Youths assault homosexuals
24 July 2007

From Expatica news:

AMSTERDAM – Small groups of youngsters abused two homosexual men in Amsterdam on Thursday night. One of the victims sustained serious injuries, according to the police on Tuesday. Over a short period of time this is the second incident whereby homosexuals were beaten up.

The youths attacked the two men in the so-called ‘cruising area’ Nieuwe Meer and Oude Haagweg. Around 2.30 a.m. one of the homosexual men was walking in a car park at the entrance of the park when three men walked up to him. They called him ‘dirty homo’ and ‘filthy homo’. The victim wanted to run away but did not get a chance. A blond man in an orange t-shirt threw him onto the ground, kicked him and beat him with a stick. The victim had a broken rib and various other injuries on his right arm and leg.

Amsterdam seems to be aiming to become the gaybashing capital of Europe.

Only 3 weeks ago I'd been out on Reguliersdwarsstraat. I was walking home alone along the Leidsestraat at about 2am. Out of nowhere I was slapped across the side of the head by some teenager who screamed "HOMO" at me. I did a quick runner. It was very minor and I was not injured. But this was the 1st time something like this happened to me in Amsterdam.

And has anyone noticed how often more serious homophobic assaults are happening here.

I emailed homonetwerk@amsterdam.politie.nl to report what happened to me. They said they would make an official report of it.

I also emailed the mayor Job Cohen who ignored my mail.

Looks like Amsterdam is slowly dying as a gayfriendly city

Oh Commotion, though I hate hearing about things like this, thanks for posting!

I'm glad you took the time to let the higher ups know about this. Please let the board know if anything comes about from it.

To be honest, I have never really felt that "secure" here. While I can understand and know that Amsterdam use to be "all that" when it came to gay liberation and gay party extraordinaire, sadly I think it's a thing of the pass.

My DP and I have long discussions about this. Where I am from there is definately a gay area of the city. This is part of the city that has all the great restaurants, shopping, trendy condo's, coffee houses, theatre etc. And it's not just the "gay ghetto", it's a place for everyone. If I wanted to hold hands and not feel like I was making a statement I would do it there.

here though I have never felt like part of the gay city. DP says it's because Europe doesn't really have predominately gay areas, they just are.

Anyway, I'm rambling. I wish you the best in whatever happens and I'm sorry this event happened to you.

TC37

I don't expect anything more to happen in my situation. I didn't get a good look at the guy who did it and it was minor. I just wanted the police to record it as an incident.

I know what you mean about Amsterdam. In cities like London and New York and Sydney there have traditionally been gay neighbourhoods/ghettoes where the gays could feel comfortable. Amsterdam never had that because it was sort of felt that it was unnecessary as gays were integrated into the city.

Now that homophobic assaults are dramatically increasing here it makes the gay community more vulnerable than in London or New York or Sydney as there is no centralised gay neighbourhood in which gays can feel fully safe.

It's a pity. Amsterdam really is dying as a gay city. And the town council doesn't seem to know what to do about it.

:shock: I'm shocked, that these things are happening here, in Amsterdam of all places. :evil:

I think this is terrible for Amsterdam. If the City does not deal with these attacks properly (and stop them) Amsterdam will miss out on a great deal of money (from Gay tourists).

I think Amsterdam has really lost its 'soul' in the last five years. It is so sad to hear about these attacks. It would be a shame to let these 'nasty' few destroy the fun for everybody else.

I hope the Mayor wakes up before it is too late.

PS Commotion, Good for you for reporting this. I hope you got over it ok.

Commotion, what happened to you is horrible. I've been in Amsterdam for almost 10 years now, and it's only recently I've felt unsafe. Acceptance is changing for the worse here.
I'm particularly worried about my partner - he works in a restaurant and tends to get home late after work. It's not particularly hard to recognise he's gay, if you know what I mean. For the first time ever, a few weeks ago, I started to tell him to watch out for his safety, and to call me if he's going to be delayed in any way. I've also thought about meeting him after work and walking home together, but I really hope it won't come to that.
I have a question, though, if you don't mind - Did the guy who hit you see you walking out of Reguliersdwarstraat, and assumed you were gay, or was there another reason for the assualt? i.e. How did he know you are gay?

