No One Helps Gay Man Beaten in NYC Subway
A 23-year-old man was allegedly assaulted on a subway in New York City while passengers on the train did nothing to stop the attack, the New York Daily News reports.
Urena Morel Frankelly and his boyfriend were on the No. 2 subway in Manhattan on Monday night when a woman approached them. The suspect took a picture of the men, who were eating, and her friend began to hurl anti-gay slurs at the couple.
The subway was traveling south from Central Harlem when the incident occurred. Frankelly asked why she was taking their photo but the suspect yelled, "Feed you face, faggot."
"Why you with that faggot?" another woman yelled at Frankelly's partner.
According to the authorities, a fight broke out on the subway car and the two suspects and three others, including one man, attacked Frankelly. His partner tried to stop the attack but Frankelly was punched a number of times. The men were able to get off at the next stop and the police were called.
Frankelly went to the hospital and suffered a swollen eye and a cut above the socket.
"Everyone was watching - no one helped us. That was a very scary situation for us," Frankelly's boyfriend said. "Right now we'd just prefer to be alone."
According to the New York Post, the New York Police Department have launched a hate crime investigation but no arrests have been made.
It should be noted that New York's Hate Crimes Act of 2000 covers sexual orientation but not gender identity.