Bricks Ahoy Faggot!
As an ambassador i feel it is my duty to report not only the things that make my life enjoyable as a gay man, but also the circumstances that challenge me.
Sunday morning i got an email regarding an assault of a young gay man suffering from a flying brick to the face, here in my city of Thunder Bay. If that doesn’t stop you cold, certainly the empathy for this man does.
John (Jake) Raynard, a well liked individual, standing outside a small gay bar that is cloistered in its own identity, light up a cigarette on a Friday night like any other night, except trouble lurks in dark places. A group of young men, used words to insight hate, words not worthy to repeat, but all the same, words that challenge the foundation of our Charter of Rights and Freedoms in this country.
In a matter of moments things escalated, as of course they would, when ignorance fuels the minds of idle youth and Raynard, a real man, managed to get his friends to safety by quickly ferrying them off into a cab. Raynard stayed behind only to be met later with a brick in the face. Waking up Saturday afternoon in the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre he is consoled by friends who are horrified that yes this can happen in our backyard.
As i watched facebook climb today from 85 and upward past five hundred, i can feel the community pull together. I hear my phone ring again and again as people call with their news, or give me further information, or my phone blips again as another email heads my way. Like many in my community, heads are still spinning, mouths are left wide open in some cases, and as the day moved on solid solutions are being worked forward to move from this insipid mess. How could this happen?
Think for a moment, for the youth that were involved in this bashing, they have grown up with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, that is all they have ever known. They have heard for the last 25 years about; the fight for same sex marriage, AIDS, or for equal rights for gay (GLBT) people. And this is the result that we as a community must now contend with, HATE! Hate on the streets that we once walked as children and now ruled by the law of gang mentality!?
When does this the hate stop, and the acceptance of people to love who they wish to love begin? When does my community begin to heal from this horrible abuse? I hope that justice is served not only to the brick slayers, but to the general population of my community who deserve better and who work hard to make lives happy. Not tending to a young man in a hospital waiting for another surgery and wondering if he can get over the personal trauma he has suffered. Today is a day i wish i never had to see. The community of Thunder Bay now needs the strength to overcome this unjust happening, so that people may live their lives as they have chosen. Free from hate.
Both comments and pings are currently closed.
StevO Says:
September 9th, 2009 at 2:02 pmVisit StevO
Well said Paul. This feels like an attack on the whole community. Almost a testing the waters so to speak. Who ever did this will be dealt with. Let’s help our police with as much info as possible . These idiots are bound to brag about this. Keep your ears open and lets let these bastards know that we are NOT pleased.
jimmy doe Says:
September 9th, 2009 at 6:52 pmVisit jimmy doe
Not that I condone what happened to Raynard, but let me paint another scenario and tell you how some people use their sexual preference as a defense for their conduct. A few months ago a 28 year old male began posting defamatory comments about me on the internet regarding a subject he knew (and still knows) nothing about. The comments were threatening, derogatory, and directed not only at me but at my family and friends. When I’d finally had enough and the police were of no assistance, I decided to deal with this person myself and made it clear I was going to deal with this situation. At that time he announced he was gay and turned the situation in to a “hate crime”, stating I was after him because he is gay. His sexual preference has nothing to do with anything, in fact I could care less if he was gay or not. My issue was with his attitude and constant harassment on the internet. He continues to hide behind the fact he’s gay and cries “hate crime” every time someone threatens to confront him. He’s a disgrace to the gay community as far as I’m concerned and its because of people like him that situations like this are not taken seriously. He is the little boy that cried wolf.