‘I Was Punched And Kicked Out Of Paceville Club For Being Myself’, Gay Maltese Man Says
A Maltese LGBTQ+ NGO has raised concerns over safety in Maltese clubs, particularly in Paceville, after a gay man said he was punched by another man before being kicked out of a club last night for no reason other than “being himself”.
“Into the club and into the closet,” ARC posted today. “Yet another case of an LGBTQ person mistreated in a mainstream club in Paceville reached us today. And the bouncers and authorities remain insensitive to what is happening when reported.”
Their statement comes after a Maltese man was allegedly punched by someone in a Paceville club, before bouncers kicked out the victim, instead of the aggressor.
“This is what happens every time we live our truth,” ARC continued. “Paceville has become an unsafe place of entertainment for people of our community.”
Speaking to Lovin Malta, George* explained what happened to him in a popular Paceville club Saturday night.
“Some friends and I decided to go to Paceville and while my friends and I were enjoying ourselves there was a guy that started pushing just because I was being myself,” George recounted.
“After the third push I turned and asked him what the matter with him was and without hesitation, he punched in my face – and then the bouncer came and, aggressively, I was the one that got kicked out of the club,” George continued.
George tried to tell the bouncer he hadn’t done anything, and when his cries fell on deaf ears, he approached a nearby police officer.
“I told him what happened, and he answered: ‘do you know his name?’ I replied that I didn’t, and he said ‘what can I do?’ while laughing,” George said.
George said he isn’t exactly sure why he was punched in the first place.
“To be honest I don’t know, maybe it’s because I was close to him, but the club was crowded. I was just dancing with my friends, I wasn’t provoking anyone. This happened because homophobia unfortunately still exists,” he said.
He said that this was far from the first time he felt “ridiculed” in a club, saying it’s pretty much happened to him and his friends in “every club in Paceville”.
Names have been changed for the person’s protection.*
What do you make of this incident?
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