Queens man succumbs to injuries after alleged anti-gay attack

Not again!

An 18-year-old Queens man died at Jamaica Hospital yesterday after four teenagers beat him in what police said was an anti-gay attack.

The Daily News reported four teenagers—Alex Velez, Nolis Ogando, Christopher Lozada and Luis Tabales—attacked Anthony Collao with a metal pipe outside a Woodhaven birthday party on Satuday, March 12. A judge arraigned them on Monday, March 14, on manslaughter and assault charges. And the teenagers remain held on $100,000 to $200,000 bail.

“I want to express my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Anthony Collao,” said City Council Speaker Christine Quinn in a statement. “My Council colleagues and I are saddened and disturbed by this outrageous attack. We celebrate diversity in New York City, we do not tolerate bias attacks in any neighborhood in Queens or anywhere else in our great city.”

A number of anti-LGBT hate crimes have unfortunately garnered headlines over the last couple of years. These include José Sucuzhañay’s murder on a Bushwick street corner in Dec. 2008, the near-fatal beating of Jack Price outside a College Point bodega in Oct. 2009, gay Puerto Rican teenager Jorge Steven López Mercado's brutal death in Nov. 2009. Gang members also allegedly sodomized and beat two teenagers and a man in the Bronx in October because they reportedly thought one of their recruits was gay.

Collao's death once again proves New York City is not immune to anti-LGBT hate crimes.

Storm aftermath in Bushwick

Today's beautiful weather makes it even more hard to believe two tornadoes and a macroburst tore through Brooklyn and Queens only four days ago.

My two flower boxes were among the storm's casualties--they were in the trash when I came home from Washington, D.C., earlier this afternoon. A tree came down further down the block, siding peeled off of two buildings along Knickerbocker Avenue between Jefferson and Troutman Streets, several awnings ripped and were left in tatters, but the storm devastated Maria Hernandez Park. It remains closed, but here is a video and some pictures of the damage I shot earlier this evening.





Looking inside Maria Hernandez Park from the corner of Irving Avenue and Starr Street.



Maria Hernandez Park along Irving Avenue.



A storefront church on the corner of Irving and Willoughby Avenues.



A street light remains on the sidewalk along Irving Avenue.



Maria Hernandez Park near the corner of Irving Avenue and Suydam Street.



Maria Hernandez Park near the corner of Irving Avenue and Suydam Street.



Maria Hernandez Park near the corner of Irving Avenue and Suydam Street.



Tattered banners along Wyckoff Avenue Wyckoff Heights Medical Center.



A fallen tree along Hart Street between Irving and Knickerbocker Avenues.



Approaching Maria Hernandez Park near the intersection of Suydam Street and Knickerbocker Avenue.



Maria Hernandez Park from Knickerbocker Avenue.



Maria Hernandez Park from Knickerbocker Avenue.



Maria Hernandez Park from Knickerbocker Avenue.



Maria Hernandez Park from Knickerbocker Avenue.

City settles Sean Bell shooting lawsuit

The city has agreed to pay more than $7 million to settle a federal lawsuit after five New York Police Department officers shot and killed Sean Bell and wounded two of his friends outside a Queens strip club on what was to have been his wedding day.

The officers fired more than 50 shots at the car in which Bell and two friends—Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield—were as they attempted to drive away from Club Kalua in Jamaica on Nov. 25, 2006. The two children Bell had with his fiancée, Nicole Paultre Bell, will receive $3.25 million. Guzman will get $3 million. And Benefield will receive $900,000.

“No amount of money can provide closure, no amount of money can make up for the pain,” said Bell as she left federal court in Downtown Brooklyn.

Michael A. Cardozo, the city's Corporation Counsel, issued a statement after the settlement with the Bell family was announced.

“The Sean Bell shooting highlighted the complexities our dedicated officers must face each day,” said Cardozo. “The city regrets the loss of life in this tragic case, and we share our deepest condolences with the Bell family. The city is also settling claims with Mr. Guzman and Mr. Benefield. We hope that all parties can find some measure of closure by this settlement.”

A Queens judge in April 2008 acquitted three of the NYPD detectives who had faced criminal charges in connection with the shooting.

Transgender woman found murdered in Queens apartment

As I listen to a segment on the Brian Lehrer Show about employment discrimination against transgender New Yorkers, news about a trans woman’s murder inside her Queens apartment provides another sobering reminder this community remains particularly vulnerable.

The Daily News reported Amanda Gonzalez-Andujar’s friends found her naked body on her bed in her apartment on 62nd Street in Glendale yesterday afternoon. Police said the victim had not been heard from since Friday.

Some Daily News readers were quick to express their own transphobic attitudes, and even blame Gonzalez-Andujar for her own murder. One person, however, was thankfully quick to counter these ridiculous assertions.

“Amanda is someone’s daughter, cousin, niece, aunt, friend and sister,” “mizzmelodie” wrote.

Will special election end the Monserrate spectacle?

As voters in the 13th Senatorial District go to the polls today, the circus that continues to surround former state Sen. Hiram Monserrate's delusional campaign against state Assemblymember José Peralta remains a sad spectacle that further tarnishes New York State politics.

