11/28/2007
Homophobic Harassment Force Gay Couple to Flee Canadian Town
Terry and Ryan Hamilton, a gay couple who were living in Bothwell, Ontario say they were forced to leave town and move to Chatham after enduring "six months as targets of blatant gay bashing and constant harassment" according to the Chatham Daily News.
The couple say they had "die fags" spray-painted on their front door, plants uprooted, and lawn furniture smashed. A local cashier refused to serve them because they were gay but wouldn't talk to the paper "for legal reasons". Ryan Hamilton was threatened by a man with a pipe and pursued until he was able to reach a farmhouse and call police, he says.
The paper reports: "Most of the abuse, they believe, was at the hands of a handful of people."
One night in particular, when there was a blackout, stands out in their memory: "They said people were running around their house, punching the windows, throwing rocks and screaming slurs. 'We figured they were coming through the window that night,' Terry said. 'That was the scariest night of our lives.' He said the people were yelling 'die faggots' and at one point someone spray painted the message on the house. Terry and Ryan were huddled inside, armed with a rake and a lawn hoe. The Hamiltons said they called police and when an officer finally arrived, he wasn't sympathetic. Ryan said the officer asked them what they wanted him to do about the spray paint before pointing out that 'I have a community to protect.' Residents of Bothwell are familiar with the Hamiltons and what they were going through. However, there doesn't seem to be much sympathy for them. 'I think they made a lot of their own problems,' said one woman, who didn't wish to be identified. 'They didn't just stay there and live like a normal couple.'"
One man the Daily News spoke with said he liked the couple but that they brought on the trouble themselves: ""They were a nice set of guys. They were all about their gay rights and that. They didn't have to keep on harping on it. They were trying to force themselves too much."
Chatham-Kent Victim Services assisted the couple in moving. The Hamiltons are considering leal action against the grocery store and law enforcement.
Not welcome in Bothwell; Couple threatened, harassed [chatham daily news]
Posted 1:45 PM EST by Andy Towle in Canada, Crime, News | Permalink
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Andy Bell and Penn Gilette are a couple? CUTE!
Sorry but where is Tim Gunn when you need him, that crushed velvet man-blouse is simply magical.
Posted by: Jake | Nov 28, 2007 2:00:00 PM
Andy Bell and Penn Gilette are a couple? CUTE!
Sorry but where is Tim Gunn when you need him, that crushed velvet man-blouse is simply magical.
Posted by: Jake | Nov 28, 2007 2:00:26 PM
I'm embarassed that this happened in Ontario, because I like to brag how forward thinking we Canadians are. Thing is, what did they expect in Bothwell Ontario? Small rural town, maybe 10 streets total. It's like most small towns, there will be rednecks.
Posted by: secretagentman | Nov 28, 2007 2:12:32 PM
Well, the next time Canadians complain about backward US rural areas from their Utopian hideabouts we can remember this ditty. Laws, by themselves, don't change people's attitudes or make the police more competent.
Posted by: anon (gmail.com) | Nov 28, 2007 2:15:32 PM
You mean Canada isn't the utopia that everyone claims it to be?
SHOCKING!
Certainly all those uber-liberal, America-hating people on here CAN'T be wrong. This story MUST be fake and written by the Bush administration...
Posted by: Kamasutra Jones | Nov 28, 2007 2:29:06 PM
I heard they were remaking the 70's Dustin Hoffman movie Straw Dogs, which has a similar siege situation. A mild-mannered man is forced to fight back and protect his home from invaders. The writers should tie in this incident so we can see homophobes get their toes shot off with a shotgun.
Posted by: Steve | Nov 28, 2007 2:34:36 PM
Fantastic idea, Steve. Hollywoods to damn cowardly to try such a thing. They could've brought back to two "Brokeback" guys, or better yet, an interracial Gay couple(Brad Pitt and me). What a great idea for a screenplay.
Steve, are you a screenwriter? Nothin' much to do these past few weeks, hunh?
Oh, aren't there some American-types in Canada--that explains the vile behavior.
Posted by: Derrick from Philly | Nov 28, 2007 2:54:13 PM
well, the thing that disturbs me about this Canadian couple and what they have to endure is the attitude of the people that this couple brought it on themeselves. WTF
So, they can live there as long as they don't announce what kind of living arrangements they have? That is bullshit!!
I swear we still cannot rise above the fact that not everyone is exactly the same...we all have our uniquness.
and even if these guys flew their rainbo flag, it does not give people the right to destroy them or their property.
