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Anti-gay experiences shared by marchers

Emotions ran high as the sun sat low in the late afternoon sky yesterday at the speak-out against homophobia on the UA Mall.

One by one people who had experienced or witnessed anti-gay violence stood at the microphone set up on the Mall stage and shared their stories.

A man who identified himself as John K. spoke of the car that purposely rammed his car head-on because of the gay-pride rainbow decals on his windows. John then turned his head to show the scars on his face that will be reconstructed with plastic surgery, and extended his left arm, which had seven screws and a metal plate inserted into it to hold it together.

Chris Eastoe, a staffer from the UA department of geosciences, recalled a story he had heard of a gay man who was being transported to the hospital after slipping in the shower. While the man was restrained in the back of the ambulance, the attending paramedic took the opportunity to beat him for being gay.

"It can happen when you least expect it," Eastoe said.

A woman named Theresa said she was harshly intimidated back into silence after coming out as a teen-ager.

"When I was 13 years old, I kissed my best friend, and made the tentative announcement to my friends that I was gay," Theresa said.

After this, Theresa said she was chased and abused by classmates, causing her to not admit her sexuality for three years. She was also threatened by a former boyfriend.

"His exact words were, 'If I ever see you with another girl, I'll beat the shit out of you,'" Theresa said, her voice trembling.

"But I consider myself one of the lucky ones," she added, saying she had never faced the kind of violence that brought the crowd to the Mall - the stabbing of a gay UA student at a Fourth Avenue coffee shop last Sunday.

Some speakers took advantage of the open microphone to spread messages of empowerment and hope.

A man named Daniel said he would never bow to the pressure to stifle his public affection for his boyfriend.

"So many times I hear, 'Take that shit home, it ain't right,'" he said.

However, Daniel emphatically said he would not have his love for his partner controlled by people who oppose the gay lifestyle.

"Don't keep our affection for each other on the down low," he shouted to applause.

As the crowd slowly thinned out, a heartfelt alto belonging to a woman named Mona floated above the remaining supporters.

"We shall overcome someday," she sang while the speak-out attendees linked arms and swayed. "Deep in my heart, I do believe, we shall overcome someday."