Car Smashes Through ICE Protestors In Manhattan, LGBTQ Takes A LOSS In Michigan Courts

A woman drove her car into a crowd of protesters on 39th Street and 3rd Avenue in Manhattan just after 4 p.m. on Friday, injuring at least six people, the police said.

A video posted on Twitter shortly after the incident showed protesters standing close to a black BMW sedan on Third Avenue, with at least one of them slapping its windows.

The car surged forward, flinging protesters to the ground, then sped through an intersection, striking more pedestrians, some on bicycles, with a sickening crunch, the video shows.

Sofia Vickerman, 18, a freshman at New York University, said she was in the middle of the pack of protesters when she heard screams coming from the front. “Bodies were in the air and bikes were flying,” she said.

None of the people hit by the car were critically injured, and the driver’s intentions were unclear, the police said. The driver was being detained by the police but it was not known whether she would face charges.

Another video posted online by a bystander showed a redheaded woman wearing what appeared to be a sweatsuit being taken into custody by the police as protesters shouted at her from the sidewalk.

The protesters were marching in support of Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees on a hunger strike, according to a Twitter account that provides updates on protests in the city.

Ms. Vickerman said the protest had started in Times Square and had made its way downtown, with police trailing on bicycles. She then saw the car driving through the crowd of protesters. She said she did not hear or see the motorist show any signs of aggression before hitting the protesters.

2. GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — This week, a Michigan Court of Claims judge ruled a business can deny service to LGBTQ customers based on religious reasons. The case was one of two issues brought before the judge. It centered around a wedding business denying working with a same-sex couple for religious reasons. The judge ruled the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA) did not include discrimination against sexual orientation.
Attorney General Dana Nessel vowed to appeal the decision, saying in a statement, "I respectfully disagree with the Michigan Court of Claims on its ruling in this case as it relates to sexual orientation. Michigan courts have held that federal precedent is highly persuasive when determining the contours of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, and federal courts across the country – including the U.S. Supreme Court in Bostock v Clayton Co – have held that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is a form of sex discrimination. We intend to submit that all Michigan residents are entitled to protection under the law – regardless of their gender identity or sexual orientation – in our appeal to this decision.”

The ELCRA prohibits discrimination with employment, housing, and access to public service based on "religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, familial status, or marital status."

The interim director for the Grand Rapids Pride Center, Jazz McKinney, called the decision "frustrating."

"This is a fight we've been fighting for a long time," said McKinney, "It just continues the same narrative that we're less than. And that, for some reason, other people feel like they can determine who is okay to be discriminated against."

RELATED: Grand Rapids Pride Center offers virtual support during Thanksgiving

McKinney said the fact the discussion revolves around who can be discriminated against is itself the problem.

However, the court ruling this week did also rule the word "sex" in the ELCRA included gender identity. Nessel commended this part of the court's decision. Equality Michigan's Executive Director, Erin Knott, called it a "win for equality." Knott gave a statement saying:

"Judge Murray's ruling is an important, if incremental, win for equality. The Michigan Court of Claims held in Rouch World LLC v Michigan Department of Civil Rights that the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act's prohibition on sex discrimination encompasses discrimination based on gender identity.
It should be noted that Judge Murray was bound by the Court of Appeals decision in Barbour v Dep't of Social Services, concluding that sexual orientation discrimination was *not* encompassed by the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act. However, Barbour was decided before the June 2020 landmark U.S. Supreme Court’s Bostock decision, which should be overturned by the Court of Appeals when Attorney General Dana Nessel appeals.
Equality Michigan continues to call upon the legislature to pass a LGBTQ+ law that ensures all Michiganders, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, are explicitly protected by the state's civil rights law."