Manhattan DA’s Office looks to reverse trend of anti-LGBTQ hate crimes

Hate crimes targeting LGBTQ individuals have made up a significant share of hate-motivated attacks in Manhattan in recent years, drawing the attention of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and his office.

Assistant District Attorney Hannah Yu, who heads the office’s Hate Crimes Unit, told Gay City News in a recent interview that anti-LGBTQ crimes have increased in the borough over the last five years — and in 2023, anti-LGBTQ hate crimes were the top category of hate-driven attacks in Manhattan.

In 2022, anti-Asian hate crimes led the way, with 34, followed by 27 anti-LGBTQ hate crimes; in 2023, there were 39 anti-LGBTQ hate crimes, easily taking the top spot; and in 2024, there were 29 anti-LGBTQ hate crimes, ranking in second place overall behind only anti-Semitic hate crimes. One anti-LGBTQ hate crime has been reported in Manhattan thus far in 2025, according to the DA’s Office.

“The overarching trend we’re seeing is a troublingly high number of anti-LGBTQ hate crime crises,” Yu said in an interview with Gay City News. “Because of the nature of the hate crimes against these individuals, they are typically violent and typically unprovoked attacks against strangers.”

Quite a few cases have involved incidents on the subway — including when a gay couple got slashed in a sudden anti-LGBTQ attack while riding the subway.

“The gay man was with his partner and the defendant recognized them to be a gay couple, went up to them for no apparent reason other than the fact that they were gay, slashed the man, and made homophobic remarks,” Yu said.

Despite rhetoric about out-of-control crime on the trains, most New Yorkers are not experiencing subway crime and the NYPD touted a 5.4% decrease in subway crime from 2023 to 2024, with robberies dipping 16%. Still, in May of last year, a suspect allegedly grabbed a 35-year-old victim by the neck on an A Train at the 12th Street Station before punching him in the chest and yelling anti-LGBTQ slurs. In another example, also on the A Train last year, a 29-year-old man was riding a northbound train near 59th Street-Columbus Circle when a stranger allegedly punched him in an attack that left him hospitalized.

A report published by State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli last year found that hate crimes in New York State have increased by 69% over a five-year period. Among anti-LGBTQ hate crimes in the state over the last five years, 71% targeted gay men.

Last year, New York enacted the Hate Crimes Modernization Act, a state-based law that broadened the scope of hate crimes law to allow prosecutors to punish violators with nearly two dozen additional offenses. That was viewed as an attempt to close at least some of the loopholes stemming from the Hate Crimes Act of 2000.

“It does close some loopholes,” Yu said. “Does it close all the loopholes? No.” An example Yu cited was endangering welfare of a child, which Yu said is often associated with hate crimes but was not included in that legislation.

To address the troubling trend of hate crimes, Yu said the Manhattan DA’s Office is employing a multi-faceted approach that includes deploying a large unit of analysts and prosecutors who are trained on such hate crimes, engaging in community outreach to local community organizations to encourage people to come forward and report the crimes, and incorporating an educational component at CUNY schools and other colleges to educate students on what is a hate crime, how to report it, and what to expect when such crimes are reported.

“The education piece is important to us,” Yu said. “We do spend a lot of time in the community going to precinct council meetings, houses of worship, and community centers.”

Katie Doran, the DA’s advisor for LGBTQ issues, is in touch with organizations such as the New York City Anti-Violence Project and Hetrick-Martin Institute.

“It’s important people know we’re available and can be helpful when people become victims — not just of hate crimes, but intimate partner violence in the LGBTQ community,” Doran told Gay City News.

Many of the attacks leave victims with trauma, and the Manhattan DA’s Office has a Survivors Services Bureau, which is used to train counselors, victim services advocates, and social workers who can meet the needs of victims and help them with things outside of the legal realm, such as with paying medical bills, recovering a lost phone, and other issues, in a culturally responsive manner.

“With anti-LGBTQ hate crimes, what I’ve seen is that these are crimes that go beyond the physical harm,” Yu said. “There is a deep emotional harm and it’s a very hurtful experience for any victim of a hate crime, but for victims of anti-LGBTQ hate crimes, they’re often with their partners in public spaces just being themselves. To be victimized in that way is, I think, especially traumatic, so the Survivor Services Bureau’s counselors and advocates do tremendous work to make our victims feel safe and whole.”

The DA’s Office is continuing to seek out opportunities for community engagement and education moving forward in an effort to support victims and chip away at the trend of anti-LGBTQ hate crimes.

“We never say no if an organization requests a hate crimes training,” Yu said.