BBC Documentaries

Is It Safe to be Gay in the UK? (2017x191)

Air date: Aug 01, 2017

With homophobic hate crime a daily occurrence and on the rise, this film takes a look at the issue, hearing from the victims, their families and the police. What makes someone attack another person because of their sexuality? How do victims deal with these unprovoked assaults? To explore this ongoing issue, the documentary visits Alex and Becky as they prepare for a looming court date, hoping to get justice for an unprovoked attack on them in the streets of Croydon. It reveals the pressure heaped on Dain and James's relationship, a year after they were viciously attacked in Brighton, leaving Dain with a broken eye socket and both of them with multiple inuries. Connor discusses the ongoing health implications stemming from the brutal attack on him when his flatmate took a hammer to his head as Connor lay sleeping. And Jenny talks about her brother Ian, who died of injuries sustained in a homophobic attack in the centre of London. We also hear from a chorus of other LGBT people, who describe the attacks on themselves and recite a litany of the abuse that they have received, simply for being who they are.