Thousands protest in Greece following attack on transgender couple

After a young transgender couple was violently attacked by a mob of more than 100 individuals in Greece on Saturday, March 9, a coalition of activists, women’s groups and student organisations gathered for a march against hate the following day.

The pair were pursued in the city centre by a large group who subjected them to homophobic and transphobic slurs. As they managed to find shelter in a restaurant to wait for the police, the crowd continued to verbally harass them from outside the establishment. When the couple left the restaurant, the mob violently threw bottles and objects at them. Fortunately, neither were physically injured.

It went on mostly peaceful, despite clashes between protestors and the riot police present. An anonymous source who took part in the march informed PinkNews that: “There were several clashes between riot police and protesters as protesters marched through the centre of Thessaloniki where cops used tear gas and stun grenades to break up the demo.”

According to the same source, 3,000 to 4,000 people took part in the march to stand in solidarity with the transgender couple after the attack.

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