Against Hate? Hold Hands Across the Hawthorne Bridge This Sunday

LGBT groups in town are coming together to organize a response to the anti-gay assault reported this week near the Hawthorne Bridge

Two men told police they were punched and harassed near the bridge after holding hands in Waterfront Park last Sunday evening. Now, Basic Rights Oregon, Cascade AIDS Project, the Q Center, and Pride NW are asking anyone who supports the rights of people to hold hands in public without fear of a beat-down to meet at 7:30 pm Sunday night, May 29th, on the west side of the Hawthorne Bridge and hold hands across the entire span.

"This is one of the first times all of the big groups in town have worked together on something that's not Pride," says organizer and Q Center boardmember Stephen Cassell, who says he thought of the action plan in the middle of the night and quickly posted the idea on Facebook. "The point is to show that we are here and that we have support."