The Lambda Independent Democrats of Brooklyn (LID) pulled their endorsement of mayoral candidate Scott Stringer on May 6 and backed Dianne Morales, an Afro-Latinx former non-profit executive who has received two LGBTQ club endorsements in a matter of days.
“At LID, we take sexual assault very seriously,” the club wrote in a statement on Twitter. “Too many members of the LGBTQ [community] have suffered long and painfully, often in silence. Thank you to all the members who participated in what was, for many, a very difficult but very civil and thoughtful discussion.”
The endorsement, which came just days after Morales landed the support of the Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club, followed an emergency meeting held on May 6 in response to sexual misconduct allegations facing Stringer, who had narrowly edged Morales in the club’s initial endorsement meeting earlier this year.
Last month, Jean Kim, a former colleague who served on Stringer’s campaign for Public Advocate in 2001, accused him of groping her and pursuing a sexual relationship — claims that Stringer has denied.
During the club’s May 6 meeting, several LID members revealed their experiences of sexual assault.
“We had more members who are survivors of this than I would have thought,” Jared Arader, the club’s president, told Gay City News in a phone interview. “The club made the right decision based on where so many of the members are on this issue and what their experiences are.”
Just one day before LID’s meeting, the Stonewall Democratic Club of New York City upheld their endorsement of Stringer, prompting several members to quit, including the club’s executive vice president, Brian Romero, who previously served as the club’s president.
“People are impressed by [Morales’] progressive, new energy that she brings to the race and would bring to the city,” Arader said.
Like other clubs, LID’s voting tally on both issues is not publicly available.
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