Just when you think things are getting better.

[emmagrant01]

'Top Chef' Beaten By Anti-Gay Attackers

SEA CLIFF, N.Y. -- A Miami woman who was a former contestant on the reality show "Top Chef" was beaten by attackers yelling anti-gay slurs, her lawyer said Tuesday. (AP)

Link to story

Comments

[kismetologist.livejournal.com]

this breaks my heart...a couple of months ago my close friend was beaten up on his way home from work (at a gay bar). the world frightens me, it really does. thanks for pointing this out.

[poetheather.livejournal.com]

OMG...that is just messed up. I can't wait for the time when people get their heads out of their 4th point of contact and accept that gay happens. It's not like the GLBT community is trying to convert everybody. ::shakes head:: Some days I just can't get people.

[scarlet-malfoy.livejournal.com]

I am so appalled and disgusted! I can't wait until I'm a journalist and then I'm going to do as much as I possibly can to talk about these kinds of issues FROM A REAL PERSPECTIVE and not just a general overview of what happened.

:(

[owens-mom.livejournal.com]

and how many other times does this happen and go completely un-reported or un-talked about because there wasn't a semi-famous reality t.v. contestant involved? Shit.

[rickey-a.livejournal.com]

As sad as I am to see the news, I am hopeful that more and more stories like this get into the national spotlight and open the eyes of people who keep turning their heads. Sept 11 (yesterday) always reminds me just how much hate there is in the world. This illustrates how it's in our back yard as much as around the world.

[maple-mahogany.livejournal.com]

*rants* I just dont... bah.

And why were they even asked to leave? (ok, they may have been loud or rude or something, and maybe being asked to leave the restaurant had nothing to do with orientation) I just boggle at humanity.

[luahoana.livejournal.com]

fuck.

[notsopeachie.livejournal.com]

People suck. A lot.

[dramedy.livejournal.com]

That's really sad. I'm really kind of angry and sad and fearful. What if it's me next? Or my best friend Jay, or his bf Matt? what if we're just walking along, or stumbling out of a bar or...god, it's terrifying, knowing that who I have sex with makes me a target.

Why am I not shocked?

[myviciousvixen.livejournal.com]

As a resident of Florida, I am saddened but unsurprised.

[ciel-vert.livejournal.com]

Wow, that's really sad. :(

[padys.livejournal.com]

DD: Gah.

*too exhausted to add more*

[dramaphile.livejournal.com]

That just makes me sick to my stomach.

[samena.livejournal.com]

I wonder why they were asked to leave in the first place? Very odd.

[verdenia.livejournal.com]

Yipes, that's horrible. ;(

[jedipm.livejournal.com]

OK, I am a huge Top Chef fan. Hubby is in the biz and it's fun watching his take on what's happening. When I saw Josie on TC I was struck by the fact that she seemed very familiar to me. I went to the TC website and when I learned her last name I realized that I did know her. We went to Middle School together in Miami. It was a magnet program for fine arts. She was an art student, I was there for music. None of us were at the school we normally would be attending, so we were all strangers when we started.

Anyway, when I saw her last name was Smith I instantly remembered how she introduced herself to me. "What is the most common last name in the world ... Smith". I guessed Jones. I was young. To this day when I someone with the last name my internal monologue kicks in: "most common last name in the world".

Then I remembered her smile. She ALWAYS was smiling. Always laughing. When I focused on her pic and bio on the TC website I knew it was her. I was so proud. She is a great person. I was rooting for her. If you watched the season of TC she was on you got a good glimpse of the girl I knew. Always honest. Always driven. Very determined. Very strong.

I did not keep up with the fine arts magnet program through high school. I went off to my "normal" school. I had become disillusioned with the competitiveness of the fine arts kids, and lost track of all of the people I met. Also, middle school pretty much sucks -- hormones, pettiness and mean people abound. I was happy at the time to get away.

I now wish I had some was of reaching out to Josie. I was stunned to find this post about her. I am literally aching with the pain she mush have gone through. She was an amazing person as a teenager. I am not sure that she would remember me. Again art & music students did not mix too much, (stupid barriers) but the fact that I knew her should illustrate how she made herself standout in an environment where most were trying to fit in and conform.

Thank you for posting the link to the article. I no longer live in Florida and would not have known about this had you not posted it. I hope that any who read this know Josie a little better through my description. I am deeply sorry that this happened to her. I hope she is doing well and never has to suffer the pain of intolerance in the future.