The Incredible Story of What Happened When Two Gay Men Were Harassed While Waiting for Pizza

[proud2BlibKansan]

This past weekend I was a part of something incredible that happened in my community of Columbus, Ohio. After a fun night out in the Short North, my friend Ethan and I ventured down the street to a popular pizza truck called Mikey's Late Night Slice. As a frequent late night visitor to the truck I knew the requisite wait in line is part of the process for securing an insanely good slice of pizza. It was really cold so Ethan and I were holding hands and standing close together to keep warm, we were laughing and joking about all the fun we'd had that night, when all of the sudden the guy in front of us turns around and tells us to cut our "gay shit" out.

I was a bit startled by his words but I didn't expect what happened next. Almost every single person in that line made it known to him it was not OK for him to speak to us like that. By happenstance my friend John, who is also gay, was standing in front of him and as he continued his rant about being disgusted by us we both let him know that this was our city too and that we were not about to stand down to his bigoted ideas, especially not in one of the gayest neighborhoods in town. As he continued it was actually the straight people in line who spoke up that were so awesome.

I didn't expect to see allies so willing to chime in and let this guy know that his hate speech wouldn't be tolerated. The best part though was as he grew more irate and vocal the guys who work the truck stopped what they were doing and leaned towards the window and told him they would not serve him because he was spewing hate. They said they support everyone in our community and that he should get out of line because they would not be serving him. He begrudgingly got out of line and walked away escorted by a friend who had been hanging back.

As I walked away with my pizza all I could think about was "THAT'S IT!" Every person who spoke up to defend us including the pizza guys representing their business was doing their part to make hate a thing of the past. I've been involved for a number of years with our movement for equality having co-chaired the Human Rights Campaign dinner in Columbus and being involved as a community organizer but I had never witnessed such a public display of support. It was incredibly moving.

more . . . http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joel-diaz/lgbt-tolerance_b_2397363.html

[hedgehog]

1. thank you!

[Sekhmets Daughter]

2. Wonderful! Excellent... and every superlative ever written!

[titanicdave]

34. I totally

and completely agree with you...........that bigoted guy got exactly what he deserved, no service.........bravo to all involved

[HappyMe]

3. Great story.

Thank you for sharing this.

[ismnotwasm]

4. Fantastic!

I love this

[Liberal_in_LA]

5. great story. I bet even the friend thought he was a jerk.

[Auntie Bush]

6. Good for you and good for the straight guys.

Nice to hear stories like that!

[closeupready]

7. Nice story. Thanks!

[Cha]

8. It is a very Emotional story that represents

how beautiful human nature Can be. I love the whole best Pizza Slice story!

Thank you, p2BlibK!

[DonRedwood]

12. did you see the video of the bowling champion smooching his husband? made me cry!

Crying at bowling... I have become such a softee...

[Cha]

30. Actually, I had only K&R that yesterday..

but, thanks to your link in #13 I just saw it. What a Swing! Scott Norton's emotion is infectious.. loved reading his story, too. I was thinking about this when I had read the "Best Pizza Slice Ever" piece.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

9. YAYYYYYYYYYYYYY! !!!!!!!!!!!

CHANGE!

[calimary]

97. Evolution, too!!!

Slowly we turn, and grow, and minds are opened.

GREAT post, proud2BlibKansan! Really WONDERFUL!!!! This is VERY nice to see! Assholes like that NEED to be shouted down, sent away, and shunned. They've had it too good for too long, people genuflecting to them and making all kinds of room for them and excuses for them because the teabaggers and other racists SEEMED to have such power and influence. They're a bunch of paper tigers whose clout is steadily shrinking, no matter HOW loud they yell and scream and throw tantrums and otherwise act out. They're nothing more than adult-size spoiled-brat snot-noses - who are also racists. RACISTS. Shove that in their faces and jam it down their throats and laminate it to their shirtfronts and tattoo it on their foreheads with all-scarlet letters. They need to be called out on it again and again and again, and SHAMED. And made an example of.

It should start COSTING THEM to feel this way and talk this way. There should be unpleasant consequences and a price to pay for being like this. They should NOT be rewarded with reaffirmations and face-time on cable shows and radio and other ego-feedings. There should be punishment for it, NOT reinforcement.

I've found that a little mortification is good for the soul.

