooklyn.
Residents and business owners in
Jackson Heights rang bells and beat
on buckets out of their windows,
Protesters rally in Jackson Heights. Photo by Dean Moses
reminiscent of the nightly ritual celebrating
health care workers during
the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chris Ogunfowora, who traveled
from Elmont in Long Island, felt it
necessary to protest even during the
pandemic.
“If you’re not doing anything at this
point, you’re standing up for the police
who keep killing us,” he said behind
a black protective mask. “There’s
nothing left to argue about, we need
justice.”
The crowd fl ooded the roadways,
stopping traffi c, as they made their way
to the 115th Precinct in Jackson Heights.
State Senator Jessica Ramos, came face
to face with the offi cers and warned
them not to harm the protesters. She
could be heard telling the offi cers, “do
not touch my people.”
The march came to a halt in front of
the precinct as protesters continued
to shout in Spanish, “asesinos police,”
which translates to “murderous police,”
in English.
State Senator Michael Gianaris
marched with protesters for several
blocks. He said it’s important for those
who don’t grow up with fear that
people of color grow up with to “stand
up and show support.”
“I’m here because there is injustice
going on in this country. It’s been going
on for a long time,” Gianaris said.
“We’re seeing a lot of it going on in just
the last couple of weeks.”
Gianaris said he and his colleagues
have to start making policy changes
both at the city and the state level.
“Hopefully we’ll take that on and do
that shortly,” he said.
The senator also called on the NYPD
to “be better” aft er the department has
come under fi re for their actions in
Brooklyn on Friday.
“You saw what happened Friday
night, they were too quick to turn to
aggressive and violent actions — opening
their doors and knocking people
over, pushing women down on the
fl oor. They have to get a lot better,”
Gianaris said.
By 6:05 p.m., the crowd had started
to disperse before the protest ended
around 7:30 p.m.
Police could not immediately comment
on how many arrests — if any
— were made during the protest.
“There’s protests everywhere in the
city,” a spokesperson said.
And they didn’t stop on Saturday.
One day aft er the mostly peaceful
protest in Jackson Heights, demonstrators
marched down the streets of
Jamaica.
One demonstrator, Aleeia Abraham,
posted a video on Facebook showing
police offi cers kneeling in solidarity
with protesters, many of whom could
be heard cheering and thanking the
offi cers for their show of support.
One of the offi cers shown kneeling
in the video is Deputy Inspector Vincent
Tavalaro, the commanding offi cer
of the 103rd Precinct in Jamaica.
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea
also praised the moment of solidarity
on Twitter.
“We need more of this, to see and
hear each other, to work together, to
recognize that our diff erences are our
strength,” Shea said.
The demonstration in Jamaica, the
protest in Jackson Heights on Saturday
and a separate protest at Flushing
Meadows Corona Park Sunday evening
did not escalate the way demonstrations
had in Brooklyn and Manhattan
over the weekend.
The trend continued into Monday,
when hundreds of people attended a
protest in Astoria Park to honor Floyd’s
memory. The protest later turned
into a vigil and remained peaceful
throughout.
The gathering began around 7 p.m.,
four hours before the curfew created
by Governor Cuomo and Mayor de
Blasio earlier in the day. The curfew
was intended to prevent the looting,
vandalism and fires seen during
protests in Brooklyn and Manhattan
during the four previous nights.
And while the damage was controlled
a little more than it had been in previous
days in Manhattan and Brooklyn,
Queens saw its fi rst looting scare.
On Monday aft ernoon, traffi c was
delayed near Queens Center Mall due
to the presence of emergency personnel
in response to reported looting.
Video that surfaced on social media
Monday aft ernoon showed a group
of people running around the mall
attempting to kick through boarded
up windows.
The situation did not appear to be
a protest related to Floyd’s death and
the continuation of police violence
against black men and women across
the country, but rather a previously
planned “loot out” that had allegedly
been scheduled to begin at the mall,
located at 90-15 Queens Blvd., around
1 p.m., according to a notice obtained
by QNS.
An NYPD spokesperson confi rmed
with QNS that the 110th Precinct had
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