A recent story of anti-LGBT violence comes from Chicago, where last week a lesbian couple was assaulted. The crime occurred in the South Austin neighborhood. As many as ten men punched and kicked the women, pressing them up against a car and hurling antigay slurs. The attack occurred after a man, who had gone to high school with one of the women, recognized her and followed her down the street, taunting her for her gender-nonconforming attire. He punched her and as the couple tried to fight back he was joined by other assailants. Only one of the men, Terry Glover, 24, has been arrested and charged with felony counts of hate crime and robbery. Police are still searching for the other assailants.
Although this individual crime is a huge tragedy it is in no way an isolated incident. 2012 saw the 4th highest murder rate of LGBTQ and HIV-affected people (LGBTQH) in history. Also, this year we've seen a series hate crimes in New York City along with hate crimes that received media attention in Ohio, Wisconsin, and California. The attack in Chicago along with the many other anti-LGBT hate crimes that are occurring all over our nation are extremely alarming. It is crucial to continue our efforts to make spaces safe for LGBT people, stories like this one remind us of this.
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Chicago hate crime: one of many
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