The plaintive cry of a transwoman in between savage beatings as two teen girls in Baltimore respond to her mere presence with extreme violence. It seems this individual, who is clearly presenting as female, regardless of her personal identity or legal sex, attempted to use the bathroom deemed socially appropriate for her at the time. The results were violent and potentially lethal.
The manager, employees, and other customers, with a single ineffective exemption, look on, laughing, shouting, commenting to one another - and of course, filming with cell phones, which is how we get the privilege of watching this entire horrifying incident unfold.
THIS POST will continue to be updated as more news and information develop, so please check back occasionally. New posts will appear at the bottom. Occasionally I will add commentary. I do encourage your comments, questions, and input - anonymously if necessary.
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The original tipoff
Source: Buck Angel's tumblr (microblog)
Date/Time: 22 April; ~12:00
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Original post identifying the victim as trans
Source:
Date/Time:
Source:
Date/Time:
Commentary:
http://pajamasmedia.com/tatler/2011/04/22/nearly-everyone-in-this-video-is-a-criminal-or-an-accessory-to-a-crime/
Source:
Date/Time:
NewsOne:
http://newsone.com/nation/newsonestaff2/mcdonalds-girl-beat-up-seizure/
Original source:
http://worldstarhiphop.com/videos/video.php?v=wshhiHb913Lf4TpU4q5m
Other report:
http://www.brokencountry.com/index.php/2011/04/22/mcdonalds-beating-video/
Viralization report:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-viral-video-mcdonalds-20110422,0,4613709.story
Further reporting and commentary:
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ec0_1303444048
Public identification of the person responsible for filming the assault:
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/buster/mcdonalds/mcdonalds-employee-filmed-brutal-beating-640128
Bilerico:
http://www.bilerico.com/2011/04/transwoman_severely_beaten_at_baltimore_mcdonalds.php
With information on how to contact McDonald's and let them know what you think.
(Glad I never eat at this establishment anyway. Their history is worse than their "food".)
From a Twitter feed:
http://twitter.com/#!/BeerInBaltimore
"County police confirm that the beating happened April 18 at a McDonald's in Rosedale, in the 6300 block of Kenwood Ave."
Attempted to reach media figures for comment. (Waste of Skype credit.) This is the latest official comment from their website:
http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/media_center/Media_Contacts.html
Commentary on racialized aspects of the incident:
http://www.tmrzoo.com/2011/24079
Attackers officially face charges:
http://essex.patch.com/articles/teen-charged-adult-sought-as-video-of-attack-goes-viral#youtube_video-5759303
All in:
http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/crime_checker/baltimore_county_crime/woman-injured-after-mcdonald%27s-beating
The victim was 22. I'm 22. Just thought I'd make the story that much more Human:
http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/3ce4f4a2eac048d9b63818c3b772855c/MD--Videotaped-Beating/
More reporting:
http://missjia.com/video-girl-seizure-jumped-baltimore-mcdonalds.html
updated version from miss jia
http://missjia.com/update-video-girl-baltimore-mcdonalds.html
More reports, victim's condition unconfirmed:
http://www.wbaltv.com/r/27640819/detail.html
Question of Hackett's claims, no police response:
http://planetfreedom.org/?p=157451
Just like to point something else out. Regardless of whether the victim is "really trans" or not, we MUST look to the responses provided by the man who posted this video originally - a one Charm Hackett - who claims that "that wasn't really a woman, that was a man". Even if this is a case of mistaken identity, the implications are clear. If you're trans - or even suspected of being trans, but especially if you ARE trans - and you get beaten for using the "wrong" restroom, you deserve it.
