Unite Against Homophobia

DAVID MORLEY, a gay man, was kicked and beaten to death in the early hours
of Sunday morning. A mixed gang of six young people attacked three sets of
people during 30 violent minutes. In at least two of the three incidents, the
victims were gay. Even the police are saying that they are treating the
attacks as homophobic.

Manny Thain

This brutal killing has sent a shock wave through the gay scene in London.
It has brought back memories of the nail bomb attack of the Admiral Duncan pub
in Soho in April 1999 by the far-right extremist David Copeland. David Morley
happened to be the bar manager at the time. Copeland had also bombed Asian and
black areas of London.

This attack is not so clearly politically motivated. It does, however, show
how deep homophobic prejudice is in Britain. Attacks on lesbian, gay, bisexual
and transgender (lgbt) people are on the increase.

A recent government report says that 38% of lgbt people have experienced or
witnessed a homophobic attack. There has been a 10% rise in reported attacks
in London, and homophobic bullying in schools is a part of everyday life,
causing misery for thousands of school children across Britain.

Homophobia, whether politically motivated or present because of ignorance
and prejudice, is unacceptable and divisive.

After the Admiral Duncan bombing, lgbt people linked up with black and
Asian communities in a united show of defiance against the far-right. It is
the responsibility of socialists to campaign for the maximum unity of the
working class against the attacks we all face.