Incident Details
- Date of Incident
- August 14, 2024
- Targets
- Gerard Dalbon (Independent)
- Assailant
- Law enforcement
- Was the journalist targeted?
- Yes
Assault
At least four journalists, including photojournalist Gerard Dalbon, were shoved and struck with batons by police while reporting on a pro-Palestinian protest after a fundraiser for Vice President Kamala Harris in New York City on Aug. 14, 2024.
Independent photojournalist Gerard Dalbon was struck repeatedly with a baton by New York City police while documenting protests outside a fundraiser for Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign on Aug. 14, 2024.
State Democratic leaders — including Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul — and labor union members gathered in Harlem in a show of support for the Harris-Walz campaign ahead of the Democratic National Convention, Politico reported. Pro-Palestinian protesters rallied outside the event, demonstrating against the Biden administration’s military support for Israel amid the ongoing Israel-Gaza war.
Dalbon told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that the protest outside the campaign event was uneventful, but tensions escalated after protesters marched the 10 blocks north to a restaurant where the Democratic officials were holding an after-party. Officers with the department’s Special Response Group, a rapid response unit that the New York Civil Liberties Union calls notoriously violent, quickly arrived and began pushing everyone back and hitting people with batons.
He said that he was shoved by a supervisory officer who was one of the first to pull out his baton and begin striking at people. “I was repeatedly hit with a baton by him as we were getting pushed back. I was showing him my press badge and he did not care,” Dalbon said. “He was saying ‘fuck your press badge’ as he was hitting people.”
In a clip posted on the social platform X, a supervisory officer can be seen using a baton to shove back Dalbon — wearing a black shirt — while the journalist’s press credential is visible on a lanyard.
Dalbon told the Tracker that while he has covered many protests, this was the first time he had been hit by police. He added that there was a large group of press at the front between the police and protesters, and that because of that the journalists got “pummeled.” At least four journalists, including Dalbon, were struck or pushed by officers with batons during the chaos.
The New York City Police Department did not respond to a request for comment.
The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker catalogues press freedom violations in the United States. Email tips to [email protected].
