Last night, another gay man was brutally attacked in NYC's East Village. "You just want to cry and move on," he says. twitter.com/JordanBach/sta…
— Jordan Bach (@JordanBach) May 21, 2013
The attack reportedly happened on Avenue D and East Fourth Street. NightllifeGay.com has more details about the incident:
Allegedly, witnesses are reporting the assailant was yelling "f*ggot" as he was kicking and beating Dan. Neighbors rushed to Dan's aid and chased after the attacker but unfortunately he got away. The police are investigating the assault now and have not determine it a hate crime.
Read more about this here. Towleroad has a report here.
Last night in the West Village, an estimated 1,000 people marched to Sixth Avenue and West Eighth Street, where 32-year-old Mark Carson was murdered this past weekend. Police have charged Elliot Morales with the second degree murder-hate crime of Carson. Morales reportedly made anti-gay remarks before shooting Carson in the head.
Updated:
A gay couple in their 40s were attacked early this morning while walking on Broadway between Prince and Houston. Via WNBC 4:
The men were both punched, and one suffered an eye injury, sources said.
Police said two men, 32 and 33, were arrested and face a charge of assault as a hate crime.
As The Advocate notes: "This brings the number of New York City gay bashings in the past 30 days to an alarming seven."
Updated 5-22
WPIX had an interview with the victim, 45-year-old Dan Contarino. This report said the incident happened on Avenue D.
"You don’t expect this to happen. Sometimes certain people just snap, maybe its marriage equality, something on people’s minds, the anger that comes out when they drink,” said Dan Contarino, who believes that is how he became a victim of the latest anti-gay hate crime in New York City.
He says a man who he had seen before in the area where he lives, started yelling at him on the street near Avenue D in the East Village Monday night.
“Are you a f****t, things like that. Certain things I don’t usually like to publicly say. It just happened so quick, I’m still absorbing the shock,” he told PIX 11 News.
You can watch the video of the segment here.
While this report makes the attack seem random, The New York Times reported that Contarino and the man accused of the assault, 39-year-old Roman Gronell, who lives at the Bowery Mission, had know each other for the past month.
Via the Times:
The first attack took place late Monday after what began as an afternoon of drinking between two men, who had known each other about a month, turned violent, Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said.
At around 10:45 p.m., as they walked near the Bowery Mission, where one of the men lives, they discussed the fact that one of them was gay. While the conversation was initially friendly, Mr. Kelly said, “suddenly, according to the victim, his assailant just snapped, became enraged and yelled antigay expletives.”
The Post has other details.
A few hours earlier, Dan Contarino and another man went out for drinks at the Yuca Bar on Avenue A and then to the Boiler Room, a gay bar on East Fourth Street, where they drank shots and beer, police said.
After a pizza stop at around 11 p.m., they started up a conversation about homosexuality while walking back to a homeless shelter where they both were staying.
That’s when the other man snapped.
Updated 9:30
WABC 7 reports that the NYPD made an arrest in the case.
Police say Gornell Roman was charged Wednesday with assault and aggravated harassment, both as hate crimes.
Roman is accused of yelling an anti-gay remark and attacking a drinking companion in the East Village on Monday. Roman and the victim, Dan Contarino, lived at a nearby homeless shelter.
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