http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/534469

Man, 43, charged with assault, but moms say it's a hate crime
Nov 11, 2008 04:30 AM
Moira Welsh
Staff Reporter

It was a sunny afternoon, school was out and children were gathering in the playground.

Jane Currie and her partner, Anji Dimitriou, both small, soft-spoken women, were waiting with other parents at Gordon B. Attersley public school in Oshawa, when, fists flying, a man attacked them, his blows as harmful as his words.

"Which one of you two 'men' spoke to my kid? F------ dyke. Lesbians," he said, spitting in Dimitriou's face. As she wiped her face, eyes closed, he punched her on the cheek and wound up again, slamming her backward into her truck. As Currie ran toward him, she remembers him shouting, "F------ dyke bitches," and punched her on the cheekbone so hard the skin burst apart, blood splattering.

What Currie remembers most, from the afternoon of Nov. 3, is the stillness of the schoolchildren, and the sound of her six-year-old son screaming. "It was a face of complete and utter horror," Currie said in an interview yesterday. "His mouth was wide open, and he just stood there, screaming."

In seconds, it was over. Another man intervened, so did a woman, pushing the attacker aside. Police were called. The principal led him inside to her office, Currie said. A man was arrested and charged with two counts of assault causing bodily harm.

It wasn't the first time the man had called them those names, Currie said. There have been several other occasions where he had verbally attacked them, usually over a parking spot in the school lot.

Last night, when Currie spoke of the assault, her voice grew low with anger. Why, she asked, did another person feel he had the right to attack them because of their lifestyle?

Currie said she and Dimitriou are pushing Durham police to upgrade the charges to hate crimes.

"That is what it is," she said. "He went after us because of who we are."

Insp. Brian Osborne, of Durham Regional Police, said last night that the department will investigate the possibility that the assaults could be classified as hate crimes. The decision to pursue those charges is usually made with the Crown attorney's office, Osborne said.

In 2006, Statistics Canada reported that one-quarter of hate crimes were motivated by religion and one in 10 by sexual orientation. Hate crimes accounted for less than 1 per cent of all criminal incidents reported by police.

Currie said a rally is being planned for Friday night at 7 at, at King St. and Centre St. in downtown Oshawa. The couple has gathered support on a Facebook site called, "Lesbian moms attacked outside elementary school," which so far has almost 3,000 members.

Currie said her son, and her partner's seven-year-old daughter and six-year-old son, all students at the school, are terrified of encountering the man again.

"I'm angry," Currie said. "Why does he even care? Is his existence so pathetic that he needs to single me out for how I live my life?"

Charged is Mark Scott, 43, of Oshawa.

you are right - that this is sad.
Why does most of the larger society thinks its okay to go off because of the 'gay thing'? Craziness.

Straight, but not narrow.

Don't know if you saw this... posted it to Penny via FaceBook...

http://tinyurl.com/3nan3l

A worthy speech.

Penny -> that is just horrible

DNLee -> thank you for sharing your thoughts

Matthew -> Excellent, and very true. I reposted the clip on Facebook

The gay adoption link, I followed, I read nothing surprising, you know my partner and I's experience of the adoption process and how judged we were. I was as ever disgusted to read the linked-to story, of course, and am feeling particularly at odds with the human race lately - it's one reason why I'm blogging less frequently. I've got a real bad attitude, I've had enough of the bad attitudes levelled against people like my partner and I for just living our lives, minding our own business, respecting others and doing all we can to help save this planet - yes, even for miserable fucked-up homophobes to survive as well as better people.

Jeez, ranting again - but really, I tire of this ceaseless war between those who use God to justify fascism and those of us who don't, between those who would take away choice and those who would enshrine it in law. Love and liberty. The two things I believe in, after the Divine.

I think you should tell that woman who took offence you only say 'sorry' once, after which she looks like a repugnant arsehole for not graciously accepting your apology and instead using it and what you originally said as excuses to blow her own horn in favour of oppression and conformity.

In short, tell her to go f--- herself because no self-respecting lesbian would, I am sure, even though I'm a gay male, ever go near such a hateful person, and, it was your mistake, not hers, in thinking she could take a joke.

Sorry. Twisted people go off all the time about us gay folks, and I'm just of the opinion right now that, damn it, it's time we all the world over, those of us who value freedom and peace, to allow our anger to come to the fore.

We're here, we're decent, get used to it, or piss off to some hole in the ground where you can self-flagellate and prostrate yourself before a vengeful, jealous god that really isn't what the Divine is about at all. That, my friend, is my response to any and all homophobes, sexist pigs, patronising bastards, racists, and those who make fun of or look down upon the disabled, the poor, anyone who isn't themselves....

Rant OFF. :-)

Andy -> She is gone. No longer on our forums, and will not be coming back.

I wish people could just learn to accept all other people, because at the core we are all the same.

Sigh...........

I really have nothing new to say. I just wanted to add my voice to say "HERE, HERE!!!" or, perhaps, "HEAR, HEAR!!!". Are people not listening to the past? Whether or not the guy next door is gay or straight has no bearing on me or anyone else. Whether or not children have a home does.
I'm in CA and ashamed of the passing of Prop 8.
From the sound-bites I saw of the woman representing the bill, my understanding is that supporters see the word "marriage" as a religious thing.
I would propose that we take the word "marriage" out of the legal system altogether. All legal rights should be bound by "civil unions" and keep "marriage" in the church.
So, even if you're straight, if you want legal rights, you also need to have a "civil union", "marriage" will not cover you.
Sure, it's silly, but this bill seems to have passed on symantics!

Nicole -> Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this :)

The video on this page says it all in my opinion:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/10/keith-olbermanns-prop-8-s_n_142862.html

Thank you Keith Olbermann for speaking out for all of us who are straight, but not filled with hate, and discrimination. And want a world of love, peace, acceptance, kindness, and inclusion.