Members of the Indo-Caribbean community rallied in support of the end to violent outbreaks in nightclubs throughout the community after Zaman Amin was struck over the head with a trophy outside the Player’s Lounge and Restaurant on Liberty Avenue. Patricia Adams/The Forum Newsgroup
A small but impassioned crowd gathered outside the Player’s Lounge and Restaurant in Richmond Hill on Thursday night last week, in reaction to the bashing of a gay man after an altercation spilled onto the street from inside the club. Rainbow flags, typically used at establishments that are “gay-friendly,” hung from windows across the top floor of the club.
The rally was organized by several Indo-Caribbean community organizations, individuals and activists in order to show support for Mohamed Zaman Amin, a 28-year-old dancer who was struck over the head with a trophy presented as an award for a cooking competition being held at the club.
But with the physical altercation allegedly came a string of anti-gay slurs, prompting the victim and his supporters to ask that the beating be investigated as a bias incident. The introduction of several videos however, are still being reviewed by authorities to see if the assault will be prosecuted as a hate crime.
A circle of demonstrators peacefully chanted “Stop the hate, start the peace” and one after another, speakers from the Indo-Caribbean community and the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) community took to the mic calling for an end to the violence that has become commonplace not only along Liberty Avenue, but at several other locations where crowds of patrons from Guyana, Trinidad and neighboring countries are gathering to socialize in Richmond Hill and neighboring communities.
“There has been a tremendous amount of violence in our community recently,” said Richard David, the director of the Indo-Caribbean Alliance. “The message we want to get out is that we have to have an agenda for change. We must make people aware of what is going on.”
David says that his group and others that organized the rally including Chutney Pride, Jahajee Sisters and the Raj Kumani Cultural Center are now looking to form a coalition. The group will seek to communicate with legislators as well as business owners and law enforcement officials in an effort to curb the violent club outbreaks that have taken several lives.
A tearful Zaman Amin thanked the crowd for the support they offered him through his ordeal and said he felt “lucky to be alive.” Patricia Adams/The Forum Newsgroup
Zaman Amin’s attack comes on the heels of other incidents of violence at area clubs. In mid-May, Stephen James took his girlfriend to the Level Lounge, just six blocks away on Liberty and 123rd Street, to celebrate her 21st birthday. The evening ended when James was stabbed to death after an argument that began in the club was carried out into the street.
Back in March, 24-year-old Deosarran Ramdular died after he was beaten at Club Moka in Richmond Hill. Another recent incident involved a young girl who was drugged and subsequently raped and beaten.
Community Board 10 Chairperson Elizabeth Braton says there is a greater need for enforcement to stop the violent activity at the clubs. “The activities that are believed to be going on inside these clubs are not covered by their licensing,” said Braton. Her position is supported by the fact that all establishments which serve food and/or beverages, where a patron is permitted to dance on the premises, must have a cabaret license. That same license, issued by the Department of Consumer Affairs, offers special provisions for video surveillance on the premises as well as the requirement to have extensive employee background checks.
“The bottom line,” says Braton, “is that patrons need to report these violations from inside the clubs causing the police to have to investigate and issue summonses where applicable.”
By Patricia Adams
