Oh no! We got some very distressing news from photographer and friend of Queerty Brad Walsh.
The Brooklyn-based homo went on an adventure in SoHo last week when an irate trucker decided to lay the anti-gay smack down. Walsh, who dates Project Runway‘s Christian Siriano, summarizes:
I was crossing Spring Street completely legally at the intersection of 6th Avenue. A delivery truck driven by a guy on a cell phone was turning and almost hit me and another guy. Me and the other guy put our hands up like “what are you doing,” but we didn’t say or mouth anything to the driver. The driver (jacked) got out, followed me down the street (not the other guy), called me a “faggot” several times, punched me really hard in the jaw, knocked my stuff onto the sidewalk, and went back to his truck.
Down but definitely not out, Walsh wrote down the truck’s info and advertised company: Yuengling, the popular beer company based out of Philadelphia.
Hoping to set things right, Walsh called the company’s HQ, but got little in return. After telling Walsh she would pray for him, a representative proceeded to explain that they don’t have drivers in Manhattan. Hoping to get in contact with the distributor, Walsh asked the woman, based in the human resources department, for a little help. He got none:
Five days passed with no response, and this morning I e-mailed Ms. Zukas again to ask simply “Any chance you can provide me with the distribution/trucking company’s information so that I can contact them?” She responded quickly with “After investigating the matter we are not able to provide any further information.”
It appears that her prayers are the only help I’m going to get from Yuengling. I just replied to her: “This is incredibly disappointing. All I want to do is contact his employer to tell them exactly what happened, in hopes that he will receive appropriate disciplinary action. In keeping this information from me, you are directly aiding a violent bigot and condoning the fact that he got out of a truck with your logo on the side specifically to beat me in front of a crowd of people. I will not extend the courtesy of keeping the Yuengling name out of my public statements from this point further.”
Something tells us the reach of Walsh’s network will jump start the investigation.
How about we take this to the next level?
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Update: We were right. The trucker’s been terminated.
michael
should we be e-mailing this horrible company and complaining?
Jason
I am! I (used to, now) drink their beer.
Jason
Or better yet, based on their webpage information:
Dick Yuengling, Jr. – President and Owner
570-622-4141
nobama
Christian will probably whip up a jaw sling. Ferosh!
l
Seems strange to call a gay blog when perhaps the police should be informed.
emb
Interesting point, L. I am utterly horrified at this story, and deeply sympathetic to Brad, but the story leaves out whether or not a police report was filed. If so, the company would have to respond to the NYPD. If not, merely taking the matter to a gay blog isn’t going to do anyone much good.
An Other Greek
sounds like a hate crime to me…
this needs the law’s involvement…
—————————————–
RPCV
If Walsh had acted like a man (instead of a flaming femme) the driver would have ignored him.
Giovanni
If RPVC had acted like a man (instead of a morally bankrupt scumbag) I would have ignored his comment.
Jude
Damn right, those flaming femmes who complain about erratic, dangerous behaviour have no such right to complain. Too bad he wasn’t hit by the truck right, one less out-and-proud gay in the world…
Oh wait, he was manly enough to show the driver he had acted like a prick. Maybe just the fact that he dates Christian Siriano is the problem to you?
By the way, isn’t it illegal in NYC to be talking on a cell-phone while driving? I know it is in Los Angeles, it is here in Montreal too, but NYC?
CHURCHILL-Y
Yet another panty-waist victim, I mean had he had half the brain to carry a concealed weapon minimum a Glock 19 that driver(probably black) would’ve run back to his stinking truck.
But yet again some amongst us rather choose to play the role of good for nothing weaklings and guess what, as long as they keep playing it people will see you that way and disrespect and harass you Mr. Walsh. Because by the looks of it seems you can’t even count on your homo friends.
SoHo, Chelsea = No more safe Homophobes have taken over.
Adrien
For all the guys bitching about how Walsh was weak, I’d like to see how you would react in his place ?
