By Bill Parry
Just days after the NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force launched an investigation into a homophobic death threat received by City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Sunnyside), the openly gay Council majority leader led more than a thousand protesters across the Queensboro Bridge to Trump Tower Saturday. Van Bramer said he received the threatening e-mail Nov. 17, a day after more than 700 community members packed the Sunnyside Community Services center to discuss president-elect Donald Trump’s xenophobic rhetoric and what to do about “things which have been explicitly promised and threatened by Trump and Pence.”
Vice president-elect Mike Pence has stood against expanding rights for gay and lesbian couples and his support for electro-shock conversion therapy as treatment for gays has outraged the LGBT community. Van Bramer’s office sent out an e-mail blast Nov. 17 reminding his constituents of the march and a half hour later, he received the threat just after 3:30 p.m. from an unknown source, according to the NYPD.
“Rest of the people from Queens do not agree with your homosexual lifestyle, so get the (expletive) out of this country you (expletive) traitor” the e-mail read. “I will keep a close eye on your every moves so that when it’s time to execute traitors, I will try my best so that you(r) name is included in that list of traitors. Execution is the penalty for a traitor, that is the Law Of This Land!”
The e-mail’s author called the 700 attendees at Wednesday’s town hall in Sunnyside communist socialists and threatened violence and damage to property during the march. An NYPD spokesman said there have been no arrests and the Hate Crimes Task Force investigation was ongoing.
Van Bramer said last Friday morning that he was was not afraid and his #QueensResponds march would not be cancelled.
“This is not normal or acceptable, but we will not back down. We still plan on marching tomorrow and fighting the racist, sexist, homophobic, and xenophobic demagoguery of Donald Trump,” Van Bramer said Friday. “Queens is the most diverse county in the country, and we know that our differences make us stronger. We will fight for these values every single day, no matter what. I am not scared and I will not back down. Too many are at risk. We must all stand up and peacefully resist.”
As they gathered for the march at Dutch Kills Green at the base of the bridge, Deputy Inspector John Taravaglia and officers from the 108th Precinct arrived to escort Van Bramer and the protestors into Manhattan, not to act as bodyguards. There had been several phone calls during the week between Van Bramer’s office and the precinct, and it was concluded the turnout would be quite large, the commander said.
“The hostile e-mail that was received by Council member Van Bramer occurred after we had begun to plan for the event,” Travaglia said. “It was considered in our preparation and planning as well as all of the other threats that face us as a society today. The 108th Precinct gave assistance to the event organizers to provide the marchers with safe passage from their point of origin in Queens to their destination in Manhattan. I must say our walk was uneventful and peaceful with a lot of cars honking and waving at us over the bridge. There were no issues or incidents to report and I commend the organizers for their extreme cooperation with the 108th Precinct.”
Van Bramer thanked his constituents for participating in both the town hall meeting and the march and he urged them to get involved with numerous organizations that took part. He is also planning more meetings, actions and activities.
“Thank you for your passion, determination, and love for your neighbors and out country,” Van Bramer said. “Never forget that you are powerful, and when we all come together as a community, what we can do to change the world for the better is limitless.”
Reach reporter Bill Parry by e-mail at bparr
