Porn-posting troll targets Rajkumar at NYPD community meeting
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Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar took office Jan 1. Photo courtesy of the campaign
By David Brand
Pornographic images that appeared on screen during a virtual meeting of the 102nd Precinct Community Council last week appear to be a local troll’s attempt to harass and embarrass the district’s newest female lawmaker, civic leaders say.
Explicit images of people engaged in sex acts appeared on the Zoom meeting just as Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar began to address the group for the first time as a state lawmaker on Jan. 5. Rajkumar defeated veteran incumbent Assemblymember Mike Miller in the June 2020 Democratic primary and became the first South Asian woman elected to the New York state legislature in November.
“It was harassment. It started as she started to speak,” said Community Board 9 Vice Chair Sherry Algredo, a meeting attendee. “It looks like it’s a target toward her. It appears that way.”
Rajkumar remained cool and continued delivering her presentation despite the cyber harassment, earning the respect of a skeptical Algredo. “I admire her more after seeing how she handled herself so dignified,” Algredo said. “She’s a strong woman, and I’m a hard person to win over.”
But Algredo said she worried about hackers posting the photos while children were watching.
“You don’t know who is on Zoom,” she said.
Council President Simcha Waisman pledged to find out who hacked the meeting and also said the harassment “seemed targeted at Rajkumar.”
Rajkumar, a Democrat, said the troll failed to throw her off. “I am more empowered than ever to lead, to work and to fight for our community.
She called the trolling “an outrageous and appalling intrusion into a community meeting” and said she believed police would identify the perpetrator.
People familiar with the incident said the 102nd Precinct is investigating the hack. The precinct covers Richmond Hill, Kew Gardens, Ozone Park and Woodhaven.
NYPD spokesperson Sergeant Edward Riley said the NYPD “will utilize additional security protocols going forward to prevent such an incident from reoccurring.”
“Zoom bombing,” an early-pandemic fad, has persisted in Central Queens, where trolls continue to invade community meetings with porn and other disruptive stunts.
The Our Neighbors Civic Association was also hit by porn trolls, said photojournalist and community activist Robert Stridiron.
The latest example was an embarrassment for whoever took time to infiltrate the meeting and post the images, he said.
“It’s crazy that anybody has to deal with it, especially a young politician, voted in by the community and she has to deal with this problem when she has other issues to solve like crime in the area,” Stridiron said. “She has to have a Zoom meeting and deal with this nonsense.”
“I hope the police department is investigating with the Cyber Crimes Unit,” he added.
