OK, kiddo! Here are all the fantastically amazing posts tagged with Hate crimes

Gays Now Protected From Hate Crimes in U.S.

October 30th, 2009

Yeah, I couldn't think of anything to draw...

The United States has passed and signed into law The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The new law carries stiffer penalties for anyone who intends to terrorize the entire gay community by selecting and violently assaulting gay people at random.

Canada added sexual orientation to the list of minority groups protected from hate crimes in 2004—just five years ago.

Hear that, all my stateside friends? You’re not far behind! In fact, at this rate, you’ll have equal marriage rights nationally by 2011. Go, push for it!

Update: Slap reader David writes in with a correction. It turns out that Canada’s 2004 amendment dealt with protection from hate propaganda, and not violent crimes. The equivalent of the Matthew Shepard Act was actually added to Canada’s criminal code in 1995. So, it turns out that my stateside friends are pretty darn far behind after all. Keep pushing, though; you’re on your way!

Community Rallies For Gay Bashing Victim

September 14th, 2009

I think a "shindig" is a type of injury, too.

The Thunder Bay community gathered to take a stand against homophobic violence on Friday after a gay man endured a vicious attack just one week before. Jake Raynard says he and some friends were assaulted outside a local bar because they were gay, with Jake bearing the brunt of the attack—ultimately requiring reconstruction surgery to repair multiple fractures to his head and face.

These attacks are unacceptably frequent, and the victims often don’t come forward. I believe that hiding from homophobia solves absolutely nothing, so I applaud Jake’s brave stance in making himself visible after such an attack. Homophobia affects everyone, even straight people, so it’s important to take a stand, be visible, and vocal.

Walk The Bridge In My Shoes: How Homophobia Affects Everyone

August 21st, 2009

Alexandra Bridge

Twenty years ago today, Alain Brosseau was walking home from his job waiting tables at the Chateau Laurier Hotel in Ottawa when he was attacked and killed by a group of men because they thought he was gay. He wasn’t.

To mark the tragic event, the Ottawa community is organising a show of solidarity called Walk The Bridge In My Shoes. It begins tonight at 7pm, starting with the viewing of a 1996 documentary at the National Art Gallery and concluding with a walk down the Alexandra Bridge, where Brosseau was dropped head-first onto a pile of rocks. Organisers encourage all participants to bring cell phones or flashlights to light up the bridge, while the Ottawa and Gatineau Chiefs of Police meet mid-way for a symbolic exchange.

Twenty years ago may seem like a while, but gay bashings are still a reality and you don’t need to be gay to become a victim. These incidents will not go unnoticed; homophobia needs to be nipped in the bud.

Anti-Gay Fringe Candidate Found Guilty

August 10th, 2009

That especially goes for his followers.

David Popescu, the fringe candidate from Sudbury who declared that all gay people should be killed while speaking in front of high school students at a candidate’s debate, has been found guilty of inciting hatred under Canada’s criminal code.

Good.

Popescu, already a sentenced criminal for striking his elderly mother in 2003, tried to shield his immoral actions behind a cowardly veil of religious beliefs, saying that he’s just acting the way the bible wants him to. Thankfully, the courts do not accept that uttering death threats and inciting hatred toward an entire population is OK because one interprets their religious texts as such.

U.S. Anti-Gay Killings Highest In Nine Years

June 22nd, 2009

I've got nothing witty to say about this.

The number of bias-motivated, anti-gay murders in the United States rose 28% last year, reaching its highest level since 1999 according to a report released by a national advocacy coalition. The research, which was coordinated by a group called the New York City Anti-Violence Project, also found a general trend of increasingly severe violence toward GLBT people.

Sharon Stapel, a spokesperson for the project, suggested that the disturbing increase is partially due to an increase in rhetoric, as gay issues took a more prominent role in the presidential campaign.

I’m inclined to agree.

This sad trend is an emphatic validation of why hate crimes legislation is so important. The correlation between anti-gay rhetoric and violence shows that these attacks aren’t just coincidentally committed against gay individuals, but are intended to terrorize the entire gay community. The faster this shameful statistic can be reduced to zero, the better.

That’s Not Religious Freedom

March 9th, 2009

Why won't you let me hate you?

David Popescu, the crazy fringe candidate from Sudbury who declared that all gays should be killed during a federal election debate, has been charged by the Greater Sudbury Police Service for two counts of the wilful promotion of violence and hatred toward an identifiable group.

Canada outlaws speech that promotes violence or hatred toward minority groups through section 319(2) of the Criminal Code. Despite this, Popescu has only stood by his remarks, saying that his promotion of LGBT genocide is protected by his freedom of religious expression. (Maybe he skipped over the “Thou shalt not kill” bits?)

Already, some right-wing commentators have leapt to Popescu’s defense, claiming that his prosecution is just an example of the oppression and intolerance that Christians are currently facing.

Sigh… Let’s just get this out there, shall we?

Reporting a death threat is not opression or intolerance; investigating a death threat is not oppression or intolerance; charging and prosecuting those who utter death threats is not oppression or intolerance. I will not accept that threatening an entire group of people with death is OK because one interprets their religious texts as such. In fact, I don’t believe that resistance to any of the harmful, hateful messages often repeated by those shielding themselves behind religious texts is oppression or intolerance. Tolerance has never meant submission into being treated as inferior and unworthy of human dignities.

So, to those who seriously believe it’s intolerant for gays to resist being told we are lesser, that we shouldn’t ask for or deserve equal rights, or that we simply write off a call for our death as a religious freedom: Suh-lap!

Gay Man Attacked For Singing Christmas Carols

December 3rd, 2008

A young man has been arrested in Vancouver after punching a gay man in the face for singing Christmas carols.

