The climate activist and influencer Quang Paasch spoke on Instagram about an assault and robbery he says happened to him in Berlin’s Neukölln district, about a week ago. “The motive was homophobia and anti-queer hatred,” the 24-year-old said.
“I had arranged to meet someone through an app. When I reached the front door and was waiting for them, two guys came straight at me from behind. One sprayed pepper spray in my face, and the other threw a punch,” he recounts in a video.
“Then I saw two more men, who had been smoking nearby, approaching. They joined in with punches and held my mouth shut. They also stole my phone. Paasch described the attackers as young men, aged between 19 and 20.”
When they left, he chased after them. One of the attackers turned around and struck him again. A group of children nearby were involved in a quick snowball fight, and one of the assailants told him, “you’re a pedo,” before running off. The incident left him with a traumatic brain injury and bruises.
“Violence against queer people remains a real problem in 2026”
With the video, Paasch aimed to draw attention to the fact that “violence against queer people remains a real problem in 2026.” He emphasized that he did not intend to provoke racist comments with the footage. “Pepper spray blocked my view, but the man who came back to hit me a second time was definitely a white man,” he said. His conclusion: “The problem is homophobic men.”
View this post on Instagram
Instagram
|
Gegenüber der Berliner Morgenpost (Bezahlartikel) erklärte Paasch nach der Veröffentlichung des Videos: „Ich traue mich aktuell noch nicht wirklich aus dem Haus. Und wenn ich rausgehe, bin ich sehr angespannt.“ Eine Pressesprecherin der Polizei bestätigte, dass Ermittlungen wegen schweren Raubs aufgenommen worden seien.
View this post on Instagram
Instagram | Paasch also wrote last year about racist prejudices in online dating |
In the capital, there are repeatedly reports of anti-queer violence. As part of the Respect Prize ceremony, Berlin’s Police President Barbara Slowik Meisel presented the latest crime statistics on queer-targeted offenses for the first three quarters of 2025 (TheColu.mn reported). In the area of hate crime based on sexual orientation and gender identity, Berlin recorded 429 offenses so far this year, slightly more than at the same point in the previous year, when 425 cases had been reported in the first three quarters (TheColu.mn reported). Recently, there have also been more attacks on queer institutions such as Maneo (TheColu.mn reported). (dk)
