Attack on Gay Men Downtown a "Hate Crime"

AUSTIN, TX (myFOXaustin) - Equality Texas and Austin civic leaders say an attack on two gay men on Saturday night near City Hall is a warning to the gay community that more safety is needed downtown.

A full investigation is underway at APD about the incident. According to the victims, Matt Morgan and Emmanuel Winston, they were walking home from a popular gay nightclub on 4th Street when they were attacked by four men. The two were able to fight off their attackers, who fled the scene uttering slurs about their sexual orientation.

The incident has raised a safety concerns for the gay community in Ausitn, but also it's has raised questions about how these crimes are reported.

"As city leaders, we have a responsibility to ensure we have the investigative processes in place to identify possible hate crimes," said Council Member Laura Morrison said. "When I first heard of this incident on Monday, I called the Police Chief. The Austin Police Department is taking this matter very seriously and has launched a full investigation of the assault."

"It is upsetting when anyone in our community is assaulted. It threatens the feeling of safety of our entire community," said openly gay Council Member Randi Shade, "We in the LGBT community are fortunate to live in Austin, a community known for being gay friendly, and I am confident that APD will do everything in its power to investigate this crime and ensure that justice is served."

At 2 p.m. on Saturday, Morgan and Winston will join other supporters for an “Austin March Against Hate” to call attention to the attack by retracing their steps early Saturday morning by marching from Oilcan Harry’s at 211 West 4th St. to City Hall.

A rally will begin when everyone has arrived. One of the goals of organizers is to raise awareness in the Austin community of the effort to put an end to hate violence.

Organizers have invited representatives from Equality Texas, the Human Rights Commission, members of the Austin City Council, and Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo. Chief Acevedo has indicated that he plans to attend and speak at the rally. In addition, other members of our Austin community, who were also victims of hate crimes, have been invited to share their stories.

Anyone with information about this crime or the identity of the attackers is asked to call Austin Police Crime Stoppers at 512-472-8477.