The victim, who did not wish to identify himself to the media, was walking past St. Paul’s hospital with a friend when he became inspired by the Christmas lights display and burst into carols. The attacker, 21 year old Christopher Clifford Mercier, suddenly became enraged and punched the singer in the face while shouting anti-gay slurs.

While the victim was not seriously injured, these attacks are serious. This is Vancouver’s second, reported, spontaneous anti-gay attack this autumn. Jordan Smith, another Vancouver gay man, suffered a broken jaw after being assaulted in late September.

The Vancouver police are investigating the attack as a hate crime, a move which I applaud. Minorities are often at a greater risk of assault for no reason other than simply being a minority; this is why hate crime laws are in place. Gay bashing is not a sport and it is vital that the police send out a message that this will not be tolerated.

Hiding From Homophobia Is Not An Option

October 27th, 2008

I think most gay people, myself included, have been verbally assaulted at one time or another, and have likely even felt physically threatened. There are no official statistics on these sorts of incidents, generally because people tend to keep it to themselves. What’s alarming, though, is that physical assaults are still startlingly under-reported. This is why I was encouraged to hear about a rally of over 2,000 marchers that took to Davie Street, Vancouver, after a hate-motivated assault last month left Jordan Smith, a gay man, with a broken jaw for doing nothing more than holding hands with a friend.

Smith brought a message to the rally that resonated with me:

I was scared to be completely open prior to this event. I preferred the status quo. I no longer want to be silent. [...] I’m proud to hold my friend’s hand in public.

This is an important message to understand and spread. Last week, a family member called me in complete shock over continuing anti-gay rhetoric heard from an acquaintance and otherwise generous host while out of town. While I’m not as easily shocked over that sort ignorance and hatred, I was disheartened by the reaction: “This is why I think you should hide more,” I was told.

While I trust completely that this advice was motivated by concern and love for my well-being, I regret that I cannot distinguish this reaction from those who outright threaten or abuse gay people, even though the motivations are clearly different. (Call it the Slap Doctrine, if you will.) The consequence of both actions is clear: to make gay people invisible and live in fear.

But Jordan Smith is less afraid after a violent assault than before. That’s because he understands, first hand, how hiding prevented nothing and why invisibility after the assault was not an option.

Silence in the face of homophobia is tolerance of homophobia, and unless you’re capable of living your life without ever mentioning the person you love most, capable of filtering all your words and actions as simple as holding hands, and capable of doing all this without feeling you’re worse off for it, then silence stands in the way of happiness. Stand up to homophobia, report and challenge hateful incidents, and don’t live in fear.

Candidate Declares That Gays Should Be Killed

October 3rd, 2008

This illustration intentionally left blank. (Well, I guess it's not really blank; I mean, there's text here, but let's just say some people aren't worth the drawing time.)

An independent candidate in Sudbury, Ontario shocked an audience of high school students during a federal election debate by calling for the murder of all gay people.

David Popescu made the comments in response to a audience member’s question about same-sex marriage. Many in the audience were reported to have risen to their feet in disgust, while the other candidates from the Liberal, NDP, and First Peoples National Party watched in stunned silence.

In a telephone interview with The Sudbury Star, Popescu unabashedly re-iterated his position, indeed promoting the murder of every gay person:

A young man asked me what I think of homosexual marriages and I said I think homosexuals should be executed. My whole reason for running is the Bible and the Bible couldn’t be more clear on that point.

What a miserable, small man.

Inciting hatred and calling for the murder of identifiable groups is illegal in Canada, and Sudbury police started their investigation within hours of the debate.

While Popescu’s behaviour requires punishment by law, Sudbury Secondary School deserves strong condemnation for their lax reaction and for refusing to clarify whether or not they would allow Popescu to speak at the school again. Principal Paul Camillo said that the school “respect[s] all other opinions, although we may not agree with them.” What a cowardly, disgusting stance in the face of an invited potential policymaker who directly called for the execution of a large number of the school’s students.

Calgary Most Hateful City in Canada

June 11th, 2008

Suprise!

Calgary has topped the list of the most hate crimes committed per capita of any city Canada, according to a report released by Statistics Canada this week. The study also noted that gays are more likely to be the victims of violent hate crimes nationwide than any other minority group.

Neither statistic comes as any surprise. Alberta is home to several individuals who seem to have nothing better to do than publicly voice their distaste for gay people.

Off the top of my head: This week, Stephen Boisson is appealing a human rights ruling that made him apologise for a hateful letter that may have incited a violent anti-gay attack; Last year, Bishop Fred Henry called same-sex marriage a worse betrayal of children than the Catholic Church’s sex scandals, refused to give communion wafers to politicians that supported equal marriage rights, and separately said that gays are as evil as prostitutes and adulterers; Rob Anders, MP for Calgary West, crafted pamphlets linking same-sex marriage with violent gun crimes and crystal meth usage—and mailed them to another constituently entirely; Ted Morton introduced legislation that would have forced teachers to stop all discussions of same-sex marriage unless each student received written parental permission; Ralph Klien used the obscure Notwithstanding Clause to outlaw same-sex marriage in the province before the federal law took hold; Bill Whatcott based an entire mayoral campaign (seriously!) on countering homosexuality, while Calgary Mayor Dave Bronconnier announced in a mayoral debate that he doesn’t “condone” gay people; and Craig Chandler had his Tory nomination revoked because of anti-gay hate speech published on his website.

With such passionate and unnecessary rhetoric in the province, it’s no wonder that some people get the idea that it’s OK to react violently to gay people. Alberta’s biggest city now has three times the national average of actual hate crimes.

Older Posts »