The early morning hours of Sunday, November 26, should have marked the end of a night of queer revelry. Instead, a violent hate crime soured the morning for at least three members of Miami’s LGBTQ+ community.
Lesbian event production company, Pandora Events, hosted its annual Women’s White Party the night of Saturday, November 25 in the Wynwood neighborhood of Miami, FL. For the last five years, the neighborhood has hosted Pride for Miami’s LGBTQ+ community. However, the events of Sunday morning revealed a darker side of the neighborhood. A graphic cell phone video shows at least three of the party attendees suffering a verbal and physical assault as they exited the event.
According to Queer News Tonight, a group of men outside of the venue began hurling homophobic obscenities at the three known victims—two lesbians and a trans woman—as they left the party. One victim recalls the men shouting, ‘You’re only lesbians because you haven’t received actual d***.”
Pandora Events CEO, Alison Burgos, says the men also shouted, “You need to get d****. You need to get d***** hard.” Things turned physical when one of the women responded, saying, “Why? You have a small d***.”
At least two of the assailants have been identified. One is a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter, while another is a bouncer at a local club. On the video, event attendees can be heard begging the men to stop their attack. Unfortunately, the violence continued. One of the victims, Jennifer, was hospitalized following the incident. Another victim, Lily Ann, suffered a broken jaw and finger.
The incident is currently under investigation as a hate crime due to the explicit comments regarding the victims’ sexual orientation. Despite the severity of the assault, the Miami Police Department has yet to make any arrests.
Burgos expressed frustration with the lack of accountability thus far. “I don’t know why they haven’t been arrested. There are many witnesses. Many phone recordings. A friend was an eyewitness. I gave it two days and had to go to SAVE because there was no action. I am very surprised they were not arrested and then interviewed,” Burgos said.
In 2023, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Equality Florida, and NAACP all issued warnings about increased hostility towards LGBTQ+ individuals in Florida. The absence of arrests in this case not only heightens state-wide concerns, but raises new concerns over the safety of the LGBTQ+ community in the Wynwood neighborhood.
