This is vile.
A couple have said they were subjected to a homophobic attack and left covered in blood after refusing to kiss on a bus.
Melania Geymonat said the attack on her and girlfriend Chris happened on the top deck of a London night bus as they were travelling to Camden Town in the early hours of 30 May.
They were confronted by a gang of at least four men who threw coins at them and demanded the couple kiss.
When they refused to kiss at the demand of the gang, they were viciously attacked. They were also later robbed of a phone and a handbag.
In a Facebook post, Geymonat who works for Ryanair and is originally from Uruguay wrote: “Chris even pretended she was sick, but they kept on harassing us, throwing us coins and becoming more enthusiastic about it.
“The next thing I know is that Chris is in the middle of the bus fighting with them. On an impulse, I went over there only to find her face bleeding and three of them beating her up.
“The next thing I know is I’m being punched. I got dizzy at the sight of my blood and fell back. I don’t remember whether or not I lost consciousness. Suddenly the bus had stopped, the police were there and I was bleeding all over.”
She has been unable to go back to work since the attack and said she hopes that June, Pride Month, can be used as a platform to speak out so that violence like this can stop happening.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan condemned the assault, calling it a “disgusting, misogynistic attack” and said hate crimes against LGBT+ people “will not be tolerated in London”.
No arrests have been made in relation to this incident at the time of writing.
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