Our City Councilman in the 39th District, Brad Lander, responds to a recent hate crime in Carroll Gardens:
It’s a cliché, but one worth repeating: one of the best things about our communities in Brooklyn is their diversity. We have people of all races and religions, gay and straight, from an extraordinary array of nationalities. I love going from a meeting with the Bengali community in Kensington, to an LGBTQ event in Park Slope, to coffee with members of the Italian community in CarrollGardens – sometimes all in the same night!
Unfortunately however, sometimes that diversity is attacked or threatened — and then it’s time for our community to stand up together. This is one of those times.
Bias Attack in CarrollGardens
I am sorry to report about one such incident that occurred last Monday night. A young man was walking home from a bar in CarrollGardens when he was attacked by five individuals who hurled anti-gay slurs at him while beating him severely. Fortunately, the victim of the attack has been released from the hospital and is expected to make a full recovery, but incidents like this one remind us that there are still people who would seek to divide us from one another and spread hate through our streets.
There is no room for hate or violence of any kind in our community, or anywhere in New York City. As you would expect in our community, the outrage over this incident and support for the victim has been overwhelming – from members of Lambda Independent Democrats, from elected officials, and from neighbors.
On Tuesday night, I released a joint statement with the Speaker of the New York City Council, Christine Quinn, making clear that we were appalled and sickened by the attack, that there is no room for hate or violence, and that we live in an inclusive and welcoming community that will stand up together for all its residents (the full statement is available here).
In the coming days the LGBT community and allies will be taking action to show our support for the victim and call attention to this despicable act. If you would like to receive information about next steps, please email me at info@bradlander.com. In the meantime, I know all our thoughts go out to this young man and his family.