Well done for reporting this to the police. It's a shame that the Mayor ignored you - I think a public statement needs to be made about these increased attacks, and action needs to be taken.

I wonder what will happen during this year's Pride?

No he didn't see me coming out of Reguliersdwarssstraat as I was halfway up the Leidsestraat when he hit me. How did he know I was gay?

I look gay I suppose. You know the way sometimes you can just tell. Plus my stylish manbag may have given him a clue.

Commotion, I can empathise with your experience.

Having been physically assualted by a gang of six youths one night leaving Oxford Street (Sydney's main gay area) with my then boyfriend (during the height of Mardi Gras no less!), had firecrackers thrown at my partner & I in Newtown (the other, less glam gay strip in Sydney), verbally assaulted walking in Melbourne's financial district just because I was holding hands with my husband, been harrassed by God-botherers & hassled by homeless loonies in New York for similar handholding (the so-called man of the cloth just had to come up to my husband & I to tell us that the sight of us walking hand in hand made him want to "pray for us", & the homeless guy needed to shout to us that he "fucked Tony Curtis up the arse!") I can honestly say that after nearly 7 years of living in Amsterdam I feel a LOT more comfortable being gay in this city than virtually ANY other city in the world.

Of course, there are parts of Amsterdam I would not walk hand in hand with my partner and there have been situations where I have heard people use "flikker" or "homo" in passing. Hatred & ignorance unfortunately happen anywhere. No matter where we find ourselves we know that not everyone will accept us, but in comparison to almost ANY other place I believe Amsterdam (apart from some isolated incidents) is an amazingly gay friendly & tolerant city.

Oh I agree that Amsterdam is still very gay friendly. But facts are facts.

In 2006 there were 28 reports of homophobic violence to the police. Up to June 30th 2007 there have already been 26 reports. That is a 200% increase year on year.

The "mayor" refuses to condemn this increase. The police are asking gays to stay away from the Red Light District during Pride this year for fear of violence and last year for the 1st time in years the International Tourist Guide issued a warning to gay tourists that public displays of affection in Amsterdam were risky. It is quite obvious that the situation for gay people here is worsening. While it may not be as problematic as in other cities the fact that anti-gay violence is increasing at such a level is a huge problem and we'd be very naive to say "Oh but we'll be OK in Amsterdam because we're accepted here"

Well Commotion, after two more incidents of attacks against gays over our so-called Pride weekend I have to reluctantly agree with you that Amsterdam does indeed have a problem.

As I mentioned in my previous post I was once attacked by a gang of youths in Sydney the night before Mardi Gras. I believe such events tend to draw not only those who like to join in our celebrations but those who like to rail against it (for whatever reason). Sydney used to get an alarming amount of fundamentalist Christians lining the parade route chanting any-gay sentiments & waving AIDS is God's weapon against Gays banners.

I find it particularly galling however, that both the incidents over the weekend happened virtually within shouting distance of the Police HQ. Where was our police protection? Or was it all directed toward the football?

The other thing that I find interesting is that a great many of the incidents (at least the ones that the media reports) seem to involve foreigners. Is perhaps Amsterdam's legendary Gay Mecca status part of our problem? Are visiting gays traveling to our homo-haven thinking they can walk the streets anywhere in Amsterdam without fear or (I hate to be harsh) good common sense? Do Dutch gays have an innate sense where it is and isn't safe to walk hand in hand with their partners, where to give attitude and where to quietly let the antagonism roll off their backs?

The other thing I'd love to hear from people's personal experience is intolerance against gays on the rise in other cities? Given the large migrant muslim population in places like Rotterdam has it seen a rise in attacks against gays?

Or is Amsterdam a victim of its own success?