Posted by: Paul | Nov 28, 2007 3:10:57 PM
Um, I also have to question the Andy Bell look-a-like as to why he would think that wearing what looks like a blue crushed velvet pantsuit to pick up takeout at the local Squat 'N Gobble wouldn't get a rise out of or offend even the most tolerant of rednecks. And why would one choose to live in such a town?
That being said, I think what happened to them was pretty horrible.
Posted by: banjiboi | Nov 28, 2007 3:11:43 PM
Why haven't the guys bought guns for protection? I live in the country and the sheriffs here always "off the record" suggest this for self-defense. This is legal and necessary in this type of situation. A few warning shots will scatter white trash teenagers attacking your house, trust me.
Posted by: Anonymous | Nov 28, 2007 3:18:24 PM
Bothwhere? I had to google-earth the find the damn place. I bet they'd do the same to me and my boo if we lived down there. I can see it now..."No n---ers, Die n---ers"! Oh well, the Hamiltons are better off leaving that slice of hell behind, n e ways!
Oh behave yourslef,KAMASUTRA J, we've got our shares of nonsense too!!
Derrick,boo, I'm not sure if you got the memo but Brad likes them square-faced and slender(Angelina, me, etc).Sorry...
Posted by: Shabaka | Nov 28, 2007 3:19:32 PM
Can't seem to get my spelling str8 2day! Sheesh...
Posted by: Shabaka | Nov 28, 2007 3:21:49 PM
Truly sad what happened to this couple , but what I find most shocking is the reaction of the people to this kind of situation and in Canada , of all places .
I can see this couple getting harrassed by the Queer Eye fashionistas for crimes against fashion , though .
I mean , what`s up with the Andy Bell look and matching blue shirt and jeans ?
Posted by: MargoMalone | Nov 28, 2007 3:46:14 PM
It is a damn shame that this incident took place in Canada, one of the few places on the entire planet where gays and lesbians have equal rights to heterosexuals. I think that Canada has stronger human and civil rights protections than does the United States, so it shouldn't be difficult for these guys to start suing everyone in Bothwell, especially the idiot bigot clerk who refused to serve them as well as the owner of the store who employed him/her. Maybe some of our Canadian friends can elaborate on the laws there and give us a better understanding.
Then there's this stupidity from 'Kamasutra Jones': "Certainly all those uber-liberal, America-hating people on here CAN'T be wrong. This story MUST be fake and written by the Bush administration..."
I realize that I am going a bit off topic here by responding to KJ, but I am sick and tired of hearing crap like that.
KJ, No one is forced to visit or read this blog. No one who does visit is forced to read or leave comments. If what you see and read here offends you, you don't have to come back.
True, most folks here are indeed Liberals, as are most people who actually think and educate themselves about what's going on in the world. Liberals literally built this country. The Founding Fathers were not conservatives, they were radicals and liberals who dared to assert that "all men are created equal" and that the monarchies and lack of religious and personal freedoms they lived under in Europe were unacceptable.
Always remember that the treasonous Tories who sided with the British against the American colonists were the conservatives of their day. If the revolutionary war were to be fought today each and every damn member of the GOP would be wearing a red coat and firing guns at the rebellious Liberal freedom-fighters, all the while screaming in support of King George. If there is anyone who truly hates this country it is the so-called "conservatives" who hate our freedoms and especially hate the gay and lesbian community. That's why groups like the ACLU drive conservatives insane. Conservatives have stood against every advance of freedom, every extension of civil rights that has ever been put forward. Without exception.
KJ, you can go and suck Dubya's limp dick and shove gerbils up Karl Rove's fat ass all day long if you want to. No one here is gonna stop you! Go right ahead on, girl. You and Jeff Gannon can even tagteam on a threesome with old Darth Cheney if you like. Don't hate us because we know who our enemies are and because we aren't afraid to let the truth about them be known.
How any self-respecting gay person can support the GOP is beyond me. It makes no sense whatsoever.
Posted by: Jonathon | Nov 28, 2007 3:46:54 PM
I thought I was disturbed enough by reading the article, but then I click in to read the comments and find myself horrified at the inane, petty things you people are saying.
Just once, can we take off our bitchy queen hats and instead focus on sympathy for these two men? Put yourself in their position -- harrassed and endangered to the point of needing to uproot your entire lives for fear of being beaten to death, with nowhere to turn. My heart goes out to both men.
I can take a joke just as well as the next guy, and I can certainly outbitch most queens in the bars, but come on fellas, there is a time and a place for callous comments, and this is neither.
