“What will it be like when they grow up”?

On Saturday, Jacky, a 53-year-old man, was seriously injured in the face in the center of Ostend. The Fleming had just asked young people, aged 13, to apologize after making discriminatory comments about his sexual orientation.

“He has a broken nose and was allowed to go home in the evening,” his partner, who is transsexual, tells Het Laatste Nieuws. “What will it be like when they grow up?” “, she asks herself.

The couple lives in fear

Jacky and his partner were working in their LGBT association “Regenbooghuis aan Zee” when a group of around six young people came in to insult them: “Unfortunately, it wasn’t the first time,” they regret. She.

“Unfortunately, it wasn’t the first time”

Three teenagers were arrested by the police. Although Jacky was able to leave the hospital quickly, the couple says they are traumatized: “I look at every street corner for fear of being attacked,” says Edie, Jacky’s partner. This is in fact not the first time that this type of incident has happened: “Several young people trampled on my back and leg, which caused a bruise on my thigh. I think this incident affects us more psychologically, that we are no longer sure that our association can continue to exist as a refuge for LGBT people.”