EMERGENCY CALL TO ACTION: Police Brutality after SRLP benefit

FYI: Sylvia Rivera Law Project is a collective-run organization/law firm that serves the transgender and gender non conforming communities of color in NYC. I was at the benefit, but skipped out on the afterparty. The benefit itself felt a lot like a family reunion instead of the kind of pretentious formality that you usually expect from fundraisers.

As Dean Spade, the lead founder of SRLP, said last night in his speech, "[Trans and gender non conforming people] are told we cannot exist, that we are doing the impossible." Last night, hundreds of "impossibilities" gathered to celebrate our victories and our communities, and the NYPD saw this as an opportunity to use violence and fear to slow our movement. This is certainly a reaffirmation for me that we cannot rest until we end our government's war on queers, trans people, and people of color. Let's do our best to support these folks, I'll keep you posted as more info comes out.

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PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY

At the Sylvia Rivera Law Project's after-party following its fifth
anniversary celebration last night, two members of the community were
violently arrested and others were pepper sprayed by police without
warning or cause. The two folks who were arrested remain in police
custody and should be arraigned tomorrow. (More details of the
incident can be found below in the press release.)

We ask that people show up tomorrow, Thursday, starting at 9:30am and
continuing throughout the day to call for the immediate release of and
the dropping of charges against the people who were arrested. The
arraignment court rooms are at 100 Centre St (Directions: No. 4 or 5
train to Brooklyn Bridge Station; No. 6 train, N, R or C train to
Canal Street; No. 1 train to Franklin Street; M1, M6 and M15 bus lines
are nearby. 100 Centre Street is one block north of Worth Street,
three blocks south of Canal Street.) Ask for directions to the
arraignment rooms at the info desk when you enter.

For more information or to receive updates via email or text message,
contact Jack at jack@srlp.org, who should be at court and have email
access throughout the day.


PRESS RELEASE:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Jack Aponte (jack@srlp.org, 347-247-1526)
Naomi Clark (naomi@srlp.org, 917-907-4870)


Police Brutality Strikes Fifth Anniversary of Sylvia Rivera Law Project

NEW YORK - On the night of Wednesday, September 26, officers from the
9th Precinct of the New York Police Department attacked without
provocation members of the Sylvia Rivera Law Project and of its
community. Two of our community members were violently arrested, and
others were pepper sprayed in the face without warning or cause.

The Sylvia Rivera Law Project (www.srlp.org) is an organization that
works on behalf of low-income people of color who are transgender,
gender non-conforming, or intersex, providing free legal services and
advocacy among many other initiatives. On Wednesday night, the Sylvia
Rivera Law Project was celebrating its fifth anniversary with a
celebration and fundraising event at a bar in the East Village.

A group of our community members, consisting largely of queer and
transgender people of color, witnessed two officers attempting to
detain a young Black man outside of the bar. Several of our community
members asked the officers why they were making the arrest and using
excessive force. Despite the fact that our community was on the
sidewalk, gathered peacefully and not obstructing foot traffic, the
NYPD chose to forcefully grab two people and arrested them. Without
warning, an officer then sprayed pepper spray across the group in a
wide arc, temporarily blinding many and causing vomiting and intense
pain.

"This is the sort of all-too-common police violence and overreaction
towards people of color that happens all the time," said Dean Spade,
founder of the Sylvia Rivera Law Project. "It's ironic that we were
celebrating the work of an organization that specifically opposes
state violence against marginalized communities, and we experienced a
police attack at our celebration."

"We are outraged, and demand that our community members be released
and the police be held accountable for unnecessary use of excessive
force and falsely arresting people," Spade continued.

Damaris Reyes is executive director of GOLES, an organization working
to preserve the Lower East Side. She commented, "I'm extremely
concerned and disappointed by the 9th Precinct's response to the
situation and how it escalated into violence. This kind of aggressive
behavior doesn't do them any good in community-police relations."

Supporters will be gathering at 100 Centre Street tomorrow, where the
two community members will be arraigned. The community calls for
charges to be dropped and to demand the immediate release of those
arrested.

- END -


On Saturday at 7 PM in Washington Square Park, there will be a protest organized by the Radical Homosexual Agenda ( http:www.radicalhomosexual

agenda.org ) to protest Christine Quinn and the NYC government's new laws about protest permits. I won't be able to go (I'm out of town this weekend), but it would be great to have some New School presence there.

UPDATE:


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Police Brutality Strikes Fifth Anniversary of Sylvia Rivera Law Project

Contacts:
Jack Aponte jack (AT) srlp (DOT) org
Naomi Clark naomi (AT) srlp (DOT) org

UPDATE: 8:30pm Thursday 9/27

Reggie and Ileana have just been released from police custody! The DA
declined prosecution, which means that no charges are being pressed. They
are free and clear, and are now getting the support they need from their
community - in person.

We are all thrilled by this result, the only truly just outcome after a
long night and day of injustice. Thank you to everyone who has helped out
and expressed support, including all of the allied organizations, fellow
activists, community members and councilpeople who stepped up to support
us.

Although they have thankfully been released, our work around this incident
is not finished. Now it is time to hold the police accountable for the
unnecessary force and community targeting that occurred last night, and
work so that no more incidents like this happen again to our community. We
will keep you all posted as to our next steps and ways to plug in.

UPDATE: 7:15pm Thursday 9/27
from the office of Rosie Mendez:

City Councilwoman Rosie Mendez asked me to inform you that she has spoken
the Manhattan DA regarding this matter. As of about 6:00 PM she was told
that the two arrested persons will be released shortly. The DA is
assessing the possibility of dropping the charges completely, but this is
not yet certain. Rosie herself wrote a letter to the DA asking for the
charges to be dropped.

She has also been in contact with the other three out LGBT downtown
elected officials - NYS Senator Duane, NYS Assemblymember Glick and NYC
Council Speaker Quinn. All have contacted the DA and expressed their
concern over the incident and their interest in seeing the arrested
persons released as quickly as possible.