Thousands of LGBTQ+ people and allies marched near Washington Square Park for the second annual Queer Liberation March on Sunday (28 June), in support of the Black Lives Matter and Black Trans Lives Matter movements.
The peaceful protest, which started around 1pm, descended into chaos after officers attempted to arrest two people for graffiti.
Numerous videos on social media show the NYPD using their batons and tear gas on protestors as they intervened. Amber Hikes, the Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer for the American Civil Liberties Union, and a founder of the eight-stripe Pride flag, told her followers on live-stream: “We got to Washington Square park and the cops fucking ambushed us. “They ran in with bikes, motorcycles and tear