Tonight there will be a vigil for a lesbian couple who were allegedly assaulted by another parent at their child's elementary school in Oshawa. While this has yet to be proven, the cuts and bruises on the faces of the two women and the police charges suggest that there was plenty of evidence.
What was this man thinking? I don't need to tell you that there are many opinions on homosexuality, with some being more accepting than others, and some quite extreme. But whatever his own outlook, how could he conclude that assaulting other human beings in a public place on the basis of their sexual orientation would go unpunished? He may yet be charged with a hate crime.
What hit me the hardest was that his six-year-old child, who plays with the child of the couple he beat up will be affected by this hatred. Jesus urged us to haul the log out of our own eye instead of rooting around for the speck in someone else's. There is no conviction in a court of law that will stop a parent from teaching prejudice.
This is a very sad story and close to home. I have always had a difficult time understanding why other people's sexuality causes people to become so angry and scared. How did we learn to lash out at that which we don't understand? It is a terrible legacy to hand down to our children.
ReplyDeleteI hope the couple are safe now, and that the children who were witnesses to this violence are able to find some safe way of expressing their emotions. I will pray for all involved.
As we all continue to pray for all involved, there are always two sides to every story. In this case I am not so sure that we have heard all sides. I'm not saying that what the man did is acceptable, that is certainly not the case, I agree that assaulting someone on the basis of sexual orientation is unacceptable. However, what I have heard from some in the know, there appears to be some misunderstandings on everyones' part. Violence however is not the solution to problems and I agree, what have the children (as there were more than those of the people involved) who witnessed this violent act, learned? Hit those we disagree with? I certainly hope not! There is a lot of healing that needs to go on for all who were involved, both physically, emotionally and psychologically.
ReplyDeleteThanks for these responses. What we can be sure of in this incident is that violent response to differences nearly always leads to more violence and recrimination.
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