DETROIT — The beating of a gay man was caught on tape at Detroit’s Motor City Pride over the weekend.
Christin Howard, 20, told WXYZ-TV that he was taking a picture with a friend at the pride festival when five to eight men started to harass him and hurled anti-gay slurs. At one point, all the young men joined in on the attack as Howard was on the ground, helpless.
“They just gay bashed me, basically,” Howard said. “I just thought I was going to die. At one point, I thought they was going to kill me.”
Video of the attack was captured by a bystander; WXYZ reports:
Never Miss a Beat
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights.
“No one should have to endure an attack like Christin Howard did this past weekend,” said Yvonne Siferd, Director of Victim Services for Equality Michigan, a statewide LGBT advocacy organization.
“Pride celebrations offer people in our communities an opportunity to feel safe in expressing our authentic selves. Unfortunately, this is a tragic reminder that we still have a lot of work to do to ensure that LGBT people can walk down the street without fear of violence,” said Siferd.