LAMBDA calls for unity after two attacks

Following a pair of alleged homophobic attacks on Nov. 3, the University of Montana’s LAMBDA Alliance concluded in a meeting Tuesday night that a stronger sense of unity is needed in Missoula’s gay community.

In one of the attacks, a 22-year-old male UM student was beaten up by four men on the campus footbridge between 2:30 and 2:35 a.m.

It was stated in the meeting that the victim, whose name has not been released, was repeatedly kicked in the chest and back after being shoved to the ground, while his assailants screamed anti-gay slurs.

In another attack, Jess Keith was attacked by four women following the Montana Grizzly football game against Portland State. She alleges her attackers called her a “dyke” in a restroom at the Press Box restaurant and later ambushed her in a parking lot as she walked to the Missoula Club.

Keith reportedly heard one of the attackers yell, “There she is,” as they piled out of the car and punched her in the face, knocking her to the ground. They then proceeded to kick her repeatedly in the back and stole her wallet before driving away.

She said the attackers were dressed in Grizzly apparel: two wore pink Griz vests and another wore a temporary Griz tattoo. Three of the women had dark hair while the fourth was blonde.

The footbridge attack victim said his attackers looked college-aged and wore baggy clothes.

Assistant Chief of Police Mark Muir, who was present at the meeting, said that the victim of the footbridge attack has become more open about what happened in the past few days and asserts his attackers specifically targeted him for his sexual orientation.

“The individual professes to be gay and that was, to the best that he knows, a proponent of the attack,” Muir said.

The LAMBDA Alliance discussed the use of the Missoula Hate Crime and Bias Incident Reports that the people of Missoula have the option of filling out in addition to a police report if they feel that they were targeted for a crime because of their gender, race or sexual orientation among other discriminating factors.

The forms include an option for the victim to remain anonymous if they wish.

The reports can also be filled out for minor incidents that include verbal abuses as well.

LAMBDA Vice President Mike West said that although the reports do well as a method of data gathering for hate crime statistics, filling them out for every minor incident would eventually amount to a tower of paper work.

“I’ve never gone to lunch at the Food Zoo without someone saying something to me about (my sexual orientation),” West said.

LAMBDA Political Action Director Josh Peters-McBride said although such incidents should be treated as harassment cases, hoping that everyone who is harassed with such behavior will fill out a report is too idealistic to serve as reliable data.

“Every time these guys laugh at the way I walk or something on campus, I don’t think every one of us is going to jump on filling out one of these forms,” Peters-McBride said.

People who attended the meeting called for a more practical and effective method of data gathering for hate crime statistics, such as online reporting.

Sara Brown, the editor for content of the local lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex magazine, “Outwords,” says that effective methods of data collection regarding hate crimes, as well as a stronger public presence, are important in pushing hate crime legislation in Montana, which currently does not cover sexual orientation, gender identity, gender or disability.

She also praised Keith’s bravery in discussing her attack publicly.

“I really do believe the more visible we are, the stronger we are as a community,” Brown said.

Muir said that the people of Missoula play a vital role in ensuring that such crimes are prevented, stating that only 45 to 55 percent of cases that are reported to the Missoula Police Department are cleared by arrest, and that generally, tolerance for such crimes in Missoula is slight as long as people are willing to report it.

“I don’t know anyone in our community who wants to be a victim,” Muir said.

Ultimately, the attendees of the meeting agreed on the need for a greater sense of unity between the LGBTI community, and that public action must be taken to show their strength in the public eye.

“We need to present a united front,” West said. “No one stands by these dehumanizing acts.”

A meeting will be held at the Western Montana Gay and Lesbian Community Center Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. to discuss what sort of public display of reaction the LGBTI community will take next.