Gays attacked during Gay Pride
6 August 2007

AMSTERDAM (ANP) – A number of homosexuals were assaulted in two separate incidents during the Gay Pride weekend in Amsterdam. On Saturday night a 34-year-old Irish man was attacked in the vicinity of the Kinkerstraat, police announced on Monday.

The Irishman was walking with his Spanish boyfriend when he got in an argument with two aggressive men. After a hand gesture by the Irishman the two struck him with a hard object, after which the man was taken to hospital with serious injuries. He underwent surgery to his jaw and other treatment. The police strongly suspect that the man was attacked because of his sexual orientation.

Two American men were attacked on the Nassaukade on Friday night. One was beaten and sprayed in the face with pepper spray or tear gas. The police suspect that the violence in this case was also motivated by hate towards gays, but are not ruling out the incident may have been a mugging.


During a third incident on Friday night troublemakers destroyed a wreath from the gay rights monument at the Westerkerk and threw it in the canal. The police later arrested two young men on suspicion of vandalism.

Police are still searching for the perpetrators of the two violent incidents. The force formed an "emergency team" to investigate the incidents on Sunday. Police say the attacks were unrelated despite the fact that they took place in close proximity to each other.

[Copyright Expatica News + ANP 20

There's something rotting in this city. At least I lived here when it was accepted to be gay. Those days are obviously over.

Why not let the mayor know how unhappy you are with this homophobia epidemic. Check out http://amsterdam.nl/gemeente/college/burgemeester_cohen

On the bottom left hand corner of the screen you can contact Job Cohen the mayor. Here's what I wrote to him:

"Dear Mr. Cohen,
Today I read with horror about the violent homophobic assaults during gay pride and I would ask you to seriously consider whether you are fit to remain in office. According to the Iamsterdam website your role involves: "Public Order, Safety and Security
Tackles security risks and public nuisance. As well as fighting crime, preventing disasters and dealing with emergencies, this includes making sure that nobody feels unsafe in the city." When it comes to gay safety why are you being so silent in condemning this and addressing it? If you don't know or care enough about this crisis then I urge you to resign. You should allow someone who is prepared to address this problem take office instead of you. "

Commotion,

I think your letter to Cohen - while I agree with your good intentions - is somewhat over the top.

I believe Cohen would be the first to agree with you that these attacks need to be addressed, and, considering how quickly the police formed a special group to address the incidents that occurred, it could be argued that the city does consider them as serious as you do. The fact that the reporting of these inceidents by the media as lead item on the TV news & on the front pages of the papers also attests to the general opinion of most Nederlanders

Considering Cohen was the man who married the first gay & lesbian couples in this city I don't believe you can rightfully accuse him of not caring about our communities. I believe asking for his resignation in such a manner doesn't help your argument.

I also think you should re-familiarise yourself with the word epidemic.

We have a problem in Amsterdam over some hate-crime incidents, and yes, the incendence of these attacks does seem to be rising (or at least the reporting of such incidents) but, I again assert, Amsterdam is in general an incredibly tolerant city.

May I suggest you balance what so many thousands of people joining in the celebrations experienced over the weekend with your personal opinion of such isolated incidents?

Job Cohen has refused to personally condemn the increase in homophobic violence despite requests from the COC. That is extremely sinister in my opinion



Is this the same police who requested that gay people stay away from the Red light District during Pride because they hadn't bothered to arrange adequate police presence in the city? The police may have formed a 'special group'. But what is their specific remit. Are they just another talking shop? No-one seems to know. What we all know however is that almost every week there is a new report of a serious homophobic assault.


The fact that he was the person who married the 1st gay and lesbian couples is irrelevant. He had no choice in that matter - he was he mayor. That is his job. It is absurd to praise him simply for doing his job.

He has also refused so far to personally condemn the increase in homophobic violence. This is also the man who objected to the presence of a boat of gay teenagers this year. He seems to be just another hypocritical politician who talks the talk but cannot or will not walk the walk.


Perhaps but I also assert that Amsterdam's tolerance is dying at quite a rapid rate. The COC has been warning of increasing intolerance for over 2 years but were routinely ignored.

