Candle-lit Vigil - Trafalgar Square - 30OCT09 - 8 to 10 pm

If you are in Central London tomorrow evening, please consider going along to Trafalgar Square to support a candle-lit vigil against homophobia. The information in the box below is an extract from an email I received earlier this evening which will explain what this event is all about:

Silent Candle-lit Vigil against Hate Crime in the Heart of London Friday 30th October 8pm - 10pm Trafalgar Square with 2 minutes silence at 9pm Organised by Facebook group 17-24-30 On Friday 25th September 2009, Ian Baynham, 62, and friend were subjected to homophobic abuse in Trafalgar Square, London. When Ian challenged this unacceptable behaviour he was assaulted by three youths: two women and a man. He later died of his injuries on 13th October. Ian is not alone. He is just one of thousands of people who have been victims of hate-crime. We are calling upon people from all backgrounds to join us on Friday 30th October to say that such Hate Crime is unacceptable and that we will no longer tolerate it. The Silent Candle-lit Vigil will enable us: To bring us all together To show our support to all victims of Hate Crime To stand shoulder to shoulder to stop this happening again The Vigil will include speakers form a wide cross section of the community, and musical contributions. For those unable to attend, in the UK and throughout the world, we are asking that people will - alone or together with others - light candles of hope, and observe the two minutes silence at some point on Friday 30th. People are invited to post on Facebook a photo of their candle tagged with the names of those who gather with them. We want to make this a worldwide day of remembrance, hope and action. For more details go to the Facebook group 17-24-30 and check out the event "Silent Candle-lit Vigil".

Read more here. Not the source of my email, by the way. That came as a weekly update from the Kings Cross Steelers Rugby Football Club, of which I have been a supporting member for many years; it was the first gay rugby team in the world and today provides an opportunity for mainly gay or bisexual rugby-players to play the sport competitively.

Thank you for your attention.

PS/ I just came across this very recent case of hate crime in Liverpool, in which a gay off-duty police officer out with friends was beaten-up, it is suspected because of his sexuality. This kind of thing has to be stopped!

PPS/ Other events will be taking place elsewhere in the UK tonight - so far I am aware of two in Liverpool and Manchester - more here (aknowledgements to caspararemi).