Tyler Clementi's mother criticizes Rep. Scott Garrett at LGBT rally

The mother of Tyler Clementi, the Rutgers University freshman whose suicide brought national attention to cyber-bullying and the treatment of gay youths, criticized Rep. Scott Garrett at a protest rally Tuesday.

“I definitely thought it was essential to be here because I want to have a new, fresh person in Washington,” Jane Clementi said. She added that she wanted someone in Congress who could “represent myself, my family, my foundation and people like Tyler.”

Clementi lives in Ridgewood, which is part of New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District, which Garrett, a Republican from Wantage, has represented since 2003.

READ: Prosecutor wants court to reconsider Ravi ruling

READ: Conviction overturned in Rutgers spying case

Read more articles and stay in touch with your local news by clicking here

Though he has easily won re-election in the past, Garrett this year is facing what is thought to be his toughest challenge. His Democratic opponent, Josh Gottheimer, a former speechwriter for President Bill Clinton, has outgained him in campaign donations.

Garrett was also hurt by a report in Politico last year that he told some House colleagues he would not help the National Republican Congressional Committee raise money because it had supported gay candidates. Garrett later called the report a fabrication.

On Tuesday, the advocacy group Garden State Equality staged a rally next to the Glen Rock train station to call attention to Garrett’s record on issues concerning the LGBT community. About two dozen people turned out, including Clementi.

Tyler Clementi killed himself in 2010 after his roommate used a webcam to spy on him and another man during a sexual situation. Since his death, Clementi’s mother and her husband, Joe, have worked to stop bullying.

Clementi said Tuesday that Garrett has declined to co-sponsor legislation known as the Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act. The bill would require colleges and universities that receive federal student aid to adopt an anti-harassment policy.

A spokeswoman for Garrett said Tuesday night that she would look into the matter.

Garden State Equality, an LGBT civil rights organization, has vowed to spend the days before the Nov. 8 election fighting to defeat Garrett and Rep. Chris Smith, of the 4th District, who has said he supports heterosexual marriage and does not consider gay rights to be human rights.

The group, led by Executive Director Christian Fuscarino, endorsed Gottheimer last week.

In a phone interview before Tuesday’s rally, Fuscarino mentioned several positions Garrett has taken over the years that he considers objectionable. They include the congressman’s vote against hate crime protections for LGBT individuals and the Violence Against Women Act. Garrett has also opposed the repeal of the former “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on gays in the military, and has declined to support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

And “notoriously,” Fuscarino said, Garrett reportedly wouldn’t support gay candidates in the Republican Party — an apparent reference to the comments reported by Politico last year.

Garrett has said that he would support any candidate who espoused the Republican Party platform, which opposes same-sex marriage. In a statement issued before the rally began, Garrett campaign manager Sarah Neibart sought to divert attention to allegations made in a 2007 lawsuit that Gottheimer assaulted and intimidated a neighbor. The suit was later dismissed at the neighbor’s request.