A gay man who had been celebrating Gay Pride Day in Barcelona has been threatened because he had been wearing close-fitting denim shorts.
The incident happened in a McDonald’s branch in the Spanish city, with a thug taking issue with the Pride-goer’s clothes.
Footage shows the thug acting in an aggressive manner towards the man, telling him ‘I am going to beat you till you are heterosexual’.
Speaking in Spanish, the thug can be heard taking issue with the gay man’s clothing, asking, ‘Why should I have to put up with this?’
To this, the man replied, ‘Why should I put up with you, because my manner of (dressing/acting) is fine, and this is a public place’.
The aggressor, who is wearing black clothing in the clip, can then be heard threatening the man, stating, ‘I’ll beat the gay out of you’. The gay man explained he was just trying to get his burger, and that he didn’t have to speak to him.
However, this did not appear to deter the aggressor, who repeatedly told the victim, ‘let’s go outside’ in a threatening manner.
When the victim protested that he hadn’t done anything wrong, the thug proceeded to make yet another threat of physical violence:
When you go out I am going to hit you so hard your queerness disappears.
At this point, a McDonald’s security guard placed himself between the two men, attempting to calm the situation. The gay man explained to the security guard he didn’t have to put up with a person telling him how to dress.
To this, the thug responded with further anger:
I am telling you to be discreet, you are in a public place. I don’t care if you are a queer.
When informed it was ‘Gay Pride Day’, the aggressor continued to make threats:
I don’t care what day it is, it is also a good day to punch you. Do you want to see?
As reported by Pink News, police officers arrived soon after the incident, however the victim did not wish to press charges.
The upsetting footage was later shared by a friend of the victim, who pointed out how it was ‘ironic’ the incident occurred on Gay Pride Day of all days:
It is ironic that this happens on the same day as the pregon of pride, but we must continue to fight to end these acts and these people.
According to Pink News, McDonald’s has condemned the behaviour exhibited by the aggressor, stating that security staff had contacted police when they saw what was going on.
Mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, has also shown solidarity with Barcelona’s LGBTQ+ community, tweeting:
All the support in the face of this homophobic aggression. Barcelona is a proudly diverse city and we will defend the gender and sexual freedom of all people. Tomorrow Saturday fill our streets in celebration of pride
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues, and want to speak to someone in confidence contact the LGBT Foundation on 0345 3 30 30 30, 9am until 9pm Monday to Friday, and 10am until 6pm Saturday, Or email helpline@lgbt.foundation
If you have a story you want to tell send it to UNILAD via story@unilad.com
Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.