A vicious attack on a gay man at a high-school-graduation party near Duluth, Minnesota, has led to at least two arrests, reports the Duluth News Tribune.
Max Pelofske, 21, was attending a party Saturday night in an abandoned gravel pit in New Independence Township, where his friend’s sister was celebrating her upcoming graduation. Pelofske was only there for a few minutes when an unidentified teen approached him:
“He told me to look him in the eyes, and I was really confused because I’d never seen the guy before,” Pelofske told the News Tribune. “He asked me: ‘Are you gay?’ And I said, ‘Yes. Is that OK?’ ”
After that, Pelofske said he was struck in the head by a flying beer can, and a crowd of boys surrounded him, threw him to the ground and began punching and kicking him.
“I tried to get up, but I kept getting knocked back down,” said Pelofske, who described his alleged assailants as “all laughing and smiling.”
“They were trying to throw me into the fire,” he said.
Johnson said at least nine boys were involved in the attack.
“I thought they were going to kill him,” said Kelly Johnson, who was also at the party. “I was screaming, ‘Just let us leave!’ ”
Pelofske was released from the hospital Sunday morning with a swollen face, bruised ribs and footmarks all over his back and legs. “I’ve been jumped before,” he told the Tribune, “but nothing like this has ever happened to me.”
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Hate-crime charges may be filed after the suspects are arraigned, though the 19-year-old is already being charged with fourth-degree assault.
A Facebook page has been created and a rally was planned for Monday afternoon to offer a “healing space for Max and his family, and to provide support for all members of the GLBTAQI community throughout the Twin Ports.”
Hyhybt
How much longer?
Riker
Excuse me, but what in the name of all that is holy is “GLBTAQI”? This alphabet soup is getting more absurd every day.
walt zipprian
Yeah, what is that?
Hyhybt
Asexual: not interested in sex with anybody.
Intersex: physically neither 100% male or 100% female
Q would be either queer or questioning, depending.
ben
Riker, it’s not absurd: just more inclusive.
Clueless
Please keep us up to date and let us know when they announce the names of the perps.
Mr. Enemabag Jones
Isn’t it amazing how all these tough guys need several friends to help them beat someone up? I’m sure the concept of a fair fight is foreign to most of the 90 pound weaklings running around gay bashing today.
LVgay
OMG please get rid of those stupid extra letters. Asexual people aren’t discriminated against you idiots!
Xerxes
There is a lot of anti-gay advertising these days in Minnesota related to the upcoming vote to amend the state constitution to ban gay marriage. I am sure that this statewide anti-gay campaign has stirred up lots of anti gay sentiment.
mike
They’re like wolves, they hunt in packs, you won’t see a lone breeder attact a gay guy unless he has a whole pack of other guys on his side. They’re cowards when they’re alone but get all butched up and macho when they have a troop with them. I’d like to see a gay guy beat the shit out of a breeder and get his reaction later, in the hospital.
Troy
I have said it before and I will say it again. We need to start fighting back. Legally get a gun. I would rather be judged by 12 than carried by 6 any day. I do not promote hurting people, I am simply saying that we have a right and a need to defend ourselves.
B
No. 5 · ben wrote, “Riker, it’s not absurd: just more inclusive.”
The problem is that there are too many letters. You know, like Emperor Joseph II who allegedly told Mozart that there were too many notes. It took a while before I was comfortable using the acronym LGBT – figured I’d get the letters in the wrong order or miss one. With several more … well, not comfortable in my lifefime.
Hyhybt
What’s needed, then, is a single, simple, positive word that covers all the variations the ever-growing acronym is trying to include.