The Violence continues

[sparkindarkness]

Yes, it’s a litany of depression again, I haven’t done one for a while – but the stories need to be remembered and told because they usually aren’t. They need to be told because they are usually ignored – because the dead and the injured and the afraid are hidden. Because a large part of this world likes to pretend it doesn’t happen – it makes it easier to use hate speech if you can pretend it has no consequences. It makes it easier to deny us when you can pretend we’re not targets.

A trans woman in Mexico was found decapitated (warning, graphic photos). It’s brutally tragic how many trans people are so violently murdered around the world -the depth of the hate is astonishing.

In New York, another trans woman, Amanda Gonzales-Anudjar was found strangled to death, possibly killed by the man she was dating.

In South Africa, a man is accused of beating raping a Lesbian. He is reported to have said he would make her pregnant to show her she was a woman. Even sadder is that such “corrective” rapes are far from uncommon.

In Boston an Ecudaorean immigrant was beaten to death and his brother were attacked. Though both were straight, they walked huddled together to keep warm, and any display of affection between men is dangerous – and were attacked by men screaming anti-hispanic and anti-gay slurs.

On the Day of Silence of all days, 3 students attacked Cheyenne Williams, a Lesbian classmate of theirs. They actually tried to push her off a cliff

In Senegal, even being dead is no protection from hatred. A mob dug up Madieye Diallo’s body and dumped it in front of his family home. It is tragedy upon tragedy because Madieye Diallo died because he stopped taking HIV medication. Why? Because he was in hiding from an anti-gay mob. Sadder still, he is not the first

In Puerto Rico another trans woman, Ashley Santiago has been found stabbed to death and police  have been asked to treat her murder as a hate crime.

In Rimini, Italy a gay man was attacked by 2 security guards for having the gross audacity of kissing his partner. The police’s response? “If you’d kissed a woman, nothing would have happened to you.” He also refused to report the reason for the attack in the police report and referred to his partner as a “friend.” With people like these enforcing the law, what safety can there be?

In Rochdale, UK, A 17 year old gay teen was attacked by a homophobic gang of 10 men, having his head slammed into the kerb and jumping on his head, while his friends sought help from, well, typically uncaring bystanders.

In Leicester, 4 men attacked 2 openly gay men (and, again, are noticing how the haters gang up to attack us?) walking down the canal path.  After beating both men, severely enough to require surgery in one case, they were pushed into the canal

In Tulsa, Oklahoma, a 24 year old gay man has been a target of month long harassment by homophobic neighbours – including assaulting him, breaking into his apartment, leaving hateful vandalism and religious imagery. Oklahoma has no hate crime law for GBLT people, however, and other than the breaking and entering there doesn’t seem to be much pursuit.

In Missoula, Montana, another gay man was attacked by a group of 8-10 homophobes (again, the homophobes bring a mob)

In Edmonton, Canada Lesbian, Shannon Barry has had to have facial surgery after being attacked by a group of  men screaming homophobic abuse

In India, 2 people have been arrested in connection to the death of a gay professor

In Chicago, 3 men have been charged with a hate crime after attacking Daniel Hauf, a gay man on a train in January
A gay basher in Vancouver, is pleading guilty to assault – after he and 4 friends confronted and attacked a gay man, resulting in him having to have his jaw wired shut. But he is trying to deny it was a hate crime.

It seems of the 20 people who attacked gay police man James Parkes in Liverpoool, none of them may be charged. At least the police HAVE arrested 2 people for the murder of Nigel Prince in Southampton. In addition, the trial has begun over the murder of Ian Baynham

As ever, I think it would be remiss to report the violence against GBLT without connecting it properly to its source – hatred and tolerance of hatred. Our societies have a very high tolerance for homophobic and transphobic hate. We allow and give credence to a level of inciting hate speech that is almost beyond belief. Worse, not only do we normalise such hate as acceptable, but we also laud it as moral – especially since no small amount of this venom comes from organised religion.

Until we can assert strongly and clearly – and until our societies repeat the message – that homophobia and transphobia are wrong, then we will make no headway in stemming the hatred. How can we stop it when we keep saying that it’s ok?

In New York an LGBT community centre had its rainbow flag torched. Of course, being New Yorkers, the centre turned round and got a much much bigger flag.

A sign in Casper, Wymoing that quotes Leviticus and says “To Be Gay = Death” is, of course, free speech and cannot be removed. 100s of students walk past it on their way to school. Oh and Casper, Wyoming? That would be the birth place of Matthew Shepherd.

A Baptist group, showing the kind of love we have come to expect from organised Christianity, opposes the repeal of DADT. Why? Because the Bible orders death for gays.

If I continued listing homophobic hate, I’d fill another 20 posts, In fact, many of my posts document the kind of hatred that acts as a foundation for this violence.

While such speech is acceptable. While it si considered a legitimate part of our discourse. When it is considered a reasoned position. When these bigots are not considered outrageous or fringe. When they are considered moral, we allow hate to flourish and grow.

I have said before, hate does not emerge from a vaccuum. It is here because we nurture it, because we encourage it and because we allow it to fluorish