ABC crime reporter Mark Reddie has recounted his experience with a homophobic assault on the day after Mardi Gras, claiming that he was not the only queer person to have been targeted by an unknown group of men.
According to Reddie, a group of men in a red car threw cartons of eggs on him and his friends on Sunday morning, as they were walking home from Mardi Gras celebrations on Riley Street in Surry Hills.
“Walking home with a group of gay guys & a car drives by & the men inside throw cartons of eggs at us,” Reddie wrote on Twitter.
“The male occupants laughing as they sped off. Wow. If you think some eggs are going to rattle us, think again.
“You did not succeed. I truly hope you find happiness. That is all.”
Walking home with a group of gay guys & a car drives by & the men inside throw cartons of eggs at us. The male occupants laughing as they sped off. Wow. If you think some eggs are going to rattle us, think again. You did not succeed. I truly hope you find happiness. That is all.
— Mark Reddie (@ReddieNews) March 6, 2021
Reddie detailed his experience with the homophobic attack in an ABC article titled “I was assaulted after Mardi Gras – and I wasn’t the only one.”
In the piece, he describes how the attack made him feel down and devastated, especially as it followed such an important night for queer people.
“We were ambushed,” he wrote.
“I felt several heavy objects hit my body before the car took off, with those inside yelling and laughing as they sped into the night.
“I only realised what had happened when I looked back at my friends and felt the sticky yolks all over us.”
After tweeting out his experience, Reddie said he was met with a few private responses from queer individuals who shared his experience on Sunday morning. Some even recalled seeing the eggshells on Riley Street.
Omg! This happened to us as well. Car drove past and threw a carton. Didn’t phase us as none of the eggs landed. Shit shots tbh
— Eliot Hastie (@Hastie93) March 7, 2021
“One gay couple said they were egged while holding hands on Commonwealth Street, another man said a bottle was thrown at him before he was egged nearby,” Reddie wrote.
“My friends and I promised not to let our attackers ruin the weekend.”
On a day that already weighs heavy on the minds of some queer people, and has been created to embrace liberation and joy, it is truly disgusting to hear that queer people cannot even walk on the streets without being assaulted.
Mark Reddie has filed a formal complaint to the police, who he says treated him with “respect” and “empathy”.
