By Nathan Duke
Four teenagers from Astoria and Long Island City were arrested last week after they allegedly attacked the director of a gay and transgender center on Steinway Street, shocking community activists and elected officials, who said the neighborhood prides itself on diversity and tolerance.
The teens are accused of striking Father Louis Braxton Jr., who operates Carmen's Place, in the face with a metal stick and punched him repeatedly about 10 p.m. on July 7, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.
Braxton had intervened when the defendants taunted a group of transgender teens, shouting anti-gay slurs at them, the DA said.
“One of [the center's teens] was out front dancing and [the defendants] saw an easy target,” said Braxton, who moved the center to Steinway Street after its original site at St. Andrew's Episcopal Church closed in February 2007. “They hit me from behind. This is the first time something like this has happened to me.”
Braxton said he escaped the attack with knots on his head and a swollen lip. He said he had already been looking for a new site for the shelter and that the attack was an incentive to speed up the process.
Trevaughn Payne, 16, of 23-02 34th Ave. in Astoria; Tyreek Childs, 17, of 34-04 24th St. in Long Island City; Shara Mozie, 17, of 35-06 24th St. in Long Island City; and another juvenile whose name was not released were all charged July 8 with assault, criminal possession of a weapon and harassment before Queens Criminal Court Judge Robert Raciti, who released the defendants on their own recognizance, Brown said.
The four, who will return to court on Aug. 13, could each face up to one year in jail if convicted, a DA spokeswoman said.
None of the defendants were charged with a hate crime, a spokeswoman for the DA said.
Members of Astoria's Queens Community House and Generation Q joined a small group of LGBT youths outside Astoria shelter Carmen's Place last Thursday to voice their outrage over the incident.
“This horrible event is not an isolated incident,” said Marisa Ragonese, director of Generation Q, an Astoria-based LGBT youth group. “It's part of a daily regiment of harassment and violence against LGBT youth.”
Teens who joined in the rally outside the shelter said the attack scared them and that they did not expect such an incident in their diverse Astoria neighborhood.
“I've lived here my whole life and it's very shocking,” teenager Anthony Naveja said.
Western Queens elected officials said they hoped the defendants' punishment would fit the crime.
“Astoria prides itself on its diversity and its strong sense of community,” state Assemblyman Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria) said. “These attacks are an affront to our entire community. We must make it clear that hate will not be tolerated.”
Reach reporter Nathan Duke by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 156.