Posted by: Matt | Nov 28, 2007 3:53:40 PM
First off, I'm HIGHLY offended, disturbed, saddened, and angered by what happened to these two gentlemen for simply being who they are and choosing to live where they want to live. The point of my original comment was that there IS no utopia, no matter the cause. As well, I was hoping to point out (with humor) that nothing is black and white in this world. But, I guess I failed in that cause.
Secondly, I'm even more offended, disturbed, saddened, and angered by the comment directed at me personally. I can't even begin to address what was said, as it's all just too much ignorant rhetoric. But, it does show that the gay community is nowhere near as accepting of others as we expect others to be of us. And that's sad...
Oh, and thanks to the folks who chose to email me directly with your veiled (and not-so-veiled) threats of violence. You really make me proud to be a gay man...
Posted by: Kamasutra Jones | Nov 28, 2007 4:27:41 PM
Well, God Bless the couple and keep them safe. But I still want to write the screenplay with Steve, and I still want it to be an Gay interracial couple facing homophobic savages-- and I still want it to be me and Brad.
And Kamasutra, don't pay any attention to those personal emails. When I play in the movie with Brad, may I use your poster name?
Posted by: Angelina from Philly | Nov 28, 2007 4:38:53 PM
If you're "proud to be a gay man" why the fake name?
Posted by: David Ehrenstein | Nov 28, 2007 5:12:55 PM
I'm always surprised when a news story appears about a small-town gay couple getting harrassed, and people comment: but why would they live in such a place? (As if harrassment never happens in the big city . . . ) Well, maybe they like small towns, or maybe they have family or a job there, or they found a house they could afford. But really: it doesn't matter! They should be free to live wherever they damn well please. Especially in Canada, where gay people are equal under the law, or close to it. (Yes, it does make a difference, and the US is way behind our neighbors to the north; it's fact.) May they continue to wear crushed velvet and prosper in the small town of their choosing.
Posted by: Ernie | Nov 28, 2007 5:55:13 PM
Maybe because there could be nut jobs on the interwebtubies David.
Not everyone can be free to allow their real name to be out there. If you think they can, then your a gullible fool, and I have some nice swamp land to sell you.
Small towns are both hard to live in as a couple and easy at the same time. I have friends who live in small towns that are treated just like everyone else, and it's usually because people tend to stop hating ethnic, racial or other not so popular groups when they get a chance to be up close and personal with them.
We really don't know the whole story here, but the hate they recieved does sound like teen's or very young rednecks, and except for the store clerk(who is probably an evangelical)they didn't have much to say about how the rest of the town was. Cops are cops, if you don't rub their furry little bellies right they can be a bitch.
It's always a shame when people have to give up their dream.....I feel bad for these guy's.
To end on a high note.....they will be happier living where there is cable t.v. and they can learn about all the new men's fashions. :)
Posted by: Joshua | Nov 28, 2007 6:10:53 PM
I've said this before and I'm going to say this again..."Buy a Gun, learn to use it." I'm sure they have them in Canada. I grew up in one of those rat-hole little towns and if you let people know that you were armed and dangerous they'd give you a wide berth. Bullys only go after those they think of a weak. That being said, I hope the Hamilton family sues so many asses to such an extent that they can afford to live somewhere nice.
Posted by: Wheezy | Nov 28, 2007 7:50:53 PM
Omigod, get the fuck out or buy a gun (or several). Obviously that's the only language those rednecks would understand, anyway.
I suggest getting out (under the cover of darkness) and burning everything you can to the ground (that is if you rent). There's nothing like destruction to make you feel better (just ask our President).
Posted by: Jordan | Nov 28, 2007 8:09:25 PM
Come out of the closet, Jordan, come out!
Posted by: jmg | Nov 28, 2007 8:12:33 PM
Okay, I'll clarify myself again...
No, Kamasutra Jones is not my real name. But then, nor was Mark Twain the real name of Samuel Clemens. I chose to use another persona for many portions of my very gay life. The web happens to be one of those portions.
Better now?
As for the emails, no worries. I've been through worse. I just find it amusing that so many gay men who profess such open-mindedness never seem to practice the same.
Posted by: Kamasutra Jones | Nov 28, 2007 8:51:03 PM
JMG,
What the hell does that suppose to mean? I'm totally out.
I'm just outraged that people put up with crap like this. So maybe I have anger issues and like revenge, but who here ISN'T damaged in some way?
At least I admit it. The legal system obviously isn't gonna help these poor saps. They should just not lie down and take it.
Fight back, fuckers!
Posted by: Jordan | Nov 28, 2007 10:52:39 PM