NYPD cops have again been barred from marching in uniform in the city’s annual Pride parade, a decision Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch Friday said is “deeply offensive” and conflicts with the inclusivity members of the LGTBQ-plus community have fought to achieve.
The organizer, Heritage of Pride, about two weeks ago informed the NYPD, including the Gay Officers Action League, or GOAL, that it was continuing its ban for a fourth straight year.
Tisch said she was shocked by the decision, given earlier dialogue she and Det. Brian Downey, GOAL’s president, had with Heritage of Pride officials.
“I have been very clear with Heritage of Pride that its exclusion is unacceptable,” Tisch said at a press conference held to discuss parade security. “And I will continue to be outspoken on this topic until Heritage of Pride rights this wrong … because this march is not about hiding who you are.
“It is about being visible.”
Heritage of Pride spokesman Chris Piedmont said the group has a no weapons policy to which GOAL would not agree.
“To be clear,” Piedmont said, “GOAL is welcome to march without weapons like every other contingent and we welcome them to join us as we march to protect trans youth, advocate for full equality and stand in proud defiance of the attacks our community is facing.”
The ban was first announced in 2021, when protests in reaction to the killing of Minnesota man George Floyd by police officers generated a wave of anti-cop sentiment in New York City. But it’s rooted in the trauma many in the LGBTQ+ community have experienced in dealing with law enforcement for years — going back to the 1969 Stonewall riot, which was sparked by a police raid at the now-famous Greenwich Village gay bar. The ensuing protests is considered the birth of the gay rights movement.
“We respect and acknowledge that that trauma is real,” Downey said. “But this policy does not create safety. It creates friction and fiction, one where queer officers vanish while the same institution is asked to secure the march.
“We believe Pride should make room for everyone, especially those who have stood at the intersection of identify and service — and that includes us.”
Mayor Adams, at the same press conference as Tisch, said he doesn’t understand “the logic” of banning a group whose very role is to protect those marching in the parade.
He said going back to when he was a cop he stood with GOAL as it fought for equity within the Police Department, but that he won’t boycott the parade because many in the LGBTQ+ community want him to take part.
Tisch said there are no credible threats to the parade but that given the city’s heightened state of alert parade-goers can expect to see more of a police presence than usual, including more officers and drones as well as more sanitation trucks to block intersections.
The parade starts 11 a.m. Sunday and runs 1.8 miles, from Fifth Ave. and 25th St. down to 8th street, then back up to Seventh Ave. and W. 14th St.