[DonRedwood]

10. I rec all posts that are about delicious pizza

It is the one thing that gay and straight tastebuds all agree on.

[DonRedwood]

13. bowling link...smooches at the end

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022120655

[AlecBGreen]

46. wow! beautiful!

its moments like these that will change America's acceptance of our GLBT brothers & sisters for the better! Thanks for sharing!

[DonRedwood]

64. I know! A bunch of everyday bowlers got their eyes opened a little bit.

Now we need a gay billiards champion, gay Nascar Champion and a gay Punkin' Chunker and we'll have changed the world!

[budkin]

11. Such a great story! Thanks for sharing!

[Speck Tater]

14. There is hope for the world after all! Thanks for sharing that! nt

[WillyT]

15. HUGE K & R !!!

[Amaril]

16. Big grin here!

Stories like this give me such hope for our soul as a nation. Thanks for bringing it to us!

[sheshe2]

17. Columbus, Ohio!

Hats off to you!

Simply beautiful. Thank you.

K&R
She

[cate94]

18. Thanks for sharing

a truly heartwarming story.

[Tempest]

19. I posted this on Mikey's Facebook page

"In early May I will be moving from California to New Hampshire. My trip takes me right through Columbus (Ohio resident from 1961-1972) and I will most certainly be stopping at Mikey's on my way through town. And anyone lucky enough to be there at the time will be my treat. Thank you for standing up to the h8ter."

Columbus DUer's, which location is closest to Hwy 70?

[UncleYoder]

90. Since I-70

cuts right thru the middle of Columbus, you're not that far from any of their locations. If you stay on I-70 all the way, I would say go to the Grandview location. If you are thinking of taking the outerbelt around the city, then the Polaris location would be more convenient. And if you are determined to go to the truck just to say thank you, get off on High St. and head north to Lincoln St. on any Thursday, Friday or Saturday night.

Hey Mikey! Can I get a free slice for the plug?

[Tempest]

94. Thanks Uncle.

I filed your post away for the trip. Once I know about where I'm at, I'll use OnStar to find the locations you listed.

[SunSeeker]

20. Beautiful. Hate should always be responded to like this. That would end it. nt

[IndyJones]

81. You are so correct. That is how all ignorant hate should be addressed.

I hope that the man who initiated the discussion learned from what happened.

[ReRe]

21. Hallelujah!

K&R

Thanks so much for bringing this story to us, proud2BlibKansan! Not just the voice of one, but the voice many. There's power in numbers. I'm so glad it all turned up in the same place at the same time in that pizza line for those guys! What a reward for all the hard work he puts in on the Human Rights Campaign and in community organizing.

"What the world needs now,
Is love sweet love.
Not just for some,
Bur for EVERYONE!"

[DrewFlorida]

22. Great story, as a straight man, I would have spoken up as well.

It's always nice to hear of people doing the right thing, all people need to stand up for each others civil rights against the arrogance and ignorance of hatred. It seems as though tolerance and understanding are becoming more and more common.

[loyalkydem]

23. As a gay man I'm so happy to see people standing up to bigots

[NICO9000]

24. I love this story!

I sent it to my gay friends and relatives with a thought that maybe tolerance is breaking out all over! Just shows that there are plenty of decent people around who are not afraid to call out homophobia and racism when it's staring them in the face.

[AZ Progressive]

25. Wow, K&R!

[Ninga]

26. every once in a while that darn Ohio steps up to the plate!

[xchrom]

27. Awesome. Nt

[WoodyD]

28. Oh noes!

So that's what this has been about all along - the gay agenda is to take over the late-night pizza trucks!

Haters like this don't seem to understand the world has moved on. They're left behind with their bigotry and hatred, while the rest of us move on in a better world of decency, fairness and good slices of pizza.

[mountain grammy]

29. We've come a long way. Thanks for the reminder. Beautiful!

[bowens43]

31. Very cool thanks for sharing....

[lillypaddle]

32. That story gives me hope

Happy New Year to EVERYONE!

[2naSalit]

33. Great story

But there needs to be a whole bunch more of that, on many issues, happening in our country these days. It hope this will encourage more of our citizens to take such action when this kind of crap happens in their presence.

To all in the story who participated in showing a bigot that his hatred wasn't welcome in their presence...

[greyghost]

35. Bravo!

[cbrer]

36. I was hoping this would be an uplifting OP nt

[Raine1967]

48. What?

Could you explain how this isn't?

