Protests For Transgender Rights Get Violent At Spa In Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES — After a dueling demonstration for transgender rights at a Los Angeles spa became violent, police detained several dozen individuals and used non-lethal missiles to disperse the gathering.

The demonstrations were sparked by a video that went viral earlier this month in which an enraged customer complained to Wi Spa employees about a transgender woman’s exposed genitalia in the spa’s women’s area.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the video caused controversy as the spa defended its policy of allowing transgender clients to use its facilities.

When demonstrators opposing transgender access to the spa’s facilities clashed with counter-protesters and some in the crowd threw smoke bombs and other objects at officers, police declared an unlawful assembly in front of the spa in Koreatown around 11 a.m., according to Det. Meghan Aguilar, a spokeswoman for the LAPD.

Officers in riot gear are seen beating protestors with batons and firing bean bag rounds and other projectiles in a video uploaded to Twitter. A lady was hit in the abdomen at one point, forcing her to tumble to the ground.

Several dozen individuals were detained for refusing to disperse, and police subsequently stated they discovered stun guns, knives, and pepper spray dumped on the street.

Authorities were still reviewing the persons who were detained and checking to determine if anybody required medical care, so Aguilar didn’t have an instant arrest count.

She claimed that no officers were hurt and that no protesters were taken to the hospital.