By Bill Parry
Nearly a hundred members of the Jackson Heights LGBT community rallied last week near the home of a 35-year-old transgender woman who was brutally assaulted in the early hours of Nov. 29. Activists who met with the woman at Elmhurst Hospital Center Dec. 1 said she was off life support and on the road to recovery, but they have since been turned away.
“She’s been reunited with her family and they say she is no longer receiving visitors,” Jennifer Louise Lopez, the executive director of Everything Transgender in NYC, said. Many at the rally were angry that the NYPD decided the attack was not a hate crime after interviewing a witness.
“Whether it was a random assault, a hate crime or a domestic violence attack, this brutal aggression against one of our neighbors will not go unpunished,” state Sen. Jose Peralta (D-East Elmhurst) said. “There is no room for violence in our community, no room for violence because of one’s sexual orientation, gender expression, religious beliefs, background or their opinions.”
Several transgender women shared their stories, including one who said she escaped a recent abduction but was too afraid to go to the police. Another transgender woman, who traveled to the rally from her home in the Bronx, flew into a rage when she heard the stories.
“We need action not words,” Shagasyia Diamond shouted. “When the speeches are done and the cameras go away, what’s going to happen after this rally? I’ll tell you, the beating will start again, more of our sisters are going to be hurt and no one does a damn thing about it.”
Diamond stormed away with a friend from Harlem. State Assemblyman Francisco Moya (D-Jackson Heights) explained why emotions were running high.
“The transgender community is particularly vulnerable to both domestic violence and hate crimes and we must ensure that they are protected from both,” Moya said. “Here in Jackson Heights, we pride ourselves on the safety of our neighborhood and our culture of diversity. Safety for all our residents must be our priority.”
A second attack was also on the minds of many at the rally. Just after midnight on Nov. 30, a 25-year-old gay man was stalked, beaten and sexually assaulted by three men. City Councilman Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights), who has been briefed, said that while there have not been any arrests, the investigation by the 115th Precinct “has been very aggressive.”
Deputy Inspector Brian Hennessy would not comment on the ongoing investigation.
Assemblyman Michael DenDekker (D-East Elmhurst), a resident of Jackson Heights for 54 years, called for a larger police presence to serve as a deterrent to the violence.
“I’ve been to too many of these rallies over the years,” he said.
So has Alan Jay Reiff, the co-chairman of the Queens Pride Parade.
“It takes us back 25 years when Julio Rivera was murdered,” he said. “I thought we’ve moved further than that.”
Civic leader Bill Meehan agreed.
“It’s sad,” he said. “These rallies are repetitive and we do it too often. We yell, we scream, we cry and then we do it all over again. It has to stop.”
Reach reporter Bill Parry by e-mail at bparr
