Monday, March 2, 2009

Hate Crimes Abound

Two bits of news are coming about awful hate crimes here in the US. *sigh*

The first involves the arrest of two men accused of killing Jose Sucuzhanay, an Ecuadorian (?) immigrant who was beaten after walking arm-in-arm with his brother in New York City out of a bar on December 7th. The two men arrested -- Hakim Scott and Keith Phoenix -- are accused of attacking and brutally murdering Sucuzhanay and shouting anti-gay and anti-Latino slurs during the attack. The details are pretty brutal, with Phoenix allegedly beating Sucuzhanay with an aluminum bat and then returning a few moments later after he noted the man moving on the ground. *holds back vomit* And, in classic hate fashion, Phoenix had this to say on record: "So I killed someone. That makes me a bad guy?"

Apparently, it wasn't a hate crime ... it was in self-defense. They claim Sucuzhanay kicked the SUV they were sitting in.

[snarky]I don't know, I'm totally on their side. I know I kill anyone who kicks my car.[/snarky]

Second, a series of attacks against gay people have occurred in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood over the last few weeks. The latest was last week when 41-year-old Jerry Knight, after leaving a party in a sailor's uniform. He asks:
"As of now, there's feelings of shame, of guilt. What could I have done to not put myself in that position? Did I encourage this? And was I strong enough? I live in a bubble. I forget that around the world ... this happens to people for a multitude of reasons. It was a surprise, absolutely."
A few years ago, I read a piece (somewhere on the vastness of the interweb -- a little help, please) that said we teach women all about how not to get raped, perhaps we should teach men how not to rape.

No, not your fault. No one ever asks for a hate crime.

Meanwhile, the murderer of a gay man in Polk County (FL) received life in prison for a series of crimes, including weapons charges. His alleged co-conspirator is on trial next month.

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