Interesting debate flares up on forums:
http://www.politicalforum.com/current-events/182756-violence-another-mc-donalds-almost-kills-customer-12.html
2:
http://www.sternfannetwork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=600533
Joe My God takes up the story:
http://joemygod.blogspot.com/2011/04/maryland-trans-woman-brutally-attacked.html
more queer reporting:
http://wamarriage.org/2011/04/transwoman-severely-beaten-at-baltimore-mcdonalds-while-employees-watch/
Daily Mail:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1379691/Caught-camera-Shocking-moment-girl-beaten-point-seizure-McDonalds-staff-idly-watch-on.html
first use of "hate crime"
http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/crime_checker/baltimore_county_crime/woman-injured-after-mcdonald%27s-beating
http://www.wpix.com/wpix-teen-brutally-beaten-at-mcdonalds,0,5375468.story
http://business.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474979253699
http://lgbtweekly.com/2011/04/23/transgender-maryland-woman-beaten-in-balitimore-mcdonalds/
PETITION:
http://www.change.org/petitions/demand-that-the-employees-on-duty-at-mcdonalds-be-held-responsible-in-the-beating-of-a-trans-woman
http://news.google.com/news/more?pz=1&cf=all&ned=us&cf=all&ncl=dWgI5tKlUQ7uJ2MM_iKo_zh7kircM
http://news.google.com/news/more?pz=1&cf=all&ned=us&cf=all&ncl=dAKkkJDFAlFeBGMC_sH9FJblHbKoM
Now she's a "male cross-dresser"
http://nation.foxnews.com/culture/2011/04/22/smoking-gun-woman-beat-mcdonald-s-was-male-cross-dresser
http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/news/local/110422-video-brutal-beating-leaves-woman-convulsing
BALTIMORE POLICE REPORT [PDF]
http://media2.myfoxdc.com//documents/McDonaldsBeatingPoliceReport.pdf
http://lezgetreal.com/2011/04/trans-woman-brutally-attacked-at-baltimore-mcdonalds/
http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2011/04/baltimore-police-investigate-brutal-attack-on-trans-woman-at-local-mcdonalds/
http://yesbuthowever.com/baltimore-mcdonalds-beating-cross-dresser-500746/
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2014851073_apusvideotapedbeatingmaryland.html
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/smallscreen/news/article_1634724.php/Maryland-woman-beaten-to-seizure-by-two-women-in-McDonalds-VIDEO
^^a lot of damned invasive ads in this article^^
http://metroweekly.com/poliglot/2011/04/trans-woman-assaulted-at-mcdon.html
http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2011/04/22/video-shows-woman-being-beaten-at-baltimore-co-mcdonalds/
http://oneclick.indiatimes.com/article/07epdFvaRHf0t?q=McDonald%27s
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/update-mcdonalds-releases-statement-regarding-horrific-beating-video/
Update:
I only just managed to watch this video a second time. The first time I watched it all the way through was around 2:30 this afternoon, and it shook me up so badly. It took awhile to transmute my feelings into anger and channel that energy into tracking the story, something I hope will prove productive. So I've only seen it once, and here I am about 9 hours later trying to watch it again. I wanted to go back and verify some of the things I thought I saw or heard the first time around. Such as the victim's query "where am I supposed to go then?" at about 1:00 in (which, if she is trans, and we interpret this incident as the girls telling her not to use the women's restroom, makes sense). I'm also seeing new things. If you go to the video, around the 1:40 marker, in the middle of the older woman attempting to intervene, you can see the poor girl gripping the woman's leg in desperation. Also, it sounds like the manager is the one who probably called the police who eventually arrived on the scene. Which also makes sense and makes some of his actions earlier in the video clearer. There may not have been much he could have done to actually stop the violence, and with at least one of the attackers being an underage girl, he likely did not want to put himself in a situation where he appears to have assaulted a child. Unfortunate as it was for the victim, he did more or less the right thing by going to call the police as quickly as possible.
I'm making lots of assumptions here, of course.
UPDATES:
Employee who filmed now fired, victim identified:
http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2011/04/mcdonalds-fires-employee-who-recorded-brutal-beating-of-transgender-woman/
YouTube video from Gay Family Values analyzing original video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mf12dGhJalE
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/buster/mcdonalds/mcdonalds-fires-employee-who-filmed-beating-102975
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bs-md-mcdonalds-video-20110423,0,1302714.story
VICTIM SPEAKS ON HER EXPERIENCE:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bs-md-mcdonalds-beating-20110423,0,3336656.story
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1379691/Transgender-girl-beaten-seizure-McDonalds-attack-victim-hate-crime.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2011/04/23/2011-04-23_mcdonalds_beating_video_victim_is_transgender_maryland_attack_is_hate_crime_says.html?r=news
Interesting (and frustrating, especially considering the nature of some of the comments here) take on the incident:
http://100waystogetrevenge.wordpress.com/2011/04/23/how-to-get-revenge-mcdonalds-beating-gets-more-confusing/
Another blogger weighs in, while racism and sexism abound:
http://www.occidentaldissent.com/2011/04/23/black-run-america-mcdonalds-victim-was-a-tranny-prostitute-chrissy-lee-polis/
http://www.examiner.com/strange-news-in-national/fight-at-baltimore-mcdonald-s-may-be-handled-as-hate-crime-video
http://unicornbooty.com/2011/04/transgender-woman-beaten-into-a-seizure-at-mcdonalds/
Just another reporting:
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/04/23/2182322/mcdonalds-in-md-to-probe-response.html
http://unicornbooty.com/2011/04/transgender-woman-beaten-into-a-seizure-at-mcdonalds/
https://news.change.org/stories/mcdonalds-employees-beat-that-trans-woman
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/abraham/detail?entry_id=87630
HEAR THE VICTIM HERSELF:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bs-md-mcdonalds-beating-20110423,0,3336656.story
http://www.metroweekly.com/poliglot/2011/04/trans-woman-assaulted-at-mcdon.html
http://metroweekly.com/poliglot/2011/04/vigil-planned-for-physically-a.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1380506/Teonna-Monae-Brown-18-charged-McDonalds-attack-transgendered-girl.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
The people filming this event and not helping this person are as culpable as the ignorant girls assaulting this person. I pray charges are brought against each and every one of them. I would like to know more about the victim and the status of her health. This is outrageous.