Really, please explain.

[cbrer]

49. Sometimes the written word

Doesn't translate well...

Of course this is uplifting. Heartwarmingly so.

I meant my comment to mean that sometimes I read the title of a post, and the story turns out badly. Another story of bigotry. Yet another report of hatred or small minded reaction.

THIS one wasn't. Is there a "smilie" thingie for that?

Sorry for the misunderstanding.

[Ikonoklast]

37. Don't ever piss off the Pizza Nazi.

"You show hate to gays?"




Now I want to buy a slice from them.

[babylonsister]

38. Love, love, love! This is the way it should be! nt

[vlyons]

39. Yeah, we're all sick of that shit.

Americans really do want to come together and live in peace with one another. Please remember that the bully who berated you is also suffering. For starters, he's carrying around a big big load of fear and hate and insecurity that he projects out on the world. That dude could really use a good therapist to help him work on his issues. Hey happy new year. A good omen for this year's start. yes?

[freshwest]

40. Tears in my eyes! What a beautiful story, so uplifting! Thanks for posting this, p2blk!

[AmBlue]

41. 'bout damn time. n/t

[PatrynXX]

42. as a straight person

this is outside of Church and whoever he was... was way out of line. I just would be like cool it. calm down. Not worth it. Better things to be complaining about. But kudos to the Pizza makers.

[LisaLynne]

43. This is wonderful!

People need to know that it's not OK to be a bigot. I mean, that seems like a no-brainer, but calling out hateful bullies like that IS important.

[Locrian]

44. great to share this

It inspires people so that MORE of this can happen (standing up) and we all can continue to move forward!

[Hekate]

45. God that's a great way to start the New Year

Wonderful story, and brought a big smile to my face.

[badhair77]

47. As the mother of a gay man this makes me tear up.

But in a good way. There is hope out there.

[99Forever]

50. The tide has, indeed turned.

[spanone]

51. K&r...

[stultusporcos]

52. Good to hear strangers standing up for what is right!

[limpyhobbler]

53. I agree. Late Night Slice is insanely good.

As a long time non-hater of gays, I'm happy to continue going there for pizza.

[redwitch]

54. This makes my heart glad.

Very, very moved by this story.

[WeekendWarrior]

55. That's a wonderful story. Thank you. nt.

[ColumbusLib]

56. Yeah

Yeah, Columbus! My town, too- glad it's supportive of GLBT- right down to the pizza trucks!

[rtassi]

57. Glad it turned out that way .. Very heart warming n/t

[rurallib]

58. bet that pizza tasted good

with a dash of community love and support

[Gothmog]

59. Thank you sharing

This is a great story

[Zambero]

60. Notice Served: Cut out the HATE crap

I truly believe the tide has turned on this issue. Kudos to those who stood up against hate, including the pizza truck workers.

[bread_and_roses]

61. K&R

may it be so everywhere, everytime

[Jenoch]

62. What a great story.

[Rozlee]

63. This is me; being a wet blanket as usual.

This might not have happened if those guys had been in a pizzeria in South Carolina or Mississippi. Hell, I still get censorious looks for being in a mixed marriage here in Texas. The Bible Belt wouldn't have been so kind to those young men. I have hope though. My daughter went to UT in San Antonio ten years ago and they had an LGBT organization on campus. The other students were at best highly accepting and supportive and the only real problem they got was from the Campus Christian organizations.

[Chorophyll]

67. Well, it might not have happened ANYWHERE 20 years ago.

And now it does. So we keep moving forward.

[Rozlee]

71. True that.

I was reading that among millennials, almost 70% support gay marriage and Republican millennials support it by 50%. The dinosaurs of bigotry are surrounded on all sides by change. But, prejudice is hard to get rid of, especially in the Bible Belt. Even now, among Republicans in Mississippi, 46% believe intermarriage should be made illegal. I don't know what it is about mixing religion and conservatism that makes people get such a narrow view of certain classes of citizens. I'm just glad that secularism and church non-affiliation is going up as well among our young. It keeps them away from the snake handlers. Sorry if I offended any DUers who are snake handlers.

[defacto7]

65. Fantastic...

That's the kind of thing I want to hear. Peaceful public protest against hate and bigotry. It's the start of another revolution against hatred, the hatred that's been planted and nursed by rw media propaganda.

