Women assaulted at pro-Palestinian protest in Crown Heights accuse NYPD of bias

Two women who were attacked at a pro-Palestinian rally in Brooklyn say the NYPD failed to protect them and is biased against protesters with left-wing views. Enbar Ozeri, a dual citizen of the US and Israel, was struck on the head by an object during the April 24 protest near Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters. Amanda Luci, who didn't attend the rally but got caught up in the crowd, claims she was threatened with sexual assault and assaulted before being escorted to safety by a single police officer.

The women's lawyer, Leo Glickman, says NYPD training manual is biased against pro-Palestinian protesters, citing only left-wing demonstrations as violent. The lawsuits point to an instruction manual for the Strategic Response Group that includes anti-Trump, Occupy Wall Street, and Black Lives Matter protests but excludes pro-Israel events.

Luci describes her experience on Eastern Parkway: "I was just existing... And I was attacked just for existing." No one has been arrested in either assault. A spokesperson for Chabad condemned the attack, while NYPD officials claim to be investigating.

The lawsuits come as Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani vows to disband the Strategic Response Group and an officer from that unit drove Luci home after the incident. The NYPD says it's committed to keeping New Yorkers safe but has been criticized for handling of past protests.

Ugh, this is crazy . I mean, who expects to be attacked just walking near a protest, right? And now these two women are suing the NYPD and claiming they're biased against protesters with left-wing views . It's just wild that their lawyer points out the police manual is all about the left-wing demos but not about pro-Israel events... what does that even say about our society?

And honestly, I don't know how one person can handle a situation like Amanda Luci described – being threatened and assaulted and then just escorted home by one officer . It's just so messed up. But at the same time, I get why she's suing and why her lawyer is bringing this up... we need to make sure our police are fair and protect everyone equally, not just some groups over others .

It's all very concerning though... I hope they can figure out what happened and take steps to prevent something like this from happening again .

I don't usually comment on this kinda stuff, but I think what happened at that pro-Palestinian rally is super concerning . I mean, who gets hurt just standing near a protest? It doesn't feel right that the police aren't taking this seriously enough. The fact that they're saying they're investigating, but no one's been arrested yet... it's like they're not even trying hard enough .

And I don't get why they have to make training manuals for different types of protests. Like, can't they just keep everyone safe without playing favorites? It's not like the police are going to start targeting people because they support pro-Israel events or something (although that would be super suspicious ).

I feel bad for Amanda Luci and Enbar Ozeri - they were just caught up in a situation and got hurt . Maybe this whole thing with the Strategic Response Group is just a big mess , but at least some people are speaking out about it...

I don’t usually comment but I feel really bad about this whole thing . Two women got attacked at a pro-Palestinian rally and now they're suing the NYPD because they think they weren't protected properly . It's crazy to me that someone would do that, especially when you're just trying to show support for something you believe in. I don’t get why it had to go down like this .

And yeah, it does sound like the NYPD is biased against pro-Palestinian protesters if they only include left-wing demos in their training manual . Like, what about all those other important causes? It's not right that people are getting singled out and threatened just because of where they stand on things .

I'm kinda surprised that no one's been arrested yet though . I mean, you'd think the police would've done something by now. And it's even more messed up that an officer from the Strategic Response Group drove one of the women home afterwards . Like, how is that supposed to fix things?

I don't buy into the whole "NYPD is biased against left-wing protesters" thing... I mean, think about it, they're trying to keep everyone safe during a protest and some people still get hurt . It's not like the cops are out there looking for specific people or groups to target. And what about all the other protests that went down peacefully? Why isn't anyone suing them for being "biased against right-wing protesters"? The fact that they have a training manual that only focuses on left-wing demos doesn't necessarily mean it's biased... just trying to address specific safety concerns and crowd control issues. Plus, the officer who drove Luci home after the incident seems pretty cool . Maybe we should focus on finding ways to improve police training and crowd management instead of jumping straight to accusations of bias .

omg what's going on with these rallies this is so wrong that 2 women were attacked and no one got arrested? i mean, i get that both sides can be passionate about their causes but violence is never the answer it sounds like the NYPD might have had a bias against pro-Palestinian protesters though which is even more concerning. if they're not going to protect people from being hurt then what's the point of having a police force? i hope these women get the justice they deserve and that the Strategic Response Group gets shut down soon

I'm so done with these protest laws ! Like, I get it, safety first and all that, but can't they just make sure everyone's protected? Two women were literally attacked at a pro-Palestinian rally in Brooklyn and the NYPD didn't even have enough officers to cover them properly. It's not like they're asking for much, just some basic protection. And now these women are suing the city, claiming bias against left-wing protesters? That sounds like a total setup .

I mean, I get that the Strategic Response Group has an instruction manual that only highlights violent left-wing protests and excludes pro-Israel events... that's some messed up stuff . But let's not pretend like this is new or surprising. We've seen time and time again how police can be super biased towards certain groups. And now, with the mayor-elect wanting to disband the Strategic Response Group, maybe we'll finally see some real change .

