Murders of Hattie Mae Cohens and Brian Mock

Last updated

On September 26, 1992, Hattie Mae Cohens and Brian Mock were killed by a firebomb attack at their apartment in Salem, Oregon.

Contents

As Cohens was a lesbian, and Mock was gay, the attack was seen by the Salem LGBT community as motivated by homophobia which had been encouraged by advocates of Ballot Measure 9. Four white supremacist skinheads, aged 19 to 22, were arrested in connection with the killings, and charged with murder, aggravated murder, assault, arson, and intimidation; during the trial, one pled guilty to aggravated murder, one was acquitted of all charges, and two were found guilty of murder, assault, arson, and racial intimidation. [1] [2]

Attack

According to witnesses, Cohens had been involved in a feud with the four skinheads. [1] Cohens' nephew had been called racial epithets by at least one of the perpetrators in the weeks before the attack. [3] A few weeks prior to the firebombing, Mock had been attacked by a group of men, whom witnesses said called him homophobic epithets. There was not enough evidence to prosecute the crime, so Cohens and two of her friends tracked down the leader of the attack and beat him up. [4]

A teenage witness reported that a large group of skinheads had visited the apartment on September 25, and that a fight had broken out at the time. [4] According to the Bay Area Reporter , the fight was related to the prior attack on Mock and Cohens' defense of him. [5]

In the early hours of September 26, two bottles filled with gasoline, the first thrown by Sean Edwards, [6] were thrown into Cohens and Mock's basement apartment in northeast Salem. A fire started, which trapped Cohens in her bedroom, where she died of smoke inhalation. [4] [7] Mock and six other building residents were injured, and he died in the hospital on September 27. [2] [4]

Victims

Hattie Mae Cohens, a Black lesbian, was 29 at the time of the attack. [1] According to Seattle Gay News , she was described as "boisterous...with a great sense of humor and a quick temper" and as "can-do kind of dyke". [4] Brian H. Mock, a white gay man, was 45 at the time. [1] Mock had an intellectual disability and was described as having a "gentle demeanor". [4] Mock was frequently beaten up due to his orientation and disability, and he had moved in with his friend, Cohens, for protection. [8]

Aftermath

At the time of the attack, the Salem LGBT community was concerned about the upcoming elections and Ballot Measure 9. The measure would have, among other things, prevented organizations which "promoted homosexuality" from receiving government funding, removed books "promoting homosexuality" form schools and libraries, and prevented anti-discrimination laws from including sexual orientation. [5] In this context, Cohens and Mock were claimed as "martyrs" by the No on 9 Committee, [1] and members of the Salem LGBT community claimed that advocates of the measure, such as the Christian Coalition and the Oregon Citizens Alliance, were responsible for Cohens and Mock's deaths, due to the homophobia in their campaign messaging. [9] [10] Fears that other extremists would be emboldened by the firebombing and that the violence might spread further were not borne out. [5]

Community members held a candlelit vigil at Cohens and Mock's apartment. [10] According to several attendees, several pro-Ballot Measure 9 advocates came to the vigil and "jeered" the mourners. [10]

The attack led to demonstrations by groups such as ACT UP Columbia, in Portland on October 17, 1992, [9] and the newly-formed Lesbian Avengers. [11] The group ate fire in New York City in October 1992 [12] and in front of the White House in 1993 to draw attention to the murders of Cohens and Mock. [13] During their event in New York, they also erected a shrine to the two in Greenwich Village. [14]

Investigation and trial

Following the attack, three people - Yolanda R. Cotton (19), Sean R. Edwards (21), and Philip B. Wilson Jr. (20) - were arrested. [1] [7] Leon L. Tucker (22) was arrested a few days later. [15] A total of 15 felonies were filed against the group, two of which were related to hate crime charges. [1] The FBI was involved with the investigation of the crime. [4] Initially, investigators assumed the firebombing was gang-related, although groups such as the National Gay Lesbian Task Force released statements in which they called the killings a hate crime. [4]

According to police, although race and sexual orientation played a role in the motivations for the attack, they were not the primary motivations. [1] However, witnesses claimed that the four had called Cohens and Mock homophoic and racial slurs. [1] Four of the apartment's other residents were African-American, further leading to concerns that the attack was racially motivated. [16]

Trial

All four of those originally arrested were brought to trial. Sean Edwards chose to plead guilty to his charge of aggravated murder, in hopes of a chance at parole. [6] The other three pled not guilty. Jury selection for the trial began in February 1993. [17]

During the trial, defense attorney Kevin Lafky called the incident "a sad, tragic collapse in judgment" influenced by alcohol consumption, while prosecutors framed the attack as intentional and based on racial and homophobic prejudices. [2] Jurors listened to three weeks of testimony and deliberated for three days on the verdict. [16]

