A gay couple have been forced to leave their home after being
subjected to a campaign of hate in which they claim they were
accused of being paedophiles by local youths.
Solicitor Daniel Donaldson, 34, said he and his partner Arran
Southall, 28, have endured months of misery as their property
was attacked and they were abused at their home in Edinburgh.
Mr Donaldson, a volunteer at Glasgow 2014, has written an open
letter to the Scottish Justice Secretary, the Lord Advocate and
others urging them to review the current laws on hate crime
which he said were ineffective against children.
He said that despite the efforts of police, who have charged a
number of youths in connection with the incidents, there were no
safeguards to prevent further offending and they no longer felt
safe.
�My partner and I are now looking to relocate away from
Edinburgh. We have had enough. I hope that when we move, we get
to enjoy the peace and quiet in our own home, and the freedom
from abuse, harassment and vandalism, that we should expect,� he
said.
�I have been branded a 'paedo' and a 'beast' in front of my own
home. Our car windscreen has been smashed in. Stones, bricks and
other missiles have all been thrown at our home, our property is
subject to regular trespass and children will even come as far
as the front door to bang and shout abuse,� he wrote.
The couple had lived happily in the Drylaw area of the city for
the past three-and-a-half years but trouble started earlier this
year when a number of new families moved into the neighbourhood,
he said. �It just built up over a period of time. It started
with low level stuff � them shouting �gay� and �puff� � and then
escalated quickly to vandalism and property damage,� he told The
Independent.
�My partner and I can�t sleep. It got to the point where I was
considering taking tranquilisers. We contemplated sleeping in
the living room because it was not facing the road. It made our
lives unbearable. I am not holding myself out to be a victim.
What I am doing is standing up to them. The problem we have is
that hate crime legislation that is meant to protect people is
ineffective against children,� he added.
Colin Macfarlane, director of Stonewall Scotland, said: �The sad
reality for many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Scots is
that they face hate crime every day at home, in their
communities and their workplaces.�
Edinburgh councillor Cammy Day, community safety leader, said:
�Hate crime is completely unacceptable. The council treats all
reports of hate crime extremely seriously, and is working with
Police Scotland to investigate.�
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/gay-couple-driven-
from-their-edinburgh-home-by-local-youths-9667348.html
Faggots are unacceptable in any civilized society.