Tag: victims

But there are no plans to build a memorial to LGBTI victims of Islamic State Iraq authorities are bulldozing a building that was home to hundreds of Islamic State (IS) homophobic crimes. Many men accused of being gay were thrown off the seven-storey building that was once home to the National Insurance Company in Mosul. The building, ravaged by the battle to end IS rule, will be removed. IS were finally removed from Mosul in the summer of 2017. A new government building will...

'We pay taxes so the police can be there to protect us' A police officer in Chicago is currently under investigation for allegedly beating a gay couple outside a club. Two friends of Sgt. Eric Elkins, as well as a friend of the victims, implicated Elkins in the attack on 29 September. According to reports, the friend of the victims identified Elkins ‘immediately and without hesitation’ from a lineup of photos of suspects. So far, Elkins faces no official charges. On Wednesday...

Hate crime charges have now been filed against the four men over last month’s incident Four men who assaulted and allegedly used anti-gay slurs at two men following last month’s Miami Pride festival face a potential maximum of 30 years in jail each. Prosecutors have added hate-crime charges to the aggravated battery charges the four were already facing. If found guilty, this raises the maximum jail time from 15 years to 30 years and takes the charge from second-degree to first-degree felony. Rene...

The new interim memorial for the victims and survivors of the Pulse Nightclub shooting was unveiled yesterday in Orlando, Florida. The tribute features panels and murals honoring not only the 49 victims of the deadly shooting which took place on June 12, 2016, but the families, first responders and community members who came together in the aftermath of the tragedy. According to Pulse nightclub owner and foundation founder Barbara Poma, every aspect of the design came directly from those affected by...

'Even if I bleed...I will fight to the end.' A young man has posted an emotional Facebook post after allegedly being attacked by his sister for being gay. Diogo Camargo, 22, from Brazil, took a shocking selfie of his head bleeding profusely and posted it on social media. He said he was attacked by his sister and brother-in-law. ‘Do you also have an abusive and homophobic sister?’ he wrote. ‘I hope not.’ Attacked by brother-in-law and sister Camargo wrote his relationship, which he had been...

Experts are calling for "robust culturally specific prevention programming." A new study suggests gay and bisexual people are much more likely to be victims of sexual violence. A 2016 survey conducted by the Utah Department of Health asked 10,000 residents if they’d ever suffered a sexual assault. Nearly half of all bisexual respondents (45.5%), and a third of lesbians and gays (33.6%), said they had been the victim of sexual violence at some point in their lives—compared to just 8.7% of...

Police released have photos of the deceased "as a last resort." Police in Toronto believe they’ve discovered a seventh victim of the killer who plagued Toronto’s Gay Village. Bruce McArthur was arrested in January in connection with the disappearances of Selim Esen, 44, and Andrew Kinsman, 49, who went missing last spring. Since then, authorities have also charged the 66-year-old landscaper with the murders of Majeed Kayhan, Soroush Marmudi, and Dean Lisowick. They’ve turned to the public for help in identifying the...

The attackers 'stamped on a victim's head' Three people have sustained serious injuries after being subjected to an unprovoked attack in Blackpool, northwest England, on the weekend. Joe Clarke, 22 and his two friends, Summer Tarrant 20 and David Westworth, 24, were viciously attacked as they made their way home from a night out. Taking place at around 5.30am GMT on Saturday (17 February), Police say the trio had homophobic abuse hurled at them before the violent attack on Topping Street. Vicious, unprovoked...

A teenager was strangled and forced to apologise for being gay during a sick homophobic attack on a Tube train, police said. The 19-year-old's attackers allegedly threatened to stab him and placed him in a headlock until he struggled to breathe during the attack on a Jubilee line train. One of the victim's female friends, 25, was punched and pushed to the ground when she came to his defence, police said. British Transport Police said officers were treating the incident as a...

It’s been just over two months since Egypt ramped up its efforts to persecute LGBTQ people in the country – and now 14 men have received prison sentences just for being gay. The victims have all been sentenced to three years in jail for ‘abnormal’ sexual relations, but were each released on bail of 5,000 Egyptian pounds ($283, €230). They will now have to wait for their appeals trial. The trial of three other men has been delayed over procedural reasons, defence...

Compensation comes after former federal government employees launched class-action lawsuit The Trudeau government has earmarked more than $100 million to compensate members of the military and other federal agencies whose careers were sidelined or ended due to their sexual orientation, The Canadian Press has learned. The money will be paid out as part of a class-action lawsuit settlement to employees who were investigated, sanctioned and sometimes fired as part of the so-called gay purge. An agreement in principle in the court action...

"This town is dealing with a lot of hate right now," said Tim Griffin. "This has just got to stop." A building owned by a South Carolina gay couple has burned to the ground in what the victims are calling a hate crime. A suspicious fire early Friday morning destroyed a newly built 3,000-square-foot structure just feet from the Pageland, South Carolina, home of Tim and Neil Griffin. The men say it was going to be used to host the Miss...

The city of Orlando unveiled a new rainbow crosswalk to honor the 49 victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting. Completed in time for National Coming Out Day, the crosswalk was created in response to a change.org petition that was signed by over 2,000 people who called upon the city to establish the rainbow crossing, "to honor both the memory of the victims and the struggle of the survivors from the Pulse nightclub shooting." "Rainbow crosswalks have been installed in cities from...

Our hearts go out to the victims of the Las Vegas shooting this past weekend and their families who are struggling to take care of their loved ones. There are no words in existence that can express the world in which those affected are now living in. Like with the tragic events that happened at the Pulse Night Club in Orlando, Florida last year, not only are the present victims affected but so too are their families and friends, the community...