Stonewall protest erupts into chaos at Columbus Circle
BY TAT BELLAMY-WALKER
GAY CITY NEWS
The weekly Stonewall protest condemning
police brutality and deadly
violence against transgender individuals
erupted into chaos on April 22 as
the NYPD violently roughed up protesters
and made arrests.
The “Black Power for Black Justice:
Guilty Is Not Enough” protest started at
the Stonewall Inn before protesters made
their way to Columbus Circle, where six
individuals were arrested between Fifth
Avenue and East 59th Street after the USS
Maine National Monument was allegedly
covered in graffi ti and red paint.
Video footage of the incident posted by
Twitter users, including Leeroy Johnson
(@LeeroyPress) and Ash J (@AshAgony),
showed NYPD offi cers shoving protesters
with batons and throwing them to
the ground. In a text message to Gay
City News, Qween Jean, one of the cofounders
of the protest, confi rmed the
series of events and described the scene
as a “nightmare.”
Individuals allegedly spray-painted the
monument with the phrase “Stonewall was
TS Candii of Black Trans Nation is calling on the city to approve a plan to
create a mural near the Stonewall Inn.
a Riot” as well as the anti-police slogan,
“A.C.A.B.” The protesters were arrested
on multiple charges, including assault,
making graffi ti, disorderly conduct, and
obstructing governmental administration,
police said.
The NYPD condemned the incidents
and claimed to be “working to de-escalate
PHOTO BY DEAN MOSES
the situation,” despite the video evidence
showing them aggressively going after
protesters.
Mayor Bill de Blasio also criticized
protesters and blasted them for defacing
state property — but did not appear to say
anything about the police’s treatment of
protesters.
“It’s not legal, and there will be consequences,”
he said, according to ABC News.
“You want to make change, go out and protest
peacefully. You want to make change,
work with other leaders and organizations
to achieve it.”
He added, “But it’s just wrong. It’s
just wrong, and we are going to keep
trying to make clear to people, if you
are a peaceful protester and you see
folks planning violence or planning to
destroy property, separate from them.
Don’t let them undermine the meaning
of what good peaceful protest is trying
to achieve.”
Bree Newsome, an activist who made
headlines when she removed the Confederate
fl ag at the South Carolina statehouse
in 2015, reacted to the Twitter videos
showing the police treatment of protesters.
She asked, “Again, where are the public
statements from the Biden White House
and the elected offi cials pushing reform
regarding police rioting against protesters
in the streets right now??”
The protests at Stonewall fi rst started
last year after a Black trans woman in Missouri
and a Black trans man in Florida were
killed just weeks apart in 2020.
City mum on proposal for ‘Black Trans Lives Matter’ mural at Stonewall
BY TAT BELLAMY-WALKER
GAY CITY NEWS
TS Candii, a Black transgender
woman and founder of a non-profi t
called Black Trans Nation, is calling
on the city to give the green light for
plans to create a “Black Trans Lives Matter”
street mural in front of the historic
Stonewall Inn.
In January, State Assemblymembers Dan
Quart of Manhattan and Catalina Cruz of
Queens joined out gay State Senator Brad
Hoylman of Manhattan in issuing a letter of
support to the Department of Transportation’s
(DOT) Manhattan borough commissioner,
Ed Pincar. In the letter, lawmakers
described the mural as a tool to recognize
the transgender, gender non-conforming,
and non-binary community.
“Though their contributions have often
been erased, transgender women of color
played a pivotal role in the Stonewall rebellion
and the advancement of LGBTQ
rights,” the politicians penned in the
letter. “Despite the strides made, TGNC
individuals remain at the margins facing
down stigmatization, discrimination, and
violence.”
Several months after sending the letter,
TS Candii said DOT offi cials have yet to
Police made several arrests at the weekly Stonewall protest on April 22.
respond, though it is not the fi rst time the
group has petitioned for the mural. Last
year, the DOT also denied the project for
reasons that are not clear.
“They don’t support our humanity,” TS
Candii said. “They hear us, they see us, but
they are doing nothing for us. They are just
sitting on their hands.”
The DOT did not respond to Gay
City News’ request for comment for this
story. TS Candii believes the project’s
PHOTO BY DONNA ACETO
delay refl ects a much broader dismissal of
transgender New Yorkers.
“Mentally, it’s draining,” she said. “Black
Lives Matter had not only one mural; they
had two, three all around the city, and
we’re fi ghting for this one?”
She added, “Black trans lives matter, and
to them, our lives don’t matter.”
The mural, which would depict Trans
Flags and Rainbows Flags, is meant to honor
advocates’ most recent wins. TS Candii
was one of the lead organizers behind the
state’s repeal of a loitering law known as a
ban on“Walking While Trans,”a policy that
police offi cers used to disproportionately
target transgender women of color. That
legislation also seals all prior convictions
and records under the statute.
The petition for the mural coincides with
growing anti-trans legislation across the US
in states such asMississippi,Arkansas, and
Tennessee, where governors have recently
signed bills banning transgender and some
non-binary athletes from school sports. Efforts
to restrict healthcare for trans youth
are also well underway in states such as
Arkansas, which banned gender-affi rming
medical care for trans youth afteroverriding
Governor Asa Hutchinson’s veto.
“As violence has escalated, transgender
rights have been under vicious attack by the
Trump administration, in federal courts,
and state legislatures across the country,”
the politicians wrote in a letter. “We have
an opportunity to build on the progress
New York City and the state have made
protecting the rights of TGNC people by
celebrating their rich history at Stonewall
and lifting up their advocacy work.”
Quart said the mural would help push
back against transphobia throughout the
nation.
Schneps Media April 29, 2021 3