Donal Lynch’s response to the study carried out by the charity Johnny into homophobic violence in the Sunday Independent is nothing short of a disgrace. Because he has not witnessed violence himself in Dublin’s gay bars, he chooses to disbelieve the report’s findings, exaggerates them by saying Dublin would be “Baghdad-esque” if they were true. So much so, that the sub-editor turns the report’s findings on their head in the headline to the piece. And this is based on one journalist’s opinion, backed up solely by anecdotal evidence, which he himself admits is “trumped” by statistics. Inspector Finbar Murphy, the former Gay Liaison Officer of the guards, confirms in the article the level of violence was indeed that high at the time of the research (not that you’d know it by the level of mainstream press coverage) but this does not mean that it’s gone away now. His comments merely serve to vindicate the report’s findings, not undermine them.

I know my column is subjective and anecdotal, but I make no claim for it to be otherwise. I know that because I have twice experienced being kicked in the face and bludgeoned to the ground in Dublin’s fair city, on one occasion leaving me with a broken nose, my perception of the level of homophobic violence in Dublin is bound to differ from Donal’s. But that is what research and reports are for – to establish the facts. The sort of homophobic attacks that result in serious damage are not done right outside the gay bars in full view of everyone – the attackers follow the victims until they are alone and vulnerable and out of CCTV range, or try to roll them in a cruising area. I know, from experience, how they work, and the calculated menace that fuels their operations is deeply disturbing to behold. If Donal wishes to challenge the methodology of the research of Conor Coughlan and his team, then he should say so directly, for that is a serious charge, and would call into question Johnny’s integrity as an organization, and its charitable status.

He is right to point out that violence happens all the time in Dublin’s streets at night, and that the majority of victims are not gay. And he’s right to highlight homophobia in education as being a serious issue. (As if the two aren’t connected.) But the curious lack of mainstream media attention around the issue of homophobic violence in Ireland is striking and dangerous. Dangerous because homophobia is the quintessence of male-on-male violence, it tells us more about the malaise of the Irish male and his rampant fucking alcohol-fuelled id than anything else. It needs to be understood, taken seriously, researched; the psychology of those who get their kicks out of beating up queers or other poor buggers in other minority groups needs to be understood. By pissing on this report the way he has, Donal Lynch may think he’s struck a blow against gay victimology. But he’s only succeeding in assaulting the truth, and in so doing is perpetuating the smug complacency in the mainstream Irish media about the nature and level of Irish violence on our streets at night, and the degree to which violent homophobia is entrenched in the Irish male psyche.

Update: the Johnny Hate Crime Report is available to download.