Oakland, CA — Oakland Vice-Mayor Rebecca Kaplan, along with fellow Alameda County LGBTQ+ elected officials and allies are joining together to condemn the LGBTQ+ hate crime by a white supremacist group during a family time Drag Queen Story Hour at the San Lorenzo Public Library on June 11th.
We, as out and proud LGBTQ+ and allied elected officials and community leaders are outraged about the senseless act of hate caused during the Drag Queen Story Hour at the San Lorenzo Public Library on June 11th. We call upon the Alameda County Sheriff's Office and District Attorney to investigate and charge these acts of hate aimed at harming members of our community and our allies. Additionally, we urge our non-LGBTQ+ allies in offices across the region and state to provide additional support to our community during these increasingly challenging times.
On Saturday June 11th, The San Lorenzo Public Library hosted a Drag Queen Story Hour. This event was part of a series of events throughout the Alameda County Library system designed to celebrate PRIDE month and uplift LGBTQ+ stories and experiences. During this event, members of the Proud Boys, a right-wing hate group, stormed the story hour yelling homophobic and transphobic slurs, with the obvious intent of threatening and intimidating the participants of the event.
We strongly condemn this act of hate aimed at harming members of our community and our allies. We are living in a time where LGBTQ+ rights are under attack across several states in our nation, and sadly, even accepting and welcoming places like Alameda County are not exempt from this type of hate. Hate has no place in our community and must be met with decisive action.