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Gay Travel - Tips for Staying Safe.
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Having just returned from the Gay Heartland (Yes, I mean glorious San Francisco) where a gay can be a gay, and being affectionate with one's lover in public regardless of gender, age or sex is not something that causes heads to turn or eyes to roll, I had a rude awakening upon my arrival in San Diego to the fact not all the world is as accepting of basic human nature as San Francisco.
The rude awakening that I am referring to is the Hate Crime that occurred on Wednesday October 21, 2009 in front of Baja Betty's in Hillcrest to Bronti Kelly around 10 PM. Bronti was attacked from behind, knocked to the ground, picked up and punched 3 - 4 times until he passed out. The San Diego Police have been quoted as saying that if Bronti's attacker is arrested, it will not be for a Hate Crime, but rather for assault with a deadly weapon.
As shocking as it was to learn that such acts of nameless violence and random ignorance still happen in my beloved city of San Diego, I was remind of the very real danger that the Gay Community faces not only here, but also from around the world by the story of Christopher Skinner, out of Toronto.
In the early morning of October 18th around 3AM in Toronto, Christopher left a well-known gay bar walking down the street , extending his arm to hail a taxi. He accidentally brushed against a black SUV, which then came to a sudden halt. As the SUV stopped several men exited it, and apparently spent their time beating him into a bloody mess. As Christopher lay bleeding at their feet, they reentered the SUV and according to witnesses deliberately ran him over, fatality injuring him. Christopher later died on the way to the hospital.
What strikes me about both cases is the willfulness to actively go out and attack an innocenct fellow human being on the off chance he might be different then you. And of course to this mind set, being different at all is a bad thing that must be punished. Again I can't trully express how shocked I was by these events.
I feel I must mention that as an openly gay male ( when I say open, I basically mean written across my forehead in Big Flaming Letters) who does a great deal of traveling, that I have never had the displeasure of encountering any one who acted homophonic towards me in my presence.
So though I consider myself lucky on that front, I still follow two simple rules I believe have done a lot toward keeping me safe, and have let me enjoy my travels in a relatively free homophobic way.
Leave Evidence
Before I go on a trip I make sure that certain people in my life have copies of my travel schedule and itinerary. When out on the trip I always like to make sure that I am in contact with someone, in case something happens to me, someone will at least know where I was last.
As you wander into new and exotic locations, keep your eyes open and alert for who and what is around you. If a place starts to feel suspicious or dangerous, leave it as soon as you can. Always listen to your instincts, they are there to keep you alive.
Not All People Are Nice
People aren't always as understanding and polite as we like to believe they are, and sometimes you don't have a choice in what behavior you have to deal with. Just remember you have power over how you react, and that you can take anything in stride, enjoying yourself no matter how others may act.
I want to end this article with a positive reflection on the basic good nature of humanity from H.H. the Dalai Lama ""Whether one believes in a religion or not, and whether one believes in rebirth or not, there isn't anyone who doesn't appreciate kindness and compassion."
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