It Is Spreading!

Violence against the LGBTQ+ community is increasing, fueled by rising rhetoric from conservative figures around the world. A recent report from Pink News highlights a disturbing case involving German football referee Pascal Kaiser.

Referee who proposed to boyfriend at match attacked for a second time

German football referee Pascal Kaiser, who was assaulted at his home, just a week after proposing to his boyfriend on the pitch, has been attacked again. 

The Pink News

Feb 16

By Chantelle Billson

On 30 January, the 29-year-old proposed to his partner, Moritz, at Cologne’s RheinEnergieStadion in front of almost 50,000 spectators ahead of a match between FC Köln and VfL Wolfsburg. 

On 7 February, just 20 minutes after informing police of threats he had received, Kaiser was attacked by three men in his garden, leaving him with an injury to his right eye.

However, on 9 February, he was attacked at his home again. According to French sports outlet L’Equipe, two people attacked him in front of his home, beating him in the face and torso. 

Kaiser was supposed to be under police protection, but officers only arrived 30 minutes after the attack was reported.

Hmm... It makes you wonder: where was the protection he was promised?

As US Olympians call for tolerance and LGBTQ rights, some face Trump attacks and online hate

NPR | By Brian Mann

Published February 9, 2026

When U.S. skiers took the stage for a press conference Friday, at the start of the Milan Cortino Games, they were asked about turmoil back home where ICE agents have detained a growing number of immigrants and clashed violently with protesters in Minneapolis.

Most of the athletes who spoke that day voiced concern, calling for de-escalation, tolerance and respect. "The Olympics represent peace, so let's not only bring world peace but domestic peace within our country," said Alex Ferreira, a 31-year-old who won silver and bronze medals at past Winter Games.

Svea Irving from Winter Park, Colorado chimed in. "It's definitely a tough time in our country right now," the 23-year-old said. "I just continue to represent my values [which are] compassion and love and respect for others."

Boy did that set off a fire-storm! Imagine compassion, love, and respect for other causing a an uproar!

Trump responded with vitriol...

Trump fired back on his Truth Social platform. "U.S. Olympic Skier, Hunter Hess, a real Loser, says he doesn't represent his Country in the current Winter Olympics," Trump wrote on Sunday. "If that's the case, he shouldn't have tried out for the Team, and it's too bad he's on it. Very hard to root for someone like this."

And you wonder why violence is increasing?

"I've never had so many people wish me harm before, just for being me and speaking out about being decent and, like, human rights," she said.

In a statement, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) condemned threats against athletes and said they report any "credible" threats to law enforcement.

"It's a sad reality that over the last several games, we've seen an uptick in abusive and harmful messages directed at the athletes during competition," the USOPC statement said.

Here in Connecticut the Governor Hate Crime Advisory Council came out with their annual report last week and it found;

Statistics gathered by the F.B.I. indicate that nationally, there were 6,121 police-reported hate incidents in 2016; 8,263 in 2020; 11,862 in 2023; and, 11,679 in 2024. These figures must be viewed in the context of longstanding underreporting, as 81% of reporting police agencies nationally reported zero hate crimes in 2024. Therefore, the slight decrease in reports from 2023 does not necessarily reflect a real decline, but rather ongoing challenges in data reporting. Consistent with 2023 trends, approximately 3,200 reports in 2024 were anti-Black, four times higher than the next largest racial or ethnic category. Religion-based reports have continued to rise since 2020, reaching their highest level in 2024 with 2,744 reported cases, including 2,002 driven by antisemitic bias.

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) reports that the number of hate incidents reported in Connecticut jumped from 91 in 2020 to 682 in 2024 — an increase of 650 percent. Antisemitic incidents in Connecticut, according to the ADL, spiked from 24 in 2020 to 184, dropping slightly to 159 in 2024. Connecticut statistics compiled by the state police also showed an upward trend. In 2021, there were 75 hate incidents; in 2024 there were 103. The number of hate crimes charges in Connecticut went from 87 in 2021 to 130 in 2024.

Connecticut is not immune to bias crimes. We are seeing an increase here.

The rhetoric coming out of Washington we see a corresponding increase in bias crimes.