The assailants were identified as four Hispanic males. The police searched the area, but didn't find the suspects. The gay bashing, however, has received scant attention. It all started out as a noise problem, says Painter, whose apartment lies just a few feet from the club's rear entrance. But violence, he says, has become the primary issue.
People are afraid for their safety.
I have been called faggot and had my life threatened. I have had beer bottles and lit cigarettes thrown at me. It's a question of respect. He questions the common sense of allowing a place that attracts such an allegedly homophobic and violent clientele to operate in the largely gay Capitol Hill neighborhood. That place has brought so much hate to our neighborhood.