That's why I think that politicians like Cohen and his ilk need to be challenged. On the 1 hand he asks for inclusion and acceptance of Muslim youth yet on the other he refuses to specifically condemn (or in fact even acknowledge) the link between alienated Muslim youth and increased homophobic violence.

He performed the 1st gay marriages but refuses to allow a gay youth boat on Pride and he allows the police to request that gay people stay away from the Red Light District during Pride because they hadn't bothered to do their jobs. I am surprised he has not been asked to resign before.

I maintain that he has failed the gay communit. Despite he mealy mouthed, meaningless words about tolerance and inclusion he has been the mayor while the homophobic assaults get steadily more frequent and more severe.



And may I suggest you remove your head from the sand about the massive increase in homophobic violence. What you are in effect suggesting is that because many people saw the gay pride parade that we sshould forget the fact that year on year homophobic violence has increased 300% (if the rates for 2007 continue.)

it's good to send a warning to politicians that their reluctance and refusal to deal with this properly (like Cohen and the rest of the city councillors) will have consequences for their careers

Commotion,

If you re-read my previous posts you'll see that I do not have my head in the sand & am NOT suggesting we ignore the problem we have in Amsterdam with an increased incidence of anti-gay attacks. I have, in fact both acknowledged the problem and agreed with your position that it is a justified one.

Please don't take this is a personal attack on yourself or your position. I'm not interested in bickering with you.

I merely suggesting - and it's only a suggestion mind, don't take it as a criticism - that if you tempered your obvious passion a little you'd appear more like a person with a reasonable claim (about a situation that MUST have something done about it before it gets worse) and less like a rabid fanatic with an axe to grind.

I simply don't believe calling for Cohen's resignation is a constructive suggestion. Instead, think what you would do if you were in Cohen's position. What do you actually want him to do? Say sorry? Put more police on the streets? If so where? Just in the gay ghettos or in outlining streets like Kinkerstraat? What would actually make you feel safer?

My comments about balancing the hundreds of thousands of people who enjoyed the pride celebrations against the few unfortunate isolated incidents is not to dismiss them or treat them with anything other than the seriousness they deserve. Gay Prides all around the world attract violence. I've personally suffered from it myself (and believe me, I got more than the word Homo thrown at me). Look at what's happening in Poland & other Eastern European countries if you want to call for those in power to step down for a lack of care for their communities. I simply wanted to point out that in Amsterdam we have a spectacularly good position compared to the rest of the world. That we DON'T have an 'epidemic of violence' on our hands here (as a HIV positive person I particularly find your use of this word to be inappropriate) and that the city and the people who govern it are - for the most part - very supportive of our communities and our situation.

You have the passion, the intelligence and (unfortunately) the personal experience to think long & hard about it and work toward a solution - rather than calling for the resignation of a man who - I again assert - is NOT the enemy we need to be fighting against here.

OK we obviously disagree fundamentally on this issue.

What would I do in Cohen's shoes? If I was in Cohen's shoes I would be very clear in my condemnation of homophobic violence.

He has taken a personal interest in helping alienated Muslim youth in Amsterdam. But when this interest in helping alienated Muslim youth precludes him from condemning or linking the increased levels of homophobia with Muslim youth; then quite simply he is failing the gay community.

The fact that homophobic violence is increasing is not cause for resignation. His refusal to condemn it and his refusal to ask why the increase is occurring is absolutely grounds for his resignation I think. It is negligence of a very dangerous kind.



1. More police on the streets - both the ghettoes and surrounding neighbourhoods
2. Anyone found guilty of homopphobic violence to be placed on the Sexual Offenders Register? Actually not sure if this exists in Holland. But in most countries convicted rapists and paedophiles are placed on this register which is visible to the public. As people engaging in homophobic violence are engaging in such acts because of their own screwed up sexuality then their screwed up sexuality is a danger to society - like that of rapists and paedophiles. They should be treated in the same manner. Perhaps 5 years on a sexual offenders register may be sufficient.
3. Specific, clear condemnation of homophobic violence and acknowledgement of why it is happening.
4. His quest to help alienated Muslim youth is commendable. But trhere needs to be some background checks on the organisations he is dealing with. What are the policies towards gay people of the Muslim organisations he is funding and supporting? Unless these organisations are clear in their condemnation of homophobia he should not be dealing with these organisations.



