Melania Geymonat and her girlfriend Chris were attacked on their bus ride home (Picture: Sam Webb)

A lesbian couple attacked on a night bus for refusing to kiss have triggered an outpouring of support on social media.

Melania Geymonat, 28, from Uruguay, was left with a suspected broken nose while girlfriend Chris, from the US, was also beaten up by the gang of men.

The attackers made obscene gestures and shouted at them to kiss before assaulting both women and stealing their belongings.

Other lesbian and bi women are now sharing their own stories of homophobic harassment in support of the couple.


One woman tweeted: ‘I was on a date with a woman in a bar on Exmouth Market and a man came over to us, tried to force us to kiss, [and] was aggressive.



‘Nobody intervened. We had to leave. Everyone loves “pride” but is quiet faced with the reality of why we need pride and protection.’

She added: ‘We kissed in an alleyway. We literally hid and kissed. Do you know how funny and awful it is to be a grown woman hiding and kissing.’

She was left with a probable broken nose (Picture: Sam Webb)

Another woman wrote: ‘I’ve seen so many comments on how its shocking, what are we becoming, You just don’t live it.

‘I have been attacked, [I have] been sexualised. My friend literally lost her eye and was left with a fractured face after a man on the tube attacked her for being a lesbian years ago.’

A third said: ‘Once I was outside a club holding hands with my girlfriend of the time.

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‘Two blokes ran up to us, grabbed the backs of our heads and literally did the “now kiss” thing. In some ways it was scarier than the time we “just” got beaten up walking home.’

Another woman remembered: ‘Had a group of men film me and my then girlfriend at a club because we were kissing.

‘When I told them to f**k off one of them aggressively backed me into a wall and said “what you gonna do?”. Thought he was going to hurt me or my girlfriend so I backed down. It was terrifying.’

A fifth wrote said: ‘This has happened to me too many times. Once, two men, trying to chat us up, got aggressive and sexual when we said we were on a date and to leave us.

The medical student said she was stunned by the attack (Picture: Sam Webb)

‘Started making lewd remarks, trying to force us to kiss to “prove it” because we were clearly “lying to get rid of them”.’

Police have now launched an investigation into the attack, which took place around 2.30am on May 30.

The gang of men also stole a phone and a bag from Melania and Chris before escaping from the N31 bus.

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Both women have since attended hospital for treatment to facial injuries.

Melania, who moved to the UK in February and is on a year’s sabbatical from her medical studies, said she had felt safe in London and was stunned by the attack.



She said: ‘What upsets me the most is that violence has become a common thing, that sometimes it’s necessary to see a woman bleeding after having been punched to feel some kind of impact.

‘I’m tired of being taken as a sexual object, of finding out that these situations are usual, of gay friends who were beaten up just because.

Melania had previously always felt safe in London (Picture: Melania Geymonat /Linkedin)

‘We have to endure verbal harassment and chauvinist, misogynistic and homophobic violence.’

Laura Russell, Director of Campaigns, Policy and Research at Stonewall, said the attack was an ‘upsetting reminder of how much we still have to do for LGBT equality’.

She continued: ‘It’s tempting to think that in 2019, we are safe from attacks like these, and indeed we all should be. But sadly, this isn’t the reality.

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‘On the first week of Pride month this year, a month for celebrating LGBT people and how far we’ve come, we’ve already heard harmful comments from politicians and seen continued debates around LGBT inclusive education and trans rights.

‘We also know that this attack won’t be the only hate crime against the LGBT community this month.

‘Government research found that more than two thirds of LGBT people said they had avoided holding hands with a same-sex partner for fear of a negative reaction from others. This attack is a reminder of why.’

Anyone with information about the attack is asked to contact police on 101 or tweet @MetCC and quote CAD737/30May, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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