Support Needed: Police Repression of Laney Education Defense Queer Activists

Hello, we are calling for support! The queer community at Laney is under attack!

Yesterday, at Laney Community College, in Oakland California, a gender-queer student, Jesse Trepper, was violently arrested by Alameda Sheriffs, while participating in the March 2nd Day of Action in defense of education.

Peralta students marched on the district office demanding to meet with the Administration and to have their concerns be heard. They were met by a locked and empty office guarded by Alameda Sheriffs. As students requested access to the building, they were met with unwarranted violence from both sheriffs and administrators, up to and including being shoved and verbally assaulted.

Jesse was wrongfully arrested while their girlfriend was presenting the administration with hundreds of signed petitions demanding that measures be taken to address the targeted violence against Transgender youth and Queers on campus. Jesse was forcefully tackled and dragged from the building despite their non-violent cooperation with law enforcement and is now facing charges that the dozens of witnesses present can substantiate as blatantly false.

The problem of harassment is made even more serious because thus far by the response of the Administration who, in their interactions with Trans students about this issue, have been everything from completely ignorant of Trans reality, to belittling, to outright humiliating.

Ironically, this arrest came immediately after students raised the clear contradiction between the cuts being directed at critical student services and the district’s renewed funding for Alameda Sheriffs. Students made it clear that for us, student programs, reasonable class sizes, a safe environment for Trans and Queer students, and safe working conditions for staff are the keys to campus safety, NOT an increased police presence.

This violent action taken by the Alameda Sheriff’s Department is reflection of the current homophobic and Transphobic environment that is on the Peralta Community College Campuses and of the administration’s efforts to criminalize and silence the student resistance through targeting queer activists who have played a central role in this struggle.

We have been unable to get any information on the health status of Jesse, who has been in custody for more than 24 hours now, and are worried of their safety.
We are urgently calling for support from our comrades, communities and allies.
We are demanding the Peralta administration immediately drop the charges.
We are trying to raise Defense and Bail funds ($35,000!).
We need a mass show of support at the court at 2pm tomorrow (come in your best court drag and meet us outside at 1:30pm):
Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse
661 Washington Street
Oakland, California 94607
Dept 107
Please donate, and get this awesome Queer out!