Earlier this month, gay rights advocates and a few dozen Bronx residents and community leaders met in Morris Heights to discuss ways to combat hate and promote tolerance in the borough.
The town hall-style meeting was held on Dec. 9 at Davidson Community Center, a short walk from the vacant house on Osborne Place where several young men were
were viciously beaten in early October. Police say they were assaulted because they were gay or perceived to be gay.
While condemning the attacks, the
Bronx Community Pride Center, one of the non-profits behind the event, hopes some good can come of them; that the attacks can kick-start a borough-wide conversation and ultimately prevent future hate crimes.
At the meeting, Ephraim Cruz, co-founder of the political group Bronx for Change, said it was time to call out the politicians and religious leaders who spout hate speech about homosexuals.
"The hate speech is a precursor to the violence," Cruz said. "If young people see our politicians speaking ill about gays and no one checks this, it sends a message."
I don't think Cruz mentioned him by name, but he was clearly referring to Rev. Ruben Diaz, Sr., the outspoken state senator and gay marriage opponent who once
compared homosexuality to bestiality. Cruz, it should be said, has a vested interest in seeing Diaz hurt politically; another of Bronx for Change's founders, Charlie Ramos, challenged Diaz in September's Democratic primary. Cruz has previously criticized the reverend's son, Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr., for
not standing up to his father on this issue.
Others at the meeting, while supporting the need to challenge bigotry, advocated a more conciliatory approach, saying it was important to engage those with opposing views, not shut them out.
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| Dirk McCall (file photo by Alex Kratz) |
Dirk McCall, the Bronx Community Pride Center's
new executive director, and one of the panelists, said that while he and, say, a Pentecostal minster, may never see eye-to-eye on gay marriage, they should be able to find some common ground, and agree that the attacks, and all violent acts, are wrong. "If we can get them [churches] on the record saying the attacks are wrong, then that's a start," McCall said.
Added an audience member: “Personally, I hate it when people say ‘Let’s agree to disagree,” because that’s when the conversation is over."
