* The names of the victims have been changed in order to protect their identities.
 
Throughout the semester, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community continued its fight for tolerance and equality.
On Sept. 20, a panel of federal and local law enforcement officials and attorneys discussed hate crimes and possible legislation to combat them. The main focus of the forum was to have a complex conversation to define the meaning of hate crimes and what classifies a victim.
The forum, held at the Paul M. Hebert Law Center, was sponsored by organizations including OUTLaw, LSU Law’s LGBTQ organization, and Spectrum, the University’s LBGTQ organization.
Matthew Patterson, Spectrum activism committee chair, said the forum showed how hate crimes affect different forms of diversity, not just the LGBTQ community.
Mandisa Moore, OUTLaw president, said it was important to have this conversation.
“We want there to be a new understanding of gender-based crimes,” Moore said Sept. 21. “People should leave [the forum] with a clearer understanding of structural challenges.”
The forum also served as an outlet to discuss possible hate crime legislation in the future.
Shortly after the forum, a gay couple was allegedly attacked by employees at Reggie’s Bar in Tigerland on Sept. 23. The couple, Kevin* and Steve*, claim Reggie’s employees assaulted them repetitively, punching one of them in the face and repeatedly kicking him.
“It all happened so fast,” Kevin said Oct. 11.
The victims said they believed the employees’ actions were motivated by prejudice toward their sexual orientation.
“Obviously, Tigerland is not a safe environment for the LGBTQ community,” Kevin said.
Patterson said Reggie’s management needs to have a total change of heart in order to talk to Spectrum and other LGBTQ organizations about how to clean up its act in general.
Reggie’s Bar manager Bowdin Atchison said after investigating the incident, he developed another story.
According to Atchison, there was a floor-walker working the night of the incident who spotted one of the alleged victims without a wristband. Atchison said everyone present who is able to drink must wear a wristband in order to possess an alcoholic beverage.
“The bar’s floor-walker told him he couldn’t have the drink,” Atchison said Oct. 11. “The guy refused, so the floor-walker tried to grab his drink. This is when the couple grew confrontational.”
Atchison said he was not aware of anything regarding the accusations of Reggie’s employees beating the victims. He said from his knowledge, nothing happened inside the bar.
“I have no control over what happens outside of the bar,” Atchison said.
The couple filed a police report, but it is unclear whether any charges have been made.
In November, Equality Louisiana, a LGBTQ coalition of 23 colleges, local and statewide organizations, supported the creation of possible new state anti-bullying legislation.
The proposal will encompass a list of characteristics aimed to protect all students, as the bill involves all communities and organizations in the state, not just those who identify as LGBTQ, said Tucker Barry, Capital City Alliance political director.
“We don’t want it to be another LGBTQ bill,” Barry said Nov. 10. “It is important for others to know this bill is for everyone.”
Responding to hate in the transgender community, Louisiana Trans Advocates, a statewide transgender advocacy organization, hosted a commemorative vigil on Nov. 16. With support from other LGBTQ organizations, the vigil featured personal testimonies and a reading of names of the deceased.
The vigil was a part of Baton Rouge’s Transgender Day of Remembrance, a nation’s time to honor victim of anti-transgender violence.
Micah Caswell, LTA treasurer and performance studies graduate student, said it is important to honor these victims. Whether or not they were transgender, it is an attack against the transgender community, she said.
LGBTQ Project Director Bruce Parker said the vigil was an opportunity for people who don’t understand transgender issues to learn about them.
“We all gain by having to bear witness to the sadness and loss that the event highlights,” Parker said Nov. 17.
In the future, LGBTQ organizations plan to focus on the anti-bullying legislation.
“We feel like it’s the most efficient way to make a difference across the state,” said Shane Cone, Spectrum president. “This bill would help everyone, not just the LGBTQ community.”
 
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Contact Lauren Duhon at [email protected]