Everytime a hate crime occurs, the victim and their story is shared in the media and often with the promise that through these distressing stories there comes an opportunity for change or even a slight shift in attitude. The quantity of these stories and their ever-present nature suggests otherwise and it is hard to not feel gloomy about the state of the world when they occur.
Dan Harry, winner of the BBC show ‘I Kissed a Boy’, an exclusively gay dating show, shared his story and actively encourages others to speak out about homophobia related attacks. Dan recounted his story for the BBC, saying the alleged attack took place over a year ago in Central London. Dan says he was surrounded by a group of men threatening to push him in front of the train tracks.
As Harry recounts the story, he was alone on a tube platform when three men started to crowd around him as they asked if he was gay. He claims ‘[he] wasn’t causing a threat. [He] had [his] earphones in, [he] wasn’t looking at anyone, [he] wasn’t talking to anyone, I [he] just wanted to go home.’ Harry suggests that the group of men were nudging him closer to the platform edge as they surrounded him further. He says they then started to threaten him saying ‘you know the train is coming’, Harry thought that they were going to push him. When the train arrived, Harry took the opportunity to run away from the men to the farthest carriage on the platform. This did not seem to stop their attack as, Harry states, they were ‘walking along the platform’ and ‘looking in the carriage for where [he] was’ which he says ‘happened for maybe three stops’. When the men reached Harry, they did not go inside but shouted verbal abuse and a number of homophobic slurs at him through the tube window.
Not only was Harry unpleasantly surprised by the attack, he was also taken aback by the lack of response or reaction from the public who were on the train. Harry states that there were people on the carriage with him and yet ‘no one said anything. No one asked if [he] was alright’. Harry strongly advocates for support for the LGBTQ community, as they need help and reassurance that they are not alone when these attacks happen. Harry spoke to Attitude Magazine and said “That’s why [he is] partnering with Stonewall to demand change. We can’t face this battle alone; rather, we must tackle it together as a community.