Great to hear America standing up.

[Chorophyll]

66. I waited all day to read this and I'm so glad I did!

There's a lot of depressing stuff in the news but stories like this show that things really do change. Because we MAKE them change!

[Aristus]

68. Wonderful! Love is stronger than hate!

I'm so happy to hear about this!

[riqster]

69. Columbus has its points. nt

[icarusxat]

70. my courage grew three sizes today...

not that I ever backed down before...
this story though, will make me dig in my heels even more...
never, ever, will I just let hate slip by as normal behavior

[We People]

72. The title of this story made me think it wasn't gonna have a happy ending...

What a nice surprise to find out how positive it was! So glad it was told in public print and hope it will encourage more people to stand up for what is right in the face of ignorance, bigotry, and hatred.

[DLevine]

73. Thank you for making my day. K&R. nt

[Bluestar]

74. And this is how you change the world! n/t

[blackspade]

75. +1000

[phleshdef]

76. Yea, saw that on Facebook. Makes me very proud of my city.

[TrogL]

77. I had a vagely similar experience years and years ago

My boyfriend and I were eating at a swanky restaurant. As we ate I began to hear cursing, muttering then homophobic comments coming from behind me. I turned around and it was some old guy staring daggers at me. I waved the waiter over and mentioned the problem.

Remember, this was years and years ago in a homophobic town. The waiter talked to his boss and they kicked the guy out.

[TDale313]

78. Wonderful story.

k & r

[Iwillnevergiveup]

79. May situations like this

mushroom out across the whole country. Wake up, haters: Homophobia is no longer "in."

Time to get with the program.

[caledesi]

80. BIG K & R! NT

[aquart]

82. Sometimes, after a long hard fight, you get to win.

And, because of that fight, what the people on line and in the truck were telling you: We all won.

And we like it like that.

[friendly_iconoclast]

83. K&R

[Rain Mcloud]

84. Thanks for sharing that.

Human kind moved forward that night and closer together.

[momsrule]

85. Hate talkers are republicans.

Maybe even glen beck republicans. They enjoy what they think is their high morals. I find them amoral and can support that with many passages from the Bible. Please note, I find some proper nouns to be very improper and refuse to capitalize the first letter purposely.

[lunatica]

86. Bigots are the one demographic I want to see go back IN the closet

That man will think twice before spewing his hate in public again.

[Warren Stupidity]

87. The guys in the truck pulled soup nazi on him!

I love that.

[drynberg]

88. THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKIN' 'BOUT!

Yes.

[beerandjesus]

89. Great story

Thanks for sharing!

[SacoMaine61]

91. This story gives me hope against all the other crazy that's surrounds us right now

Thanks so much for sharing your experience and thanks to all the folks in that line who have their priorities straight.

[wordpix]

92. great story! I wish my small repug town in CT would stand up for environmentalists like that

a lot of people are in the closet about that issue around here and those of us who "come out" against turning our town into just another ugly suburb are pretty much despised.

[texshelters]

93. Wonderful!

I am glad you were in a friendly neighborhood. In many places you wouldn't get as many allies. Let's continue to spread tolerance to all corners of the US and the world.

PTxS

[samsingh]

95. kick

[flying_wahini]

96. what a great story

makes me feel like the page of bigotry in our country has finally turned!

[LongTomH]

98. K&R and shared - to my Facebook page

good for the people who stood up.

[schoolage_evan]

99. great community

I love that people can be so supportive of someone different than themselves I'm not gay and would like to say that I would speak up too but I have never been faced with this sort of issue oh well good luck to you and your friends and your mission I am subscribed to Gay Marrige USA on facebook and they often post amazing truths and facts that I agree with.

[toby jo]

100. Cool - we're winning

About 10 years ago, in Canton, Ohio, at the Stark County Fair, there was a Christian booth on the midway and they were all about anti-gay stuff. I remember this guy was out walking amongst us waving his papers at us and his face was red & screwed up in anger, he was yelling, going at it. I thought 'straight out of the belly of the beast'.

It'll be good to see the churches raise their awareness, finally, and get the spiritual message involved here, too.
Dogma's slowing things down, as usual.

[JesterCS]

101. Columbus seems pretty left of center

at least the times I've been there. I live about 90 miles from it. alot of culture mixed in there