Over the weekend, a 28-year-old gay male had been knifed to death in Brooklyn in what investigators are investigating as a suspected hate crime.
O’Shae Sibley, a choreographer, and professional dancer was dancing at a gas station late Saturday, listening to Beyoncé music and vogueing, when he was approached by a group of males who begged him to stop, according to witnesses. They went on to say that he attempted to de-escalate the situation before being stabbed in the torso.
One of the men asked Sibley to stop dancing, and after “a few fights & back and forth arguing, he took out a knife and stabbed him,” according to witness Sayeda Haider.
On Sunday, Otis Pena, a friend of Sibley’s who claimed to have witnessed the stabbing, posted a video on Facebook describing the fatal occurrence.
“They murdered him because he’s gay, and because he stood up for his friends,” Pena, who called Sibley “the salt to my pepper,” said in the video. “His name was O’Shae, and you were all responsible for his death.” You all assassinated him in front of my eyes.”
The New York City Police Department’s hate crimes task force is probing Sibley’s death, according to authorities. Police are looking for a 17-year-old suspect, according to NBC New York.
At a public safety press conference on Monday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams addressed Sibley’s death.
“Now, you have a case like we saw throughout the weekend with this young man that was experiencing a violent crime, and we are going to identify the person responsible,” he said. “It shakes our confidence when someone randomly assaults someone on the street who may have a real mental health issue.” It shakes your faith.”
The assassination was also criticized by LGBTQ lawmakers and local queer advocates.
“Heartbroken and enraged to learn about O’Shae Sibley’s death this weekend in New York,” tweeted state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, who is homosexual and represents several of the city’s traditionally LGBT districts. “Despite the best efforts of homophobes, gay joy is not a crime.” Attacks motivated by hatred are.”
New York City Councilman Erik Bottcher, who’s gay and represents several of the city’s LGBT neighborhoods, urged police to prosecute Sibley’s killers.
“A group of men killed O’Shae Sibley for voguing at a gas station in Brooklyn.” They used homophobic remarks towards him. He took a stand for himself. “They murdered him,” he explained. “This was a hate crime, and those responsible must be brought to justice.”
Sibley’s stabbing occurred with a spike in anti-LGBTQ protests across the country over the last year.
According to an article published by the Crowd Counting Consortium, a research body that records the number of political protests, there have been an average of 39 anti-LGBTQ marches nationally each month since June 2022. From January 2017 to May 2022, the group only reported three protests per month.
According to the Williams Institute, a think tank at UCLA Law, the rallies have garnered headlines in recent months because they took place in New York City, which has the nation’s largest population of LGBTQ persons.
At least three times during LGBTQ Pride month, dozens of Pride flags were destroyed or ripped down at the Stonewall National Monument, the site of a June 1969 riot generally regarded as a watershed moment in the modern queer rights movement.
“The sad reality is the fact that even in New York City, LGBTQ+ people continue to be subjected to increasing violence, simply for being themselves,” said Beverly Tillery, executive director for the Anti-Violence Project, an LGBTQ advocacy group, in a statement. “Anti-LGBTQ+ bias can be lethal, and we must all work together to eradicate it from our society.”
She went on to say, “O’Shae deserved the right to dance, become free and unapologetically queer — without fear.”