He’s the victim, remember. This kind of rough-housing mentality belongs to those who think violence is the answer for everything, when it’s not. He may have received a couple of blows, but, at least, he has retained his dignity.
Alexa
Christ, this place is overflowing with racist and self loathing (if they’re even gay) trolls recently.
nobama
Out and proud doesn’t have to be flaming femme.
D.B.
Yeah, I don’t quite understand why he didn’t immediately call the police if he had the truck’s info? Instead he’s trying to publicly shame the company. Maybe we don’t have the whole (or accurate) story — something definitely doesn’t add up here.
crazylove
RPCV and Churchill. Give us your real names, numbers and place to meet so that we can test how tough you. My guess is you wouldn’t last five seconds. I’ve been in a more than my share of fights. Guys like you are all talk and are the first bitches to run.
D.B.
I take back my post above … it seemed that this Queerty post left out the fact that Walsh says on his blog that he did indeed file a police report.
dizzy spins
As terrible as the assault was (and it sounds pretty f****d up), I’m not shocked it happened, given how cracked out most truck drivers are. Those guys drive 20 hours straight by smoking enough crystal to kill the entire White Party. Im surprised he didnt rip Walsh’s arm out of his socket and beat him on the head with it.
Jude
Nobama, I hope your comment wasn’t in response to mine, because I tried very hard to indicate I was being sarcastic.
emb
Thanks for the clarification,D.B.–that also would explain the reluctance of the beer company to discuss the matter with him, if a police report was filed–assuming of course that the police did anything about it…
michael
I have come to the conclusion that Churchasshole and Rymedfucktard are the same person. There is absolutely no way
on earth that you would get two people who have such fucked up opinions posting on the same gay site. I say we ignore this personality disorder because you know this is some fat freak, in a sweaty wife beater, sitting in some nasty trailer in North Carolina collecting disability for some fabricated injury he got from working at the brake pad factory. It makes these white trash comments because it needs to feel like it has some power over something and our angry responses, including my own I am ashamed to say, give it the validation it is looking for. Lets all stop hosting this parasite cause it knows that what it says is as stupid and ignorant as we do. Let us just pray that it does not live close to any schools or children.
marcus
Everyone has the God given right to be who they are. If a guy has a lot of what some judge as effeminate qualities then that is who they are and if any of us have a problem with it then we probably have some self hatred issues we need to deal with. Everything is but a mirror, even the two characters that post negative and hateful things on this blog are a mirror of our darkest selves. So they actually serve us well in keeping us mindful of our own traits that might be less than loving, towards ourselves and others.
katie
You ppl who’re calling other ppl names are so imature I swear.
Anyways anyone who is against gays are jerks and that brad walsh guy was just minding his own business when all a sudden some jerkoff who gets very distacted easy while talking on a cellphone called that man a faggot when he doesnt even know the guy for goodness sake so what gives him da right to call someone a name when they dont even know them at all and for all u know he can be straight as an arrow but just dont have anything against gays.
so yeah like i said u ppl who are calling others names is being so imature and shit.
so i think the man who was talking on his cell phone should go to jail because he the one that hit the poor guy first and there is proof.
also it dont mean walsh is gay just because he decided not to hit him back or whatever so if he did hit him back he could of gone to jail too so all he did was think WWJD He wouldnt of hit back he would take it or try to block it or walk away from it.
some people do not like to use volients!
Jude
Michael, that was a positively chilling post… referring to the commenter(s) as “it”, dehumanizing them somewhat… not something I usually appreciate, but I can see how their comments would lead to that reaction. So I kind of agree. I just don’t understand why people with those kinds of values would hang out on a blog like this.
Marcus, I agree wholeheartedly with you.
matt
for complaints:
joe frenzi
[email protected]
570 622 0153
x108
CHURCHILL-Y
@ No. 16 · crazylove :
I ain’t afraid of violent thugs like you, been known to help put a few ghetto homophobe Apes where they belong(in prison) back in my old place.
