GPOY - in the weeks since my gay bashing i’ve done A LOT of media and public appearances because my work basically requires it. on halloween i took the stage with this drag queen to greet the thousands who came to our gayborhood.. many whom aren’t gay but enjoy our company.  palm springs pride is days away (i’m the entertainment director) and my festival mainstage, block party and other events are coming together nicely. love my friends and volunteers for helping out anyway they can. i want to thank everyone for all the incredible letters, emails, phone messages etc of support i’ve received.. i’ll admit. i’ve done my best in this whole situation, trying to carry myself with dignity and grace.

the following day after my attack, when i walked in to a neighborhood coffee shop and the barista stared at my swollen and bruised face i cringed. i knew it was unintentional but in an effort to make light of the situation i leaned in to him, pointed at the stitches and declared, “No Safety Word’ before i winked and skipped out of the shop cackling. a week later after the messages and comments piled up.. a combination of work stress, the potential of permanent facial scaring, and my new local celebrity status  kind of got to me and i found myself sobbing in the produce section of the grocery store.  

the positive: my colleagues in the media have sought out to actually cover more attacks in an effort to inform others to be aware of potential dangers and encourage victims to report any incidents to the authorities and the media. my stitches came out recently and my face isn’t three times it’s normal size anymore and the wound is healing nicely. i’m great. however, i live a rarified life. just hours after the brick hit me in the head, the mayor had emailed me and the police chief called my cell phone. i wonder about other victims of hate crimes who aren’t quite so connected.. many who had lost their lives. what can we do together to stop these sorts of incidents from occurring altogether?