Boy in Bushwick has posted several blogs in recent weeks about Monserrate and the circumstances that led to his expulsion from the state Senate last month, but Andrés Duque captures the events that lead up to this moment perfectly on his post "So, Hiram Monserrate walks into a gay bar... (or why I will vote against him today.)

Jackson Heights bar bouncers allegedly beat prominent gay activist

Roughly two months after two men allegedly beat a College Point man into a coma, bouncers at a Jackson Heights bar reportedly assaulted a prominent local activist because he was dancing with his partner.

Tarlach MacNiallais of the Irish Lesbian and Gay Organization has alleged two security guards at Guadalajara de Noche on Roosevelt Avenue in Jackson Heights assaulted him early Saturday, Dec. 5. Blogs and local media reported the two men wrestled MacNiallais to the ground and dragged him off the dance floor before they punched and kicked him. The security guards also allegedly smashed a chair over MacNiallais' head.

This attack is the latest in a series of anti-LGBT assaults that have rocked Queens in recent months.

Police contend Daniel Rodriguez, 21, and Daniel Aleman, 26, nearly beat Jack Price, 49, to death outside a College Point deli on Oct. 8 because of his sexual orientation.



Video courtesy of the Associated Press

A Queens County grand jury indicted Trinidad Tapia, 19, and Gilberto Ortiz, 32, on hate crimes charges late last month after they allegedly beat Leslie Mora, who is transgender, with a belt buckle as she walked along Roosevelt Avenue in Jackson Heights on June 19. And the New York Police Department maintains Nathaniel Mims, 25, and Rasheed Thomas, 22, shouted anti-gay slurs at Carmella Etienne, who is also trans, before they attacked her with rocks and empty beer bottles as she walked home from a store near her St. Albans apartment on July 8.

Activist Brendan Fay and openly City Councilmember-elect Danny Dromm [D-Jackson Heights] both expressed to Boy in Bushwick their outrage over the alleged incident at Guadalajara de Noche. MacNiallais did not immediately return request for comment, but the NYPD continues to investigate his allegations.

Pride Agenda endorses José Peralta for State Senate

As LGBT activists appear poised to target those who opposed a bill that would have allowed gays and lesbians to marry, the Empire State Pride Agenda announced this morning it has endorsed a Queens assemblyman who seeks to unseat embattled state Sen. Hiram Monserrate [D-Jackson Heights.]

Pride Agenda executive director Alan Van Capelle said in a statement that announced his organization's decision to endorse Assemblymember José Peralta [D-Jackson Heights] he feels "Queens needs a new state Senator--one with integrity and honor, and who stands up for the rights of all New Yorkers."

“José Peralta has demonstrated time and time again that he is a champion of equality and justice for all New Yorkers and has consistently represented the interests of his district in the New York State Assembly,” Van Capelle said. “His record on LGBT issues demonstrates that he does not duck-and-run when our bills come up for a vote. He has stood up for us in the Assembly, and we will stand with him in his race for the state Senate.”

Monserrate, who was convicted in October of misdemeanor assault against his girlfriend, is one of eight Democrats who voted against the marriage bill that went before the state Senate last week. This vote was arguably the last straw among the embattled senator's growing list of detractors. And the Peralta endorsement is the latest indication Monserrate and others who opposed the marriage bill remain squarely in the electoral cross hairs of LGBT activists and their supporters.

“Over the next several months, the Pride Agenda will roll out
endorsements of candidates who support equality and will challenge sitting
members of the state Senate on both sides of the aisle whose record on equality
is a stain on New York,” Van Capelle said.

Marriage activists hold vigil in Queens

As the state Senate prepares for a possible vote on a bill that would allow same-sex couples to marry, a group of activists held a vigil outside state Sen. George Onorato's office in Astoria last night to urge him to support the proposed legislation.



It remains to be seen whether lawmakers will actually debate the marriage bill during tomorrow's special legislative session, but one Albany insider told Boy in Bushwick late last week a vote is possible. Elizabeth Benjamin of the Daily News further reported over the weekend Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada, Jr., who supports marriage for same-sex couples, told her he plans to link the bill to farm workers' rights. A vote would certainly be a significant step forward for activists, but it remains somewhat doubtful the marriage bill has enough support in the state Senate to pass. Stay tuned...

Jack Price leaves the hospital

Nearly three weeks after two men nearly beat Jack Price to death outside a bodega, the College Point resident left the hospital.

Price spoke with WABC reporter Josh Einiger before doctors discharged him from Booth Memorial Hospital. He remains in obvious pain, but Price remained defiant during the interview. And he also spoke out against alleged attackers Daniel Rodriguez, Jr., and Daniel Aleman.

Rodriguez and Aleman allegedly punched and kicked Price up to 30 times outside a College Point deli earlier this month. City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, mayoral candidate Bill Thompson and hundreds of others marched through the working class neighborhood on Oct. 17 to denounce the attack.

The attack against Price is the latest in a series of anti-LGBT acts of violence that have rocked Queens this year. Local activists continue to organize events and other gatherings to address how to curb these attacks in the borough.

