http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1611374,00.html'It may be Europe's most liberal city - but if you are gay, you had best beware'
But as Chris Crain, editor of the Washington Blade, was walking hand in hand with his boyfriend near one of the gay districts in Amsterdam, two men standing on a street corner spat at his face. He stopped to ask why, was called a “fag” and suddenly the two youths turned into seven.
Surrounded, Mr Crain was kicked to the ground by the gang and ended up in hospital with a broken nose and badly bruised face.
His attackers were Moroccan youths, blamed by Dutch gay rights groups for a disturbing rise of gay-bashing, as conservative Islamic culture clashes with Dutch liberalism.'
It goes on...
'In the city where six months ago Theo van Gogh, the Dutch film-maker, was killed by an Islamic extremist, the tourist authorities felt compelled to issue a warning.
Herman Terbalkt, of the Amsterdam Tourist Board, said: “Gay visitors should be careful and alert. Some people in Amsterdam are not tolerant of other people. It is a social problem.” '
'Paul Buckley, originally from Birmingham, who works at the Downtown Café, was recently chased down the Straat by a Moroccan youth shouting flicker — Dutch for “f****t” — at him.
“I had to run into a café and hide, and he stood outside shouting abuse and threatening us for five minutes,” he said. “It was horrible. A lot of Moroccan and Turks aren’t that tolerant of homosexuality. They stand around causing trouble.”
Well if the Morrocans and Turks dont like Dutch culture then the can bloody well leave!
As someone who has also been attacked by a gang of Muslim youths for being gay I can empathise. While I'm not one for holding hands, it's my own experience that attacks by Muslims are an increasing practice, which my own local police force refuse to acknowledge (along with Muslim ran prostitution rings, gangs and racketeers and attacks on the city synagogue) I hope i'm not alone in being sick of this.
