Wednesday, March 10, 2010

NYPD investigates possible anti-gay attack in Brooklyn

The New York Police Department's Hate Crimes Task Force continues to investigate an assault against a 22-year-old man in Carroll Gardens in which his alleged assailants used anti-gay slurs.

Fox 5 and other local media outlets reported last night five men attacked the man shortly after midnight on March 2 near the corner of Luquer Street and Hamilton Avenue. Fox 5 reported the man suffered injuries to his head and face.

"I was appalled and sickened to learn of last week's anti-LGBT hate crime in Carroll Gardens," City Council Speaker Christine Quinn said in a statement her office released last night. "New York City's greatest strength is our diversity. All New Yorkers should be free to walk our streets without fear of being attacked for who they are or who they are perceived to be."

City Councilmember Brad Lander [D-Park Slope] also condemned the reported attack, but this incident is the latest in a series of incidents that highlight all too well the fact anti-LGBT attacks remain a serious problem in the five boroughs and elsewhere.

Jorge Steven López Mercado, José Sucuzhañay, Jack Price, LaTeisha Green and Mario Vega are among those on whom I have unfortunately had to report over the last year. This coverage remains an emotional challenge, but it is truly unfortunate -- and quite frankly tiring -- to have to report on yet another anti-LGBT attack.

Enough is truly enough!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

NYC is rough. It ain't N.H., dude.

Boy in Bushwick said...

I appreciate your comments, and especially your astute observation that New York City is not New Hampshire. On that thread, I'm curious to know why you choose to remain anonymous. Can you perhaps shed some light on who you are and from where you come? My readers and I are extremely curious.

Anonymous said...

Sorry. It was just easier to hit the post anon. button since my identity doesn't matter re. my statement. I'm just another guy, gay, born and raised in NYC. My point was that NYC has always been full of loser scumbags who will beat people up for being gay or beat old women for their pocketbooks. Isn't that generally known? I look over a lot of gay blogs and don't understand why guys visiting here from more civilized places (like N.H., I've been there) seem to take an attitude of surprise at this. -Joe

Boy in Bushwick said...

Thanks for revealing yourself Joe. With all due respect, I find it quite useless to compare New York City to New Hampshire because the two places are so different. That said, I am painfully aware the
myriad of unsavory people in this city through my work as a journalist and as someone who has lived in Bushwick for nearly six years. A teenager mugged me less than two blocks from my apartment in the summer of 2006. He punched me in the face and threatened to kill me with a metal pipe -- all for $7, an iPod and a cell phone. People have used a lot of adjectives to describe me over the years, but naive is not one of them. New York City remains a difficult place to live, but I would have not chosen to remain in the five boroughs for nearly six years if I did not enjoy my life here.

Anonymous said...

I think it takes a lot of the subject-material out of the discussion if we can't compare places just because they're so different. My point was not to say you're "naive", just that I've noted so many gay bloggers, generally, seem to compare the quality of life in the "nicer" places they live to that in NYC during their visits. It can come across as condescending (though I'm not accusing you of feeling that way). We natives try our best. NYC is too ethnically diverse, lots of people "of color", so it's not always gay-friendly, and it's certainly harder here to get something like....same-sex marriage for instance...passed than it would be in places like NH, Vermont, Iowa, etc... Anyway, I hate to read you got robbed (as I always hate hearing that), so....be careful out there. -Joe