The New York City Police Department kicked off Pride by arresting Qween Jean, a well-known Black Trans activist. Jean helped to organize the May 31 Trans Revolution Rally and March in Washington Square Park. The small gathering of nearly 60 protesters intended to stand against the plethora of anti-Trans laws passed in recent weeks across the United States.
Although the protesters remained nonviolent, an excessive police response awaited them. NYPD deployed its Strategic Response Group, a unit often sent by the NYPD to deal with "out-of-control" protests. The SRG has been known to quickly resort to violent measures like using tear gas and pepper spray.
Violation of the first amendment?
The police outnumbered the protesters and threatened to arrest anyone who stepped into the streets. Outraged, Jean commented that threatening protesters with arrest violated their first amendment rights.
"We have a right to assemble. We have a right to gather in these streets," Jean called out to the police with her megaphone. The protesters stayed out of the streets for most of the event as they sang and chanted. The NYPD blared a long-range acoustic device to drown out the activist's chants throughout the day.
New York activist Brenna Lip, who was on the scene during the protests, recalled, "The only people blocking the roadways were the New York Police Department." Eventually, the NYPD overtook the sidewalk as well. Lip described it as a "wave of terror" that had come to apprehend Jean.
The protesters scattered when police broke onto the sidewalk, and Jean took off running. She made it to a deli, where police eventually apprehended her and forcibly carried her off into a van. They also arrested three other protesters.
Who is Qween Jean?
Jean has been an active force in New York. She was one of the lead organizers for the Revival of Stonewall Protests, a movement composed of Black and Trans activists who marched in New York City every Thursday following the murder of George Floyd and demanded the defunding of police.
Jean also founded Black Trans Liberation, a mutual aid organization dedicated to eradicating homelessness in the Black Trans community. The organization provides fresh food to those in need and hosts community events such as the Juneteenth Celebration Ball.
The day after her arrest at the Trans Revolution Rally and March, Jean was released from prison. She was charged with using a megaphone without a permit. The New York Civil Liberties Union issued a statement condemning the NYPD: "The arrest of Qween Jean, a well-known organizer and pillar to her community, for using a megaphone to address those who have gathered, reflects a choice by the SRG to escalate tensions with the community."
Many activists involved in the May 31 protest believe the police specifically targeted Jean and intended to send a message of fear with her arrest.
Qween Jean speaks out
Since her release, Jean has spoken out about the incident. "Fighting for justice is not a crime," she said. "Depleting our resources, targeting innocent people and their families, and upholding white supremacy is an act of treason and must be dismantled immediately!"
Jean is using her arrest to remind the community what Pride Month is about. "We must reclaim and renew the intention of Pride. We will protest until we are ALL free," she declared. "They failed Marsha, Sylvia, Amanda Milan, and the countless sisters and siblings who've been taken by gun and transphobic violence! We fight like never before. Those statues in Sheridan Square are the epitome of whitewashing. We owe it to our ancestors, our youth, and to ourselves to free each other. Black Trans lives still matter."