Trans woman attacked in alleged hate crime
Portland Pride Parade, 2019. (Diego Diaz/Icon Sportswire/ Getty)
A trans woman in San Luis Obispo, California, has allegedly been attacked in a hate crime.
The woman spoke anonymously to the San Luis Obispo Tribune about the alleged violent assault at a motel in the city last week.
She claimed that she was attacked by a group of men who were travelling to the city on a business trip and staying at the Super 8 Motel. While walking to her room, she said the group of men directed sexually suggestive comments at her. They allegedly offered her $200 to perform sex acts on them.
The trans woman was allegedly choked until she lost consciousness during the attack.
The woman said she had been minding her own business when the alleged incident occurred, and claimed she heard one of them use the transphobic slur “tranny”.
She said she told the men that somebody would treat their children the way they were treating her some day. One of the men then allegedly became aggressive and angry. She took the lid of her soda and splashed some at him.
He just started punching me and punching me in the face.
The man then reportedly started punching the trans woman and choked her until she lost consciousness.
“He just started punching me and punching me in the face,” she said.
When she regained consciousness, she said another man was half-kicking her and half pushing the other man off her.
She reportedly suffered a concussion and spent two days in hospital.
The woman then ran to the lobby where hotel staff called emergency services. Police confirmed that they attended the scene at around 10pm. She suffered a concussion from the attack and spent two days in hospital. She is calling on police to treat the alleged attack as a hate crime, and said the men were motivated by her gender identity.
After the attack, the woman contacted the Gay and Lesbian Alliance of the Central Coast (GALA). The group’s executive director Michelle Call viewed the motel’s CCTV footage with the woman and said it was “pretty clear” that she had been the victim of a violent attack.
A 25-year-old man from Fresno called Dalton Montoya was cited for misdemeanour battery at the motel by police. He was released at the scene.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) estimates that at least 16 trans people have been shot or killed by other violent means so far this year in the US.
