The person suspected of voicing anti-LGBTQ slurs and attacking an individual on a 6 train on Jan. 10. Photo: NYPD
A New York City subway rider was slashed in the face earlier this month by an unidentified assailant who took offense to him kissing his transgender partner. The attack occurred around 7:50 p.m. on January 10 aboard a southbound No. 6 train as it traveled through Manhattan.
According to police, the 28-year-old victim was kissing his partner when the suspect began shouting anti-gay slurs. The verbal abuse quickly escalated into a physical confrontation. During the argument, the suspect struck the victim with a sharp object, causing a deep laceration on the right side of his face, according to New York CW affiliate WPIX.
Gay City News reports that the violence unfolded as the train pulled into the 23rd Street station. The suspect fled the scene immediately after the slashing. The victim remained on the train until the 14th Street-Union Square station, where he was met by emergency responders and transported to Bellevue Hospital. He is expected to recover from his injuries; his partner was not physically harmed in the attack.
Despite a police search, the assailant remains at large. No detailed suspect description has been released to the public, and investigators have yet to identify a person of interest.
The NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force is currently investigating the incident. The attack comes shortly after the NYPD reported a 38% decrease in sexual orientation-driven bias incidents in 2025 compared to the previous year. Despite that decline, such crimes remain the second most common type of hate crime in the city, trailing only anti-Jewish incidents, which saw 330 reports last year.
This incident also bears a striking resemblance to an attack on the same subway line just weeks prior. On December 20, a 38-year-old rider on a southbound 6 train was slashed behind his left ear following a verbal dispute. That attack occurred at approximately 4:40 p.m. as the train entered the 51st Street-Lexington Avenue station. Like the January 10 assailant, that suspect also managed to flee and has not been identified.
Anyone with information regarding either attack is encouraged to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visit crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, or text 274637 (CRIMES) to TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers may dial 1-888-57-PISTA.
Racers, start your engines. RuPaul’s Drag Race has revealed the 14 new queens set to grace the runway for its 18th season as they vie for the title of America’s Next Drag Superstar and a grand prize of $200,000.
Premiering January 2 on MTV, the season will be accompanied by another run of RuPaul’s Drag Race: Untucked, where viewers get the chance to get an inside look at all the tea being spilt behind the scenes of the hit show.
The new season will also feature a bit of a twist from the outset. Unlike the recent spate of season-premiere episodes that feature a talent show -- remember Season 15, when the judges were somehow unimpressed with Irene the Alien’s keen ability to make a glass of ice water? -- the competition appears to be starting with a sewing challenge.
Little more than a year ago, Kamala Harris narrowly lost the presidential election. She may have suffered a swing-state sweep, but Donald Trump's 49.8 percent win was hardly a mandate. Consider Franklin D. Roosevelt won his first term with a bit more than 57 percent. That's a mandate.
But lose, she did. And I cried twice. Some frail dudes might not like admitting that, but I'm not so self-loathing that I'm compelled to deny human emotions. Initially, maybe a day after the vote, talking to a neighbor on our building's shared roof, my throat seized mid-sentence and I excused myself. I may have plenty to cry about, but I don't ever want it to make me the center of attention.
Seattle's local organizing committee for the 2026 FIFA World Cup is moving ahead with a first-of-its-kind "Pride Match" at Lumen Field on June 26, coinciding with the city's Pride Weekend, even though the scheduled game will feature Iran and Egypt, two countries that criminalize homosexuality.
The Pride-adjacent branding was created by the host city, not FIFA, the governing body of international soccer, which has not endorsed the designation.
When FIFA was planning the match schedule, Seattle was in line to host either New Zealand versus Belgium or Egypt versus Iran on June 26. Vancouver ultimately received the New Zealand-Belgium game, leaving Seattle with Egypt versus Iran, reports Outsports.
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