In April 1993, Leon Tucker and Phillip Wilson Jr. were found guilty of murder, as well as assault, arson and racial intimidation. The two were not found guilty of aggravated murder. Yolanda Cotton was acquitted of all charges. [2]

Marion County Circuit Court Judge Albin Norblad sentenced Wilson to 35 years, Tucker to 30 years, and Edwards to 25 years. [18]

Legacy

Cohens and Mock's deaths led to a tradition among the Lesbian Avengers, in which trained volunteers eat fire to show the LGBT community's strength and to pay tribute to those lost to homophobia. [14]

Related Research Articles

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) people frequently experience violence directed toward their sexuality, gender identity, or gender expression. This violence may be enacted by the state, as in laws prescribing punishment for homosexual acts, or by individuals. It may be psychological or physical and motivated by biphobia, gayphobia, homophobia, lesbophobia, aphobia, and transphobia. Influencing factors may be cultural, religious, or political mores and biases.

The Lesbian Avengers were founded in 1992 in New York City, the direct action group was formed with the intent to create an organization that focuses on lesbian issues and visibility through humorous and untraditional activism. The group was founded by six individuals: Ana Maria Simo, Anne Maguire, Anne-Christine D'Adesky, Marie Honan, Maxine Wolfe, and Sarah Schulman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Williamson</span> Jamaican gay rights activist (1945–2004)

Brian Williamson was a Jamaican gay rights activist who co-founded the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG). He was known for being one of the earliest openly gay men in Jamaican society and one of its best known gay rights activists.

Sakia Gunn was a 15-year-old African American lesbian who was murdered in what has been deemed a hate crime in Newark, New Jersey. Richard McCullough, was charged with her death and sentenced to 20 years in prison. In 2008, a documentary was released about Gunn's murder, titled Dreams Deferred: The Sakia Gunn Film Project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murder of Mulugeta Seraw</span> Racially motivated murder in Portland, Oregon

Mulugeta Seraw was an Ethiopian student who traveled to the United States to attend college. He was 28 when he was murdered by three white supremacists in November 1988 in Portland, Oregon. They were convicted, and Mulugeta's father and son—who was six years old—filed a civil lawsuit against the killers and an affiliated organization, holding them liable for the murder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in the Bahamas</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in the Bahamas have limited legal protections. While same-sex sexual activity is legal in the Bahamas, there are no laws that address discrimination or harassment on the account of sexual orientation or gender identity, nor does it recognize same sex unions in any form, whether it be marriage or partnerships. Households headed by same-sex couples are also not eligible for any of the same rights given to opposite-sex married couples.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homophobia</span> Negative attitudes and discrimination toward homosexuality and LGBT people

Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who identify or are perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, or antipathy, may be based on irrational fear and may sometimes be attributed to religious beliefs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in the Gambia</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the Gambia face significant challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Same-sex sexual activity is illegal for both men and women in the Gambia. Criminalisation commenced under the colonial rule of the British. The 1933 Criminal Code provides penalties of prison terms of up to fourteen years. In 2014, the country amended its code to impose even harsher penalties of life imprisonment for "aggravated" cases. The gender expression of transgender individuals is also legally restricted in the country. While the United States Department of State reports that the laws against homosexual activity are not "actively enforced", arrests have occurred; the NGO Human Rights Watch, reports regular organised actions by law enforcement against persons suspected of homosexuality and gender non-conformity.

Roxanne Ellis and Michelle Abdill were a lesbian couple, murdered in Medford, Oregon, by Robert Acremant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Discrimination against lesbians</span> Irrational fear of, and aversion to, lesbians

Discrimination against lesbians, sometimes called lesbophobia, comprises various forms of prejudice and negativity towards lesbians as individuals, as couples, as a social group, or lesbianism in general. Based on the categories of sex, sexual orientation, identity, and gender expression, this negativity encompasses prejudice, discrimination, hatred, and abuse; with attitudes and feelings ranging from disdain to hostility. Lesbophobia is misogyny that intersects with homophobia, and vice versa. It is analogous to gayphobia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in Uganda</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Uganda face severe legal and social challenges not experienced by non-LGBTQ residents. Same-sex sexual activity is illegal for both men and women in Uganda. It was originally criminalised by British colonial laws introduced when Uganda became a British protectorate, and these laws have been retained since the country gained its independence.

