Earlier this week, we brought you the story of a gay man who stood up to a bigot on the subway and a train of strangers who applauded him. On the complete opposite end of the inspirational spectrum is this report from the Daily News, in which a gay couple was first harassed, then attacked, on the subway by a group of five women and one man:
Urena Morel Frankelly and his partner were on a southbound 2 train Monday night when a woman took a picture of them eating and her friend called them names.
“Why you taking a picture?” the victim asked.
“Feed you face, f—–” the suspect shouted back. Another woman with her chimed in, apparently asking the partner: “Why you with that f—–?”
An argument erupted, and the two women, joined by three others plus a man, attacked Frankelly, police said.
The Daily News plays up the angle that bystanders did nothing to help, although we could understand why someone might not want to get involved against a gang of six psychopaths. Still, the incident is a reminder that while we live in a city where an entire subway car cheers a gay man’s appeal for tolerance and love, we also still live in a city where, on any given day, two gay people can get their asses kicked just for being different.
