A Georgia homeowner says he “absolutely” experienced a hate crime after he found anti-gay slurs keyed into his car and his tires slashed.
Taner Bayram of Brookhaven, was home last Saturday night with a friend when “heard a hiss” and ran to the door, but was unable to catch the culprit in the act.
He found his tires had been slashed, the side of his car had been keyed, and someone had scratched: “He takes d**k” with a crude picture of male genitalia, and an unfinished message reading “he has A-.” His friend’s car was similarly vandalized.
Bayram, who immigrated 20 years ago from the Middle East where he knew of LGBTQ people who were harmed for their sexuality, says he believes the incident constitutes a hate crime, not just a property crime.
“It’s a hate crime, it’s absolutely a hate crime,” he told Atlanta area CBS affiliate WGCL-TV. “Whoever it was was trying to [write] I have AIDS.”
He believes the culprit or culprits were able to get away before Bayram and his friend could reach the window to see what the noise was.
What’s even more mysterious is that Bayram only recently moved into his home three weeks ago, so he doesn’t believe he’s been around long enough to make enemies or develop suspicions about his neighbors.
A report from the Brookhaven Police Department classified the crime as having no bias motivation — which can be tough to prove — meaning it is not currently classified as a hate crime. But that could change if police obtain more evidence or identify the vandals.
Brookhaven Police are asking neighbors with any information or possible security video footage to come forward. Tips can be submitted by calling the department at 404-637-0477, or submitted anonymously through the Crime Stoppers Greater Atlanta hotline at 404-577-TIPS(8477).
In the long scheme of things, Bayram says he’ll be able to move on with his life, but believes the vandals carry a lot of hatred in their hearts.
“This is a little scratch for me, it shook me a little bit, but at the end of the day it’s a financial hiccup. No biggie,” he said. “In a couple weeks it’s going to be fixed but that person should be fixed.
“Hate kills. I feel sorry for them,” he added. “I forgive them but I think they have a bigger issue than my forgiveness.”
D.C. police are searching for three men who allegedly hurled anti-trans slurs at 43-year-old Cayla Calhoun before brutally attacking her and leaving her with serious injuries.
Calhoun, a sommelier and bartender at Annabelle restaurant, left work around midnight on June 29 and stopped at the Golden Age, a nearby bar, for a quick beer, according to The Advocate.
After leaving Golden Age, Calhoun rode a Onewheel electric board through Georgetown and along Rock Creek Parkway. Near the National Mall, three men on scooters emerged and began shouting anti-LGBTQ slurs at her.
William James Wilson, of Fort Worth, Texas, has been charged with multiple hate crimes and assault offenses for allegedly attacking two same-sex couples at Detroit's MGM Grand hotel and casino earlier this month.
The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office said the attack happened just after 1 a.m. on July 13 as the couples stood in the MGM valet area.
The couples -- Chelsi Way and her wife, Celia Haueter, and Way's brother, David Supal, with his fiancé, Zach Chearhart -- had parked at the MGM to attend a concert for Chearhart's 30th birthday. After returning to the valet, the couples were approached by two apparently intoxicated men.
Austin police are investigating whether an assault on a transgender woman and a male bystander at Barton Springs, a popular Austin swimming spot, was a hate crime. The incident occurred on July 26, when three men began flirting with the woman’s friends and then allegedly harassed her after she approached them.
"They said something along the lines of 'I don't support that lifestyle,' while pointing at me, which upset all three of us," said the transgender woman, whose name is being withheld for safety and privacy reasons, in an interview with the Houston Chronicle.
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