A gay couple shared images of a horrifying homophobic attack that took place after the couple refused to kiss for the entertainment of a group of men. The incident took place last month on a London bus, as Melania Geymonat and her girlfriend Chris were returning from a night out. On the bus, the couple were approached by a group of young men aged between 20 and 30 years old. The group made crude comments and sexual gestures. They then demanded that the couple kiss so they could watch.
In an attempt to defuse the situation, Melania said they didn’t speak English. When they proceeded to demand that they kiss she pleaded with them to leave them alone saying her partner Chris wasn't feeling well.
I tried to defuse the situation as I’m not a confrontational person, telling them to please leave us alone as Chris wasn’t feeling well
It was at that point that the situation worsened. The group of men started throwing things at the couple and next thing Melania knew her partner Chris was in the middle of the bus and the men were hitting her. In an impulse reaction, Melania ran to her girlfriend to tried to defend here.
I didn’t think about it and went in. I was pulling her back and trying to defend her so they started beating me up.
She added:
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I don’t know if I was knocked unconscious. I felt blood, I was bleeding all over my clothes and all over the floor. We went downstairs and the police were there.
Melania was taken to hospital and is now waiting to see if her nose is broken. She decided to share the picture of her following the attack to raise awareness of homophobic attacks against women. She said:
it’s not something isolated, it’s common. We were seen as entertainment, that’s what makes me so angry.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan condemned the attack, calling it a "disgusting, misogynistic attack" and said hate crimes against LGBT+ people "will not be tolerated in London".
