Eugene Lovendusky is an LGBT activist, member of Queer Rising and the organizer of the 'Take Back the Night' rally held on May 16th in the wake of an anti-gay hate crime. On May 24th, just a week after speaking at a vigil in honor of Mark Carson, Eugene became a victim of another anti- gay hate crime in New York City's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. Eugene's attack is the ninth anti-LGBT attack for the month of May and the 27th since the start of the New Year. As reported by David Badash, the men yelled anti-gay slurs at Eugene as they attacked him.
As a result of the attack a friend of Eugene's, Alan Bounville held a rally and March on Saturday May 25th.
Anyone participating was asked to bring a sign that read "I am Homosexual…#Ask Questions" attendees could alter the phrase to suit how they identify themselves. After meeting as a group, pairs broke off and walked around to the various areas where individuals have been victims of recent anti-LGBT crimes. This event was a success and showed the unity of the LGBT community in the wake of the numerous crimes that have been geared towards the community.
Violence towards persons that identify as LGBT has been on the raise in not only New York City, but nationwide. As shown in the diaphragm.
The national Coalition of Anti-Violence Projects found that transgender persons were 28% more likely than non-transgender persons to become the victim of an attack. Gay males have been the victims of the recent attacks, but the LGBT community at large is uniting to show we are still going to press forward in the fight for equality.