James Zappalorti (1945-1990) was a disabled Vietnam veteran and Staten Island local. Zappalorti was a fellow member of the LGBTQIA+ community and was murdered on January 22, 1990, due to a fatal gay-bashing. His death was acknowledged as the 1st anti-gay hate crime in NYC since police started classifying crimes like this. His murder surged awareness and led to a statewide hate crime law that was enacted in the year 2000. Zappalorti was a kind-hearted man who cared about his community.