Corrective rape, also called curative rape or homophobic rape, is a hate crime in which somebody is raped because of their perceived sexual orientation. The common intended consequence of the rape, as claimed by the perpetrator, is to turn the person heterosexual.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of violence against LGBT people in the United Kingdom</span>

The history of violence against LGBT people in the United Kingdom is made up of assaults on gay men, lesbians, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex individuals (LGBTQI), legal responses to such violence, and hate crime statistics in the United Kingdom. Those targeted by such violence are perceived to violate heteronormative rules and religious beliefs and contravene perceived protocols of gender and sexual roles. People who are perceived to be LGBTQI may also be targeted.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of violence against LGBT people in the United States</span>

The history of violence against LGBT people in the United States is made up of assaults on gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender individuals (LGBTQ), legal responses to such violence, and hate crime statistics in the United States of America. The people who are the targets of such violence are believed to violate heteronormative rules and they are also believed to contravene perceived protocols of gender and sexual roles. People who are perceived to be LGBT may also be targeted for violence. Violence can also occur between couples who are of the same sex, with statistics showing that violence among female same-sex couples is more common than it is among couples of the opposite sex, but male same-sex violence is less common.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murder of Dwayne Jones</span> 2013 mob killing in Jamaica

Dwayne Jones was a Jamaican 16-year-old boy who was killed by a violent mob in Montego Bay in 2013, after he attended a dance party dressed in women's clothing. The incident attracted national and international media attention and brought increased scrutiny to the status of LGBT rights in Jamaica.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ culture in Portland, Oregon</span>

LGBT culture in Portland, Oregon is an important part of Pacific Northwest culture.

Homophobia in ethnic minority communities is any negative prejudice or form of discrimination in ethnic minority communities worldwide towards people who identify as–or are perceived as being–lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT), known as homophobia. This may be expressed as antipathy, contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, irrational fear, and is sometimes related to religious beliefs. A 2006 study by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation in the UK found that while religion can have a positive function in many LGB Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) communities, it can also play a role in supporting homophobia.

Dyke TV was founded and created by Ana María Simo, playwright and cofounder of Lesbian Avengers; Linda Chapman, theater director and producer; and Mary Patierno, independent film and video maker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gay gang murders</span> Murders in Sydney, Australia between 1970 and 2010

The gay gang murders are a series of suspected anti-LGBT hate crimes perpetrated by large gangs of youths in Sydney, between 1970 and 2010, with most occurring in 1989 and 1990. The majority of these occurred at local gay beats, and were known to the police as locations where gangs of teenagers targeted homosexuals. In particular, many deaths are associated with the cliffs of Marks Park, Tamarama, where the victims would allegedly be thrown or herded off the cliffs to their deaths. As many as 88 gay men were murdered by these groups in the period, with many of the deaths unreported, considered accidents or suicides at the time.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Egan, Timothy (1992-11-01). "Violent Backdrop for Anti-Gay Measure". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "2 Guilty Of Murder In Racial Killings". The Seattle Times . Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  3. ↑ Gabriel, John (1998). Whitewash: Racialized Politics and the Media. Psychology Press. p. 195. ISBN   978-0-415-14970-9.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Flint, Tom (October 9, 1992). "Lesbian, Gay man, brutally murdered in Oregon". Seattle Gay News . p. 1. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 Timoner, Rachel (October 8, 1992). "California Fundraiser Planned To Help Oregon's "No on 9"". Bay Area Reporter. p. 9. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  6. 1 2 "Jury begins deliberating in firebomb murder trial". Eugene Register-Guard . April 7, 1993. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  7. 1 2 "3 charged with murder after blaze". Eugene Register-Guard. September 29, 1992.
  8. ↑ Riemer, Matthew; Brown, Leighton (2019-05-07). We Are Everywhere: Protest, Power, and Pride in the History of Queer Liberation. Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed. p. 299. ISBN   978-0-399-58182-3.
  9. 1 2 Flint, Tom (October 9, 1992). "Shock and rage in Salem". Seattle Gay News . pp. 1, 13. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 Covino, Marghe (October 8, 1992). "Murders in Oregon, Colorado". Bay Area Reporter. Vol. 22, no. 41. p. 1.
  11. ↑ "Corvallis Lesbian Avengers Collection". Archives West. Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  12. ↑ "Fire-Eating Lesbians". The New York Times. 1994-04-24. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  13. ↑ "Frustrated by society's erasure, the Lesbian Avengers fought back". NPR. June 24, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  14. 1 2 Sullivan, Mairead (2022). Lesbian Death: Desire and Danger between Feminist and Queer. University of Minnesota Press. p. 120. ISBN   978-1-5179-1002-0. JSTOR   10.5749/j.ctv2ckjqh6.
  15. ↑ "Fourth arrest made in firebombing". The Spokesman-Review. October 2, 1992. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  16. 1 2 "Pair convicted of fatal firebombing". The Bulletin. April 9, 1993. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Bomb threat disrupts trial". The Bulletin. February 25, 1993. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  18. ↑ Sentencing for murders of Hattie Mae Cohens and Brian Mock, seattletimes.com. Accessed August 9, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.