On Wednesday evening in Prospect Park, two blocks from where I’m staying and where I’ve been running every day, two young gay men were attacked by a gang of drunk teenagers. It was clearly a hate crime, there were a lot of witnesses and police were actually nearby and quickly arrested the teens. I wonder if it also has to do with the teenagers getting revenge for losing the voice of Elmo. The man who was attacked was one of the men who accused the voice of Elmo, Kevin Clash, of having sex with them while they were minors. That said, you can’t throw a rock in New York without hitting a man who claims to have had sex with Elmo.
So now while I’m running, I’m back to my Appalachia and Ozark hiking gear: A knife and mace.
A few years ago while walking with my then boyfriend, a group of college age guys shouted “faggots” as we walked on 7th Avenue near 13th street. I ran to their taxi and screamed, “Want to call me faggot? Get out. This is the West Village and the gays do the bashing.” The guy in the front seat yelled through the window that he was sorry for his drunk cousin, he didn’t mean it. I still tried to open the locked door until the taxi drove off. I went back to the sidewalk where my 6’4″ 250 pound boyfriend was standing completely drained of color and on the verge of tears, the pussy. I’m not usually so brave but I know I can’t live with letting those comments go anymore because they eat away at you and standing up for yourself feels great.
I credit my mother with this stance on hatred. She told me if anyone ever calls you an idiot, that’s their opinion. If they call you stupid, what do they know? But if they ever call you a dirty Jew, kick the shit out of them because they insulted who you are.