Check the other article I posted today. I'm not certain if this statement is actually true anymore.
I posted another article today in which the Gay rights office of the HUman Rights Watch says that Barcelona and Berlin have recently overtaken Amsterdam as gay capitals. He also says that the levels of homophobic violence in Amsterdam have reached worrying levels. In fact gays and lesbians have started to avoid this city.



He may not be the enemy but with friends like Cohen who needs enemies?

Yes but that's the same arguement as George Bush uses to justify the deaths of 600,000 civilians in Iraq since the American occupation of Iraq began. He says that because Saddam murdered 1.5 million people then the deaths of 600,000 on the US watch is somehow excusable. Saddam was utterly awful but that does not mean that his regime should be used as a moral benchmark by which the US behaviour in Iraq should now be judged. It basically allows the US to engage in utterly savage behaviour.

It's blatantly obvious that the situation for gay people in Amsterdam is better than in Poland; Russia; Middle East; Africa. But we should not be using the horrific situations in those countries as a measure against which Amsterdam should be judged.

Commotion

while your passion and enthusiasm for this and other topics are commendable, sometimes I think you like confrontation a little too much

as you're more interested in twisting my comments to further your desire to seem the only person here with a valid argument (linking what I've said with George Bush is not only ridiculous but insulting to the intelligence of both of us) and less interested in taking another's viewpoint in the spirit in which it was intended (I've already said I agree with your stance on this issue twice) I'm withdrawing from this discussion thread

as I mentioned previously, I'm not interested in bickering with you or playing You Say I Say

good luck with your plan to bring down our homophobic local goverment

Sorry you feel that way.

Perhaps I do like confrontation too much. Then again that's the lifeblood of the internet. And it's lack of confrontation on this board that makes the Gay & Lesbian section of Expatica so incredibly dull and boring compared say to the Dutch News section.

Caliban you may be saddened to hear gaybashing in Sydney is'nt just isolated to Mardi Gras, it's becomming more regular thing down oxford street on a Saturday night.

Resurrect anti-semetic feelings in Amsterdam and see how quickly Job Cohen reacts!

I don't agree that commotion is being confrontational. I beleive commotion is addressing a problem that needs to be addressed before perhaps God forbid someone is killed. Everyone should be doing as commotion is doing.

No disrespect Caliban but you sound like you work for the mayors office. lol

This year Cohen will be the 1st mayor to participate in a float on Gay Pride. He also has plans to meet members of a gay Turkish organisation and attend a debate on the emancipation of North African gays and lesbians.

This is slight progress from last year when he made teh spectacularly offensive gesture of agreeing with the police suggestion that gay people avoid the red Light District during gay pride as the police might not be able to protect them.

HOwever his particaption still strikes me as lazy opportunism and tokenism.

He still continues to meet with North African groups who are vehemently homophobic.

For Christs' sake, so many gays are weak and cowards when it comes to gay bashings! We must be the weakest minority group on earth, it is pathetic.

If someone tried to gay bash me, I would smash their teeth straight down their throat! Toughen up will you, it's not about being big and strong, just being assertive can be enough to stop people bashing them. The only time you should not respond is if you are seriously out numbered and they have weapons.

Either way I have never been gay bashed - maybe because I am strong and tough looking, but that's not to say it would never happen, although the attackers would get a shock if they did. Toughen up guys!!!

If you read the article it was actually 3 against 1 - not good odds to make a stand.

I think if you are going cruising you should carry a knife for protection.

I have never been gay bashed but 2 guys tried to mug me about 2 years ago. I am diabetic so when they asked for my wallet I pulled out a syringe and threatened them with it telling them 'I have diseases'. They ran like wimps. I was a bit tipsy at that point as when I looked back on it, it wasn't the wisest of reactions.