In the wake of anti-gay attacks earlier this summer, including the death of Mark Carson, two other gay men were attacked in NYC’s Chelsea neighborhood.
Peter Notman and Michael Felenchak were holding hands leaving the Chelsea Bowtie Cinemas when they were approached by two men yelling anti-gay slurs. That’s when Felenchak, 27, and Notman, 53, were attacked by the men and four others who joined in.
“It was six of them against the two of us,” Notman said, “typical of the cowards they are.”
“They were here. They were in the middle of the street. They were like, ‘What are you looking at, you f**? Boom,” Notman told WCBS 880’s Peter Haskell.
It wasn’t until Notman caught the attention of the doorman at one of the nearby apartments that he and Felenchak received help.
“I ran into the lobby to try to get away from them, and then they dispersed once they saw that we were in the lobby and told the guy to call the police,” he said.
But they didn’t get away without some bumps and bruises. The couple spent the whole night in the emergency room and Felenchak ended up with a total of seven stitches.
“I was hit with brass knuckles down the side of my face, and I had contusions; had to have an MRI, and Michael received several stitches in his mouth where they punched us,” Notman said.
City Council Speaker and mayoral candidate Christine Quinn condemned the attack and offered her support to the two men.
“I am appalled by reports that two men were senselessly beaten in Chelsea simply because they were perceived to be gay,” Quinn said in a statement. “The cowardly individuals who committed this crime do not represent New Yorkers and our community will not be cowed by such violence. New York City’s greatest strength is our diversity, and we will not stand for attacks against anyone, for any reason.”
Police said the incident is being investigated as a hate crime.
SOURCE: CBS