And now that I’m in the city I’m giving some serious consideration of perhaps making a career out of it given how overrun I see this place with your ilk a good clean up is much in order.
So watch-it thug or you might end up regretting your harassment because unlike Mr. Walsh I ain’t go about running from criminals, If there is something I enjoy in this life second only to sex is seeing a couple or more thugs being taken away in a police patrol. So just make sure you’re not one of them because this Homo ain’t no panty-waist.
Giovanni
“because this Homo ain’t no panty-waist”
Hmm… debatable but nonetheless you’re still a wretched person whose homospirit has withered and died – if it ever existed at all. I pity the blind man that sticks his dick in your corroded soul. If these words nourish you – you bloated bottom feeder – so be it – feast on all the ugliness in the world.
thefrontpage
People, don’t blame an entire corporation for one dumb truck driver. Yeungling, or however it’s spelled, is actually a really good beer, and the company that brews it and distributes it is a well-respected brewer. You can’t just blame an entire corporation for one bad apple. If you did that, no one would buy anything from anyplace anywhere in the entire world. There are good and bad everywhere. But try this beer–it’s a great beer. Better than most beers, actually.
rayrayj
In response to Michael (Response 21). I am (based on ht/wt charts) overweight, wear wifebeaters, come from a long line of poor white-trash and live in a trailer in NC. I am also very well educated, have 17 inch biceps and work hard for a living. Can we please keep the regional and social-status slurs to a minimum, unless they actually apply?
cameron rose
just to clarify Brad Walsh DID file a police report as soon as the incident occured.
The Milkman
I’m not blaming the company for the actions of this neanterthal. I just think that he should be fired, and fired publicly.
And the commenter above is right… I come from a long line of “white trash”, and still enjoy the occasional corndog. However, I do think that mentioning the fact that he has 17-inch biceps is pretty lame, and weakens the moral foundation upon which his argument is based.
gayinsf
well put, Giovanni…if RPCV is a total prick.
D.B.
Beer is usually sold and/or transported by an independent distributor, and not directly from the brewery. So until any of you have any solid info, targeting Yeungling may be a bit premature.
And as noted above, if the police are involved, Yeungling probably can’t make any public comments at this point.
Reader
20 years ago, I would drive from Washington to Philadelphia to attend a business school on the weekends. On one of my drives, I observed a United Van Lines truckdriver going 90 mph and swerving recklessly between lanes.
I wrote down the markings on the truck, wrote to the CEO of United Van Lines, and the driver was fired. Seems to me that Yeungling could step up to the plate here if they wanted to. Chances are that, with today’s technology, they know exactly where their trucks were that day.
M Shane
The homphobia here (above) is astonishing and disgusting. Many really “flaming femmes” are more defensive than you he men. San Franscico queens made a habit of carrying and using 12inch scissors for protecton. i knew one guy who protected himself clearly and was arrested.
Don’t read a book by it’s cover and don’t spout off your own butchness until you confront the situation yourself. Homophobia is just that for any faggot.
Lew Bryson
Why the bash on Yuengling? This was not a Yuengling truck, nor a Yuengling driver. It was a beer wholesaler’s truck, and the driver was an employee of the wholesaler.
And why is it okay to call the driver a “redneck”? (And how many ‘rednecks’ are there driving beer trucks in Manhattan, anyway?)
And why has Brad not said what the wholesaler’s company name is, after saying in his original post that he got it off the door of the truck? Everyone keeps saying “Yuengling, Yuengling, Yuengling” when the real offender is the driver and the company HE works for.
Oh, and Yuengling is not a corporation, it’s a private company, wholly owned by Dick Yuengling Jr. Which has nothing to do with this whole episode: again, it’s the driver and the wholesaler who are at fault, and the police and the wholesaler should have been the only people Brad had to contact. But…Yuengling makes a better focal point, I guess. Just strikes me as not quite fair or honest.