So I'm thinking, if the training manual is really biased against pro-Israel protesters, why are there only left-wing demos included? That sounds like a weird way to train cops . And what's with the officer who drove Luci home afterwards? Was that a good idea or just a PR move? I'm not saying the NYPD did it on purpose, but they need to explain why the Strategic Response Group is being singled out here . The fact that no one's been arrested in either assault is also weird... seems like they should at least be looking into what happened .

This is getting outta hand - a single cop saves one woman, but whole force can't handle situation

I just got back from this amazing road trip to Niagara Falls , and man, it was breathtaking! The views were insane! I swear, it's like Mother Nature decided to put on the best light show ever . Anyway, back to this whole NYPD thing... I don't know, guys, can we talk about how underrated vegan food is? Like, have you tried those new vegan pizza places popping up everywhere? Game-changer! My friend's cousin just started working at one of them, and let me tell you, their vegan mac 'n cheese is out of this world .

omg, this is getting outta hand! can't believe a single cop was able to save one of those women, meanwhile nobody else got any help nyc police need some serious revamp, especially when it comes to protecting ppl at rallies. bias against left-wing views is just plain unfair and i'm all for mayor-elect zohran mamdani making good on his promise to disband the strategic response group. it's time for us to see real change in how our law enforcement handles protests

Ugh I'm so done with this ... can't believe people have to go through something like this just because they're protesting for a cause they care about! It's like, you'd think the police would be all about keeping everyone safe, but apparently there's bias going on here . The fact that there's no one in custody for either of these attacks is just wild ... and now Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani wants to disband the Strategic Response Group? Fingers crossed it actually happens ! I mean, how can you expect to trust the police when they're not even holding people accountable for this kind of thing? It's all very concerning...

[Image of a person with a black eye, surrounded by police officers, with a caption "When you're not getting protected by the system "]

[GIF of a woman running away from an object, with a red "X" marked through it]

[Image of a person holding a sign that says " Palestine is not terrorism", with a green checkmark symbol next to it]

omg this is so typical... like, what even is the definition of "safe" here? one person gets assaulted at a pro-Palestinian rally and suddenly everyone's all bent outta shape about NYPD training manuals newsflash: being attacked isn't exactly on the radar when it comes to "violent left-wing demonstrations"... meanwhile, those who actually are protesting get demonized for existing

Just saw the crazy story about those two women who got attacked at a pro-Palestinian rally in Brooklyn They're saying the NYPD totally dropped the ball and is super biased against protesters with left-wing views It's wild that the police manual they use has this super one-sided list of "violent" protests, only including lefty demos like Occupy Wall Street but excluding pro-Israel events I mean, it's not exactly rocket science to figure out that all these different groups have different views and ways of protesting. The fact that no one's been arrested yet is just another example of how messed up the system can be

OMG, like, can't even believe this is happening . So these two women get caught up in a pro-Palestinian rally and are basically left hanging by the NYPD . I mean, who gets attacked at a protest and then only one officer shows up to help them? Amanda's story sounds super traumatic, being threatened with sexual assault and all that. And now they're suing the NYPD for bias and neglect? Like, totally fair, imo . The fact that their training manual is biased against pro-Israel events but includes left-wing protests just adds fuel to the fire . Zohran Mamdani promising to disband the Strategic Response Group is a good start, I guess . But what about accountability for the officers involved? Like, someone needs to take responsibility for these incidents .

I'm low-key disappointed in our NYPD, you know? Two women were attacked at a pro-Palestinian rally and they're saying the cops didn't do enough to protect them. It's like, what if they had been right-wing protesters instead? Would the treatment be the same? I don't think so... The fact that there's this special training manual for the Strategic Response Group that only includes left-wing demos but excludes pro-Israel events is pretty suspicious. It sounds like there's some bias going on here, imo.

I'm so worried about Enbar and Amanda , two women who were brutalized by someone at a pro-Palestinian rally in Brooklyn. The fact that no one was arrested is just not right . I think it's super suspicious that the NYPD training manual only includes left-wing protests as violent, but excludes pro-Israel events . It sounds like they're more interested in protecting the Chabad people who were attacked than keeping protesters safe .

I mean, imagine if this had happened at a Trump rally and the police didn't show up or showed up late? We'd be talking about a national scandal . But because it's pro-Palestinian, suddenly they're the heroes . It just doesn't add up to me .

Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is doing the right thing by promising to disband the Strategic Response Group . We need police who are trained to protect all people, not just those with a certain ideology .

This is why you need body cam vids , cops act like heroes on paper but in real life they're clueless . Can't even protect their own people let alone strangers . Time to get the police reform train rolling !

omg u guys i just read this article about 2 women who were attacked at a pro-Palestinian rally in Brooklyn and i'm like totally shook ... i mean these women were literally just trying to express their opinion and they get threatened with assault? it's crazy! and the fact that one of them was just walking by and got caught up in the crowd is just wild... like what even happened before she got there? anyway, i'm so upset for her and the other woman who got hit on the head . i feel bad for her too cuz she's a dual citizen of the US and Israel and it's just not right that she was attacked because of that . what do u think is going on here?