First, I just want to say that the video quality is amazing.

Second, I don’t understand why everyone is assuming the perpetrators are Georgetown students. Didn’t one of the incident reports describe a man in his mid- to late-twenties? Washington, DC, is a dangerous city– just look at the crime map in the next blog entry– 52 crimes in October! Just in our neighborhood!

Third, I’m bothered by the fact that these two crimes–while terrible–are getting SO much more attention (candlelight vigils, forums, op-eds, etc.) than other recent violent crimes. A male friend of mine (a Georgetown student) was assaulted on Reservoir Road last year, and all he got was a broadcast email no different than the one about the guy who was stealing UPS packages off porches in Burleith. Where was his candlelight vigil? Just because the perpetrator didn’t ask if he was a homo before he beat the crap out of him, no one gets upset? Shouldn’t violence against Georgetown students be addressed and condemned in all its forms?

I like how one of the Google ads on this page has a link where I can “Support Racism with Tons of Unique Stickers, Buttons & Magnets.”

@ Alison, I definitely agree. Brutally attacking a stranger requires some degree of hate, no matter what the motive was. We need to stand up against violence of all forms that are committed against members of the Georgetown community, not just those that belong to a “protected class.”

While I agree that we should condemn all violence — a point which I believe was clearly made at the vigil — I think we need to educate folks about the effects of a hate crime.

Some people often wonder why special attention is paid to a hate crime. In Washington, DC, for example, a “bias motivator” can be added to a violent crime, which effectively multiplies the regular penalty by 1.5 (e.g., when my boyfriend and I were targeted for an assault, the 180-day max assault penalty could have gone as high as 270-days, although the bias charge was dropped and he only got supervised probation as part of a plea deal.. too much to explain right now b/c its complicated).

Anyways, the problem is that hate crimes create an added climate of fear for those who are members of the targeted community. So, while we’re all rightly concerned and outraged about any assault, we know that they can happen to anyone, so we all try to do our best to protect ourselves and be safe. But, when someone is assaulted for being / perceived to be LGBT/black/etc that creates additional fear for everyone in that particular community. Such crimes send the message that basically, there’s only so much you can do to protect yourself, because there are people out there targeting people like you simply for who you are or what you look like.

I agree that there ought to be a vigil every time someone experiences violence.. and you should take it upon yourself to organize one. Right now, LGBT students feel that they are under attack (whether its from within or outside of GU).. and we are standing up for our own rights and getting ourselves organized to defend our own safety. Our vigil made sure to include a response against all forms of hate-based violence, including sexual assault against women, etc.