The year in photos: 16 images that defined Queens in 2019
/By Victoria Merlino
Jails were approved. Trials were contested. A new Queens district attorney was elected. The year was jam-packed with breaking news, and the Eagle was there with a camera for many of the events that mattered most.
Join us for a look back at the Eagle’s best photos of 2019.
Eagle photo by Jonathan Sperling.
Three distinct viewpoints emerge at raucous Kew Gardens jail hearing
Anti-jail activists, anti-Rikers/pro-community jails activists and vocal Queens residents collided at a packed hearing to discuss the city’s proposal to build a new, community-based jail in Kew Gardens in April.
Pool photo by Uli Seit.
Jury finds Chanel Lewis guilty of killing Karina Vetrano
A Queens jury found defendant Chanel Lewis guilty of murdering Howard Beach resident Karina Vetrano in August 2016 after roughly five hours of deliberations in April, prompting cheers from Vetrano family members and supporters who attended each day of the retrial and original trial last year.
Eagle photo by Victoria Merlino.
Staff union demands ‘wage justice’ during Queens College commencement
CUNY, one of the nation’s largest university systems, faced a multitude of challenges this year. One of the most prominent struggles was adjunct and tenured professors fighting for wage increases as their union negotiated a contract with CUNY. A number of Queens College faculty and students demonstrated for higher professor salaries during the college’s commencement ceremony in May, with members and supporters wearing red stickers over their graduation regalia demanding “wage justice.”
Eagle photo by Jonathan Sperling.
Melinda Katz, pledging justice reform, wins Queens DA race
Eleven months after officially kicking off her campaign in Forest Hills, Melinda Katz returned to her home neighborhood in November to claim victory in the race for Queens district attorney. Katz, a Democrat and the Queens borough president, campaigned on a progressive justice reform platform that included ending the use of cash bail, declining to prosecute various low-level offenses and establishing a conviction review unit in the office
Eagle photo by Phineas Rueckert.
Tiffany Cabán declares victory — prematurely
The Queens district attorney Democratic primary race generated national attention as public defender upstart Tiffany Cabán competed against Borough President Melinda Katz, a fixture in the Queens political scene for over two decades. Cabán pushed an aggressive criminal justice reform agenda, which allowed m her stand out in a crowded field. Primary night in June ended with the results between Cabán and Katz too close to call. Cabán was up by more than 1,000 votes on election night and declared victory, but Katz reversed the deficit during a recount and ultimately won.
Eagle photo by Phineas Rueckert.
Activists at City Hall demand answers in death of Layleen Polanco
After Layleen Polanco, an Afro-Latinx trans woman, was found dead at Rikers Island in June, family members and advocates rallied, saying the city and the Department of Correction had not done enough to investigate the case.
Eagle photo by Phineas Rueckert.
After years in prison, Shawn Williams vowed never to return. Last week he nearly did.
Shawn Williams cried when the jury delivered the not-guilty verdict at his Queens Supreme Court trial last week. “Like a baby,” he added.
Eagle photo by Phineas Rueckert.
AOC talks sex work decriminalization and Queens DA race at Elmhurst market
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez surprised shoppers at a market in Elmhurst in July when she stopped by to discuss district issues, including justice reform proposals.
Eagle photo by Victoria Merlino.
Laurelton choreographer explores stories of incarceration through dance
Asking Kerri Edge why she started dancing is like asking why the sky is blue, or why trees sprout leaves. “It's what my family does. And so it was just natural,” she says, after a pause. “I don't remember not being around dance. I was born at the studio, is what they say.”
Eagle photo by Jonathan Sperling.
Sunnyside Yard public meeting taken over by vocal opponents
A public meeting in September on the controversial Sunnyside Yard planning process featured plenty of community engagement, including dramatic opposition from opponents of proposed mega-development six times larger than Manhattan’s Hudson Yards.
Eagle photo by Walter Karling.
Queens’ first Vietnam War Memorial finally opens in Elmhurst
After decades of advocacy, Queens’ long-awaited Vietnam War Memorial opened Dec. 20 at Elmhurst Park. The event attracted dozens of local leaders, Vietnam veterans and families of soldiers who served in the long war. The memorial — two walls facing each other, with a flagpole and manicured landscaping — features the names of the 371 Queens service members who died during the Vietnam War or who are classified as missing in action.
Photo via MSNBC.
Queens Eagle makes national news
An Eagle story in December has attracted national attention for its tongue-in-cheek coverage of the impeachment of President Donald Trump. The story, “Queens man impeached,” was published on the bottom of page 16 in the Dec. 20 issue. The headline and lede, as well as the article’s location in the paper, were so well-received that a copy of the paper made its way to the desk of popular MSNBC television host Rachel Maddow.
