Why is it not a hate crime? Because apparently some gay and lesbian youths
perpetrated the violence. So move along, nothing to see here.
While the vandalism is no longer being investigated as a bias crime, we feel that the investigation and the attention paid to these crimes by public officials and media was appropriate. Vandalism of this magnitude is intended to send a message of fear. The Center stands as the most public declaration of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender pride on Long Island. As the most visible symbol of GLBT presence and pride, the vandalism was indeed interpreted and felt as an attack on these already vulnerable communities.
Naturally when the news first broke, people
completely overreacted.
Employees and members of the Long Island Gay and Lesbian Youth Center (LIGALY) found their Bay Shore office vandalized in a vicious act of intolerance as they arrived to work on the morning of Monday, Feb. 2, Suffolk Police say.
Third Precinct police officers responded to the center on Park Avenue and found that vandals had shattered the front door window at the center, then slashed the tires and broke the windows of the LIGALY’s 2003 Ford van, which was parked on the property. Hate Crimes Unit detectives are investigating the case, which is classified as criminal mischief as a hate crime.
“This was not a simple case of vandalism, but an attack on our entire community,” said David Kilmnick, CEO of LIGALY, in a statement on the group's website. “We are thankful that this act happened while the center was closed and therefore no one was physically injured, but this was a clear attempt to instill fear in GLBT people throughout Long Island.”
How much you want to bet the
arrest of former clients doesn't get nearly the same amount of attention?
"We were calling it a hate crime investigation because of public perception," said Det. Sgt. Robert Reecks, commanding officer of the Suffolk police hate crimes unit, which pursued the case because of the center's mission.
Four Bay Shore residents - two of whom attended programs at the center - were arrested in connection with the incident. On Feb. 2 staffers of the Long Island Gay and Lesbian Youth Center reported they found the building's front door smashed, windows broken and the agency van's tires slashed.
Milagro Ruiz, 21, and Gilbert Geigel Jr., 20, of Fifth Avenue, and Kerrond Miller-Jones, 19, and Charles Diaz, 21, of Perkel Street were arraigned on second-degree criminal mischief in First District Court in Central Islip yesterday. An order of protection also was issued for the center's chief executive, David Kilmnick.
Naturally, a
Congressional Democrat also overreacted before the facts were in.
Rep. Steve Israel called for a national hate-crimes hotline yesterday after touring a gay and lesbian center where vandals last weekend smashed a glass door and tore up a van.
"The destroyed front door of this center can't be the entrance to more acts of violence," Israel (D-Huntington) told the staff of the Long Island Gay and Lesbian Youth Center in Bay Shore. "I believe that the federal government woefully minimizes the number of hate crimes that occur in the United States. I want you to know that the U.S. Congress is with you."
Then he paused and offered a caveat: "Some of my colleagues are just as bad as the people who did this."
What the hell does that mean?
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