Equality Leaders Mourn Tragic Death of Apparent Hate Crime Victim Marcellus Andrews
Statement from One Iowa and Iowa Safe Schools
On Sunday at 3:30 pm, 19-year-old Marcellus Richard Andrews died after a brutal and violent death. Friends and family who were involved in the incident confirmed that the attackers were shouting anti-gay slurs as they severely beat Andrews. He died later at an Iowa City hospital from head injuries sustained during the beating. Andrews was enrolled to begin his studies in interior design at Hawkeye Community College in the fall.
“We are deeply saddened by the brutal and tragic death of Marcellus. This is just not something that happens in Iowa and we are appalled at this level of extreme violence and intolerance,” said Troy Price, One Iowa Executive Director. “Tragedies like this underscore the incredible need to talk about issues affecting gay and lesbian Iowans and to fight for equality in our communities. When community, state, and national leaders ridicule and deride gay and lesbians, it creates a hurtful environment and gives license to this sort of attack. Most importantly, it harms lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) young people by sending the message that they are not equal. We can and must do better, because we can never, ever allow an attack like this to take place in Iowa again.”
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Complete article at Eastern Iowa News : http://bit.ly/pg0aUw
