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Baltimore Street Shooting 6 Bullets Strike Entertainer Leonard 'Lynn' Vine Recent Southern Hate-Crime Killings Ignored by Mainstream Media |
| By Jack Nichols
 Baltimore-Three hundred people attended a Friday night rally following an attack on a popular black Baltimore entertainer, Leonard "Lynn" Vines, 32, who was gunned down October 28 in his own neighborhood on his way to his cousin's house. Vines survived 6 bullet wounds: two in the arm, two in the chest, one in the back and one in the shoulder.
Vines had passed a group of approximately 20 youths congregated on a street corner. He was dressed in drag at the time of the attack and several in the group approached him calling him a "drag queen faggot" and saying they didn't allow "drag queen faggot bitches" in the neighborhood. After repeatedly saying he didn't want any trouble and that he was visiting his family, one of the youths punched him in the face. As he tried to get away, reaching his cousin's front door, someone yelled "Mike, shoot the bitch," and the six shots where fired. Vines was found moments later by his family. A firefighter who'd overheard the commotion alerted police and an ambulance. Although Vines was released after a week in the hospital, he now faces a long and painful recovery period in a wheelchair. The National Black and Lesbian Gay Leadership Forum (NBLGLF) released an announcement deploring the attack.
"Americans should be outraged by the targeting and attempted murder of a man who was simply minding his own business in his own neighborhood. This is certainly reminiscent of Matthew Shepard's murder in Wyoming, and the leaders of our nation must react and pass legislation to punish people who target citizens because of their sexual orientation, their gender, their race, or their religion. How many people must die, how many people must be shot, how many of our brothers and sisters must give their lives before we say enough is enough," said Willa J. Taylor, chair of the Forum's Board of Directors.
Twenty-year old Paul Bishop of the 1000 block of North Castle Street, was charged Thursday in a warrant with attempted first-degree murder. The Friday night rally, organized by Vines' aunt, Beverly Vines, drew Vines' friends, relatives, and supporters from a local church as well as members of the Free State Justice Campaign. It made Vines—in his own words—"feel wonderful." Describing the shooting, Vines said he'd been tripped by someone carrying a cane. "The next thing I knew I was shot in the chest and went into shock." Beverly Vines said of her nephew: "He should not be attacked because of his preferences or his lifestyle." Gloria Guthrie, Vines' mother, made similar comments. "After I went to the hospital and saw him with tubes in him just because he's gay, it hurt me. Regardless of what he is, I don't want nobody hurting my child just because they don't love him. Somebody loves him." Anthony McCarthy, a NBLGLF board member who has assisted Vines' family said: "I believe that a climate has been created in this country which tells young people like those who attacked Leonard Vines, that gays and lesbians are less than human and can be victimized at will. Why is it that gays and lesbians are the only group who are unprotected by our government against vicious crimes like this? That alone sends a powerful message to people about the equality of gays in our society. People must stop and think, who is next? Who'll be the next targets of these hate mongers?" Responding to a disturbing rise of hate crimes against gay men and lesbians in Los Angeles, the city's police are making arrangements to train investigators to handle cases in which a victim was targeted because of sexual orientation, gender, race or religion. Maria Haro, speaking for the Los Angeles County Human Relations Commission, said: "Law enforcement can do a better job of tracking and reporting hate crimes…many times officers do not recognize all of the elements that make it a hate crime." In Sanford, Florida, a police spokesperson, Seageant Pat Smith, quickly dismissed GayToday's inquiries about hate-crime motives in the recent murder of Sabastian Durgins, a 26-year old free lance hairdresser. Though admitting the Florida victim was gay and that he had not been robbed ("there was money in his pocket") no other motives were being considered by the Sanford police nor by The Orlando Sentinel, which had failed to follow up on the crime.
The sexual orientation of the murdered boy is unknown. In spite of the anti-gay references, the Atlanta Journal Constitution published "fluff" journalism to account for motives in the busstop murder. An article by Doug Cumming claimed in a headline that the "Bus stop beating defies explanation". "Cumming's non-explanation, however, went on to quote the president-elect of the National Association of School Psychologists who showed concern about mixing age groups which, he said, "is not, in itself, an important safety factor." Eager to blame anything but homophobic culture that is endemic in rural Georgia, the Atlanta Journal Constitution continued: "The issue is bullying and bus safety," said the NASP's Kevin Dwyer, the principal investigator of Early Warning, Timely Response, a school safety guide." The 15-year old alleged killer's attorney, Michael B. Syrop, was said, in an earlier newspaper account, to decline "to characterize the (alleged killer) boy's reaction to counter descriptions from neighbors and classmates who said Jonathan was a bully who often called other children 'faggots' and picked on them." |
Suspect Jonathan Miller © 1997-98 BEI