Anti-queer incident on a Berlin tram on Line M8: As the city’s police reported, an unknown man attacked a 48-year-old transgender woman Monday evening in the Fennpfuhl district. According to preliminary findings, the man asked the woman around 9 p.m. near the intersection of Karl-Lade-Straße and Landsberger Allee whether she was a woman or a man. This led to a verbal dispute. Thereafter, the man struck the woman in the face with an open hand and pulled her by the hair.
As she was leaving the tram, the suspect insulted the transgender woman and then left the scene. The injured party sustained facial injuries but declined medical treatment.
The investigation into the assault and insult is being conducted by the Political Security unit of the Berlin State Criminal Police Office. This is common in cases of suspected queer-hate crimes.
There are repeated reports from Berlin of anti-LGBTI assaults, as the state police publicly highlight potential hate crimes based on sexual orientation or gender identity, and therefore these incidents are relatively frequently disclosed to the public. The police and the public prosecutors’ offices in the capital have their own points of contact for queer people.
Marcy Ellerton
