Gay Scotsman Denied Benefits Claim

Victims of violent crime in some U.K. countries can receive compensation--unless, alleges one claimant, the victim is gay.

The Scotsman reported that the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority has suggested to him that the homophobic assault he endured was in part his own fault and that he will not receive any recompense for his trauma and injury.

Neil, a Glaswegian, had taken another man home one night. Once inside Neil’s home, however, the man turned on him, subjecting Neil to a brutal attack.

Neil’s claim was rejected, he says, on account of his sexuality and the fact that he had invited the man home.

But a story in the news about how gay Scotsman James Kerr was murdered in Perth by a pair of assailants in a park in 2007 stirred Neil to speak out against how he was treated by the CICA.

Neil said the story "brought back to me how I thought I was going to die that night."

Said Neil, "Gay people keep quiet about violence because we don’t want family and workmates to know about our private lives."

The Scotsman article quoted Neil further as saying, "It has taken a lot for me to go public about my sexuality." Gay Scotsman Denied Benefits Claim
EDGE Boston, MA