ReplyDeleteI have an update for you -- it was the McDonalds at: 6315 Kenwood Ave
ReplyDeleteRosedale, MD 21237 (410) 866-3250
MAY I SAY, I WONDER HOW ALL THESE PEOPLE WOULD FEEL IF THAT HAD BEEN THEIR CHILD ,AND NO ONE HELPED HER, HOW IN GODS NAME CAN ANYONE STAND AND WATCH SOMEONE BEING BEAT UP NO MATTER WHAT THE REASON. I THINK THESE GIRLS SHOULD DO PRISON TIME SORRY COMMUMITY SERVICE IS TO GOOD FOR THESE GIRLS I REALLY THE SHOULD GO TO PRISON FOR 1YR, THEN THEY WOULD LEARN, OR THE OTHER PRISONERS WOULD TEACH THEM.
ReplyDeleteThis is a tricky issue if this person is a transgender. As a woman with a young daughter I would not want a transgender in the restroom and here is the reason. A man can easily dress as a woman just to get a chance to fondle a young girl in the privacy of a restroom. How are we to know? That's just it. We don't know.
ReplyDeleteI hope this person is okay. Charges need to filed against the females involved.
"A man can easily dress as a woman just to get a chance to fondle a young girl in the privacy of a restroom. How are we to know? That's just it. We don't know."
ReplyDeleteThat's like saying all Muslims could be terrorists, so we shouldn't let any of them on planes. You do realize a woman could fondle your child too, right? The real answer is don't leave your child unsupervised.
"This is a tricky issue if this person is a transgender. As a woman with a young daughter I would not want a transgender in the restroom..."
ReplyDeleteGuess what? You shouldn't have kids.
Do we have confirmation that the victim is trans* ? It's being reported differently on different sites.
ReplyDeleteThis is a sad incident. I wish the person getting beat would have had the tools and training to defend them self.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this. I saw a link to the video and started looking for info about it. It's absolutely heartbreaking and infuriating at the same time.
ReplyDeleteThere isn't definitive confirmation that the victim is a transwoman, however, the employee who filmed the video [rather than intervening or calling the police] said on his Facebook and Twitter accounts that the fight began because, in his words, the victim was "a man" and "pretending" to be a woman, and refused to leave the bathroom when confronted by the two attackers.
ReplyDeleteSo, should a Trans Man use the ladies room, all topless with manly pecs, and a full beard?
ReplyDeleteInteresting turn isn't it?
Honestly, whats the big deal? I personally would love to see bathrooms made 100% unisex (Everyone pees, poops, and preens. And yes, Guys DO preen, just differently)
As a trans woman myself, I've been using the PROPER restroom for myself (womens of course) for well over a year, and never had a problem. Granted, I wasn't cursed with much of the problems many transwomen can receive, and pass reasonably well, but seriously, its just a bathroom, get over it!
How horrible we have become as a community that we make excuses for animalistic behavior on the part of the attackers and those laughing and watching. Regardless of gender this is reprehensible and unacceptable and those watching are as guilty as the girls doing the beating.
ReplyDeleteMy heart is broken and this incident is a sad reminder of just how much work still needs to be done to protect the rights of all human beings. I will not rest until the rights of the transgendered community are equally protected. My heart goes out to the victim and her loved ones, and the entire GLBT community.
ReplyDeleteI would like to know where the outrage is on this incidident. There was a brief mention of this on the news. This person, who is white, was brutally attacked by non white youths while crying out for help. Someone actually films this and puts in on you tube because they thought it was funny! This is both a hate crime and a racial crime. Those involved need to be charged accordingly. And the rest of us can not keep silent on the hate or racial implications. My heart goes out to the victim.
ReplyDelete"As a woman with a young daughter..."
ReplyDeleteWhat if she was Transgendered? Transsexual, or Intersexed? How would you explain to her that, well, people like you exist, who are terrified of shadows so persecute girls like her out of irrational fear?
A man can easily dress as a woman just to get a chance to fondle a young girl in the privacy of a restroom. How are we to know? That's just it. We don't know.
How many such incidents happen per week in places that have legal protections for Trans people?
Zero.
How many in a year?
Zero.
How many have ever been recorded in the entire history of the USA, in the 40% that has such laws, and the 35 years that some have been in place?
Zero.
How many attacks on Trans people happen if restrooms in places without such protections?
This is the third case just in McDonalds stores in the last few months, they've been reported in Maryland, New York, Nevada, Florida, Colorado... just in the last 12 months.
Those are the facts.