NYC Mayor Adams laughs off jeers, booing at Pride parade: ‘See, that’s love there’

Ever the social butterfly, New York Mayor Eric Adams showed up in Brooklyn Saturday for the Park Slope Pride parade and quickly learned that he was persona non grata among the gay community for his appointments of “homophobic” ministers.

The mayor did his best to deflect with humor the boos and jeers he received, quipping to the New York Post, “See, that’s love there,” as two women flipped him off.

Others yelled “f**k you!” as Adams passed. One angry New Yorker even lobbed a water bottle at him.

The fury stems from two appointments Adams made to his administration soon after taking office.

Pastors Fernando Cabrer and Erick Salgado have both, at one point or another, made comments or supported policies that the LGBTQ community has deemed “homophobic,” Jacobin reported in March, and the community has yet to forgive or forget it.

According to local reporter, Jeff Coltin, “the most prominent political clubs boycott his Pride event last week.”

 

Indeed, a total of four respected LGBT groups pulled out of a Gracie Mansion Pride event last week, citing the appointments of Salgado and Cabrera.

In a joint statement, the Lambda Independent Democrats of Brooklyn, Stonewall Democrats of NYC, Equality New York, and Lesbian and Gay Democratic Club of Queens said, “Mayor Adams has tested the boundaries of the LGBT community to see where he can overstep — including who he can afford to disregard for the sake of his own interests.

Meanwhile, in Park Slope, one heckler could be heard shouting, “Shame on Salgado! Shame on Adams!”

“Mayor Adams has supported two homophobic pastors that he has representing him who have made transphobic comments and made the city a less welcoming place,” an attendee told The Post.

Another angry parade-goer, Liv, is shocked Adams would show his face at the event.

“He appoints homophobic people into positions of power and, I’m sorry, we are in the 21st century and that is not OK,” she said.

“I just can’t believe he’s here,” Liz fumed. “It’s really upsetting. He needs to do better. He shows up to Pride and then appoints people who literally don’t believe in gay marriage. Why would you do that?”

Through a smile one can only assume was forced, Adams brushed off the boos.

“To the ten to 20,000 people out here that love me and know that I’ve been a hard fighter and the three people that don’t, what are you going to say?” he asked The Post. “This is New York. It’s part of the love you have.”

And Adams doubled down on the “love” to Jeff Coltin, who asked if any of the anger the mayor was seeing was “justified.”

“What anger?” Adams asked. “I didn’t see any anger out there. You saw love out there.”

Melissa Fine

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