Hate Crime

Ok, watch the link above before you read the rest of this blog. This is an issue that's a bit near and dear to my heart so I elected to speak on it. Hate crimes against the LGBT community happen a lot more often than you think but this video shows one right after the pride parade in New York. If you pay attention, a man who is beyond old enough to know better starts this altercation with the youths who have just left the parade. He yells at them obscenely and a fellow passenger decides to record this. Eventually, these two men realize she's recording and assault this young woman in an effort to get her phone from her. They don't want this recorded evidence. This same man has the audacity to put his hand around the throat of one young lesbian woman. The louder of the two men threatens them repeatedly.

There are so many crimes that can be charged in this. Assault or attempted assault, the threats, causing a public disturbance. Whatever, it's a hate crime, clear and simple. These men choose to yell and scream at them, telling them they're not normal. They place their hands on people first. No one provoked them. And the fact that they tried to get the camera phone from the person recording to break it shows that deep down, they know they're in the wrong. They know they started it and they don't want to get caught. Eventually they will get caught and we can only hope they are prosecuted.

This issue hits so close to home because I am a part of that community. If you've read my writing or seen some of my favored reviews you can probably tell this. This is something many of us face. There is generally never any call for this. Rarely does a gay man hit on a straight man to provoke this type of reaction. Believe it or not, we can generally spot our own kind well and avoid hitting on a straight one at all costs. There are always exceptions to the rule but this was clearly not a case of these men being hit on. It was not a case of anything but them exploding to spout off their own hate for something they do not understand. That disturbs me. Because if not for this passenger with her camera and her quickness in pulling the brake to summon authorities, this could have gone much worse.  

The people involved have filed police reports and the purpose of the video is to call attention to this and to get others to speak out. This is an emotional situation and I'm thankful at least that no one was actually hurt this time. But you can see how this could have gone so much further if those two men's fear of being caught hadn't kicked in. This is hatred and fear in pure form, and it's a sickening thing to see. Regardless of if you agree with the sexuality of another, it is never your place to cast judgment. If you disagree because of your religion, great. Your religion should tell you that your god makes the final judgment. No religion tells you that you are judge, jury, and executioner. If you feel it's not natural, hey, it's just not natural to you. That doesn't mean it's not natural to others. Regardless, respect is the important thing. We are all human trying to make it through this thing called life. It's high time we move past fear of what we don't understand and learn to simply coexist with one another.