Should Austin Be Known As A City of Violent Hatred and Intolerance?

by Chris Apollo Lynn
Special to Austin Citysphere via Republic of Austin 
 
Nothing breaks my heart more than hatred and violence.  And I can’t stand to see it present in our city.
Growing up, I lived just outside of Dallas in Euless, a town full of diversity, known particularly for having a large Tongan population (If you follow High School football, then you might be familiar with the Trinity Trojans).  Because I’d always had friends who were black, white and brown, I lived in a semi-idyllic world, thinking that racial violence was a thing for past generations. That all changed in Junior High.

One morning in the school cafeteria, a crazy, cowboy white dude decided to put on some razor-brass knuckles and go punch a black football player named Bubba in the belly.  Flesh is flesh, no matter what color, and those razors did a number on Bubba’s insides. He spent many weeks in the hospital recovering.

Bubba was pretty much beloved by everyone.  My family and friends visited Bubba in the hospital. And our school organized a giant rally against hate to show that this was NOT something we would stand for in our community.

Well, ladies and gentleman, Austin has had our cafeteria moment.  Last week, two gay men got followed from the bars on 4th St to the Parking Garage at City Hall and then were jumped by four dudes.  Here’s a shocking account from Emmanuel Winston, one of the guys who was assaulted:

We were followed from the outside of the bar to three blocks down to the City Hall parking garage and attacked from behind by four men.  The nature of the crime was based out of cowardice.  The first unexpected blow was a punch to the back of my head.  Attacking us from behind left us disoriented and unable to quickly react.  At one point there were three men on me, kicking and punching my face. I don’t think these men expected us to fight back like we did, but my friend and I are fairly athletic men.  When we were able to get the men of us and face them that is when one of the men called out to us calling us fags.  They ran away, we tried to follow, but we lost them.  I sustained contusions and lacerations to the face.  My friend thought he had broken his nose.

To read the rest of this article, visit Republic of Austin.  Learn how you can help make a difference in your city and who you can contact to let your voice be heard!  For more on Winston's personal experience and how it changed his life, you can listen to the ACS interview with him.