Reflecting upon a tumultuous week

October has traditionally provided an abundance of fundraisers, parties and other events that usually keeps this journalist particularly busy in the weeks leading up to Halloween. This month is certainly no exception, but the past few days have proven particularly tumultuous.

I spent last Sunday with a group of nearly 100 Queens activists who took part in the National Equality March. The weather was gorgeous; the energy was certainly palpable and the march arguably energized its participants to return home and lobby for LGBT rights. The sad reality, however, remains many of those with whom I rode the bus to Washington found themselves at a press conference in front of a Flushing hospital literally hours after they returned to Queens to denounce a particularly brutal anti-gay hate crime in College Point.

Daniel Aleman and Daniel Rodriguez, Jr., allegedly beat Jack Price outside a College Point deli around 3 a.m. on Oct. 9. Price suffered a broken jaw, a collapsed lung, a ruptured spleen and other injuries. Doctors placed him in a medically induced coma, but local media reports indicate has begun to recover from his injuries.

One of Rodriguez's friends told WABC reporter Josh Einiger earlier this week he felt Price deserved what he described as a "beat down" because he had "propositioned men in the neighborhood" and "even had blown his assailants a kiss."

"I mean I don't want no man blowing me a kiss either," Marcel Gelmi said. "I've been beat up like that too, but you don't see me on the news and my family crying and this and that. Wounds heal."

Those in Queens and from other areas of the city who plan to march along College Point Avenue tomorrow will almost certainly have something to say to Gelmi and others who feel those continue to justify the attack against Price, but here is my own challenge: Look me in the eye and tell me I deserve a beat down simply because I am gay.

Queens responds to Jack Price attack

Below is information from Michael Mallon of the Queens Pride Center about how Queens activists and residents continue to respond to the attack against Jack Price in College Point.

In response to the violent beating of openly gay 49-year old Jack Price by two men outside of a convenience store in the College Point neighborhood of Queens early Friday, Oct. 9, a diverse coalition of Queens residents, activists, and community organizations are hosting a a march and rally on Saturday, Oct. 17, in and with the community of College Point to protest homophobia and to celebrate diversity.

We are also hosting an educational campaign geared towards the youth of College Point on Friday, Oct. 15; we believe that violence against LGBT people is rooted in ignorance and fear, threatens the safety of all people, and must be addressed by all members of all communities.

Please join us for one of these two important events:

Education outreach at Flushing High School in Flushing, Queens on Friday, Oct. 16, at 3 p.m.

We'll be distributing information about LGBT issues and speaking to students. Directions: Take the 7 train to Main Street and walk up to Northern Boulevard; cross the street; the school is a huge brick building. Meet us at the front gate. By bus: Take the Q14, Q16, Q17 or Q44 to 35th Avenue. School is on the corner. Take the Q25/34, Q65, Q67 to Main Street. Walk along Main Street toward Northern Boulevard.

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March and rally in College Point on Saturday, Oct. 17, step off at 2 p.m.

We'll be marching down College Point Boulevard from 20th Avenue until 14th Avenue.
and then holding a rally at nearby Popenhusen Playground. Speakers TBA.
Directions: Take the 7 train to Main Street and then the Q65 bus from Roosevelt Avenue and Main Street to 20th Avenue

Please bring signs without wooden sticks, banners, friends, and your best self.

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These event are endorsed by Generation Q, the Queens Community House, the Queens Lesbian and Gay Pride Committee, the Jewish Center of Jackson Heights, St. Pat’s for All Parade, Astorians United Against Hate Crimes, Gay Peruvians of the Americas, the Long Island City Alliance, the Lesbian and Gay Democratic Club of Queens, Las Buenas Amigas, Out Astoria, Integrity NYC, Western Queens for Marriage Equality, the Anti Violence Project, the International Socialist Organization, Carmen’s Place, the New York Civil Liberties Union, Project Reach, Make the Road NY.

Queens man in critical condition after anti-gay attack

A Queens man remains in serious but stable condition after two men brutally beat him early Friday morning as he walked to a College Point corner store.

The Daily News identified the man as Jack Price, 49. The New York Police Department said a man they have identified as Daniel Aleman, 26, and another accomplice brutally beat Price after he bought cigarettes at a store on College Point Boulevard. Aleman remains in custody, but the NYPD continues to search for the second suspect.

Price remains in critical condition at Booth Memorial Hospital. City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, openly gay City Council candidates Danny Dromm and Jimmy Van Bramer, state Sen. Tom Duane [D-Chelsea,] City Councilmember John Liu [D-Flushing] and others spoke at a press conference outside the hospital earlier today.

“When someone is attacked for being who they are, and for being proud of who they are, there is no other explanation for that attack than hatred and bigotry," Quinn said. "In response, we will do all in our power as individuals, as a community and as a city to ensure that whoever commits such a vile act of hate is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

Van Bramer agreed.

“This tragic and senseless incident is yet another reminder of how far we have to go toward making our city one that is free of hatred and violence at all times and for all people,” he said.