“The LGBT community needs to know that we are NEVER safe, even in the heart of DC’s LGBT neighborhood during a night of fun celebration”

via google maps

Ed. Note: I realize that there have been numerous crime posts these last few days but I can’t pretend what is happening is not happening. I also don’t think we should normalize these events and pretend this is just part of “city living”. These events are horrible and must not be accepted as “normal”. One has every right to be angry and upset that they are happening. One should also recognize that solutions to these deep seated issues are not easy. Simply saying lock them up and throw away the key is not the answer. Doing nothing is not the answer either. If advocating for long term solutions there must also be interim actions to stem the violence that we are seeing. Hopefully there are those who will not pander but will work on genuine solutions that begin to ameliorate what we are seeing far too often.

Thanks to a reader for passing on this awful report from the Washington Blade:

“Three gay men were treated and released from a local hospital following a Halloween night attack on the 1400 block of P Street, N.W., in which an unidentified attacker “used homophobic language” while assaulting the men, according to a police report and a Facebook account of the incident by one of the victims.

“Without provocation or warning, Suspect 1 punched Victim 1 in the head then slammed Victim 1’s head into a glass window, causing serious bodily injuries,” the D.C. police report says. “Victim 1 was knocked unconscious and needed multiple staples to his head to close the laceration,” the report says. The report classifies the incident as a suspected hate crime.”

Read the full Blade report here.

Ed. Note: The OP sent me the photos from the Facebook post but they are too graphic to post here. Wishing the victims a very speedy recovery both physically and mentally.