UK barman burned to death for being gay

Police are not ruling out that the murder of 28-year-old Stuart Walker was a hate crime. Walker, an openly gay local barman, was brutally beaten, tied to a lamp post and set on fire in Ayrshire, Scotland, after leaving a house party. His body was found early Saturday morning by a member of the public.

Adam Ingram, a member of Scottish Parliament, told the BBC, “People are shocked and horrified. Stuart was a very nice young man, very popular and well known within the community. It’s shocking and horrifying and comes completely out of the blue.”

A Facebook page has been put up in Walker’s memory, where one local who knew him posted, “Life is so unfair. A genuine guy who always had a smile, a wave or a big cheery hello for everyone. Cumnock an emptier place without you for lots of people.”

In a related note, did anyone see Herman Cain on Piers Morgan last night? I must say, Piers is winning me over. He asks tough questions and doesn’t take the bullshit answers that every Republican presidential candidate gives him. When Herman Cain said that homosexuality is a choice, Piers told him that people are born gay, just as Herman was born black.

Every time a gay person commits suicide or is murdered for their sexuality, it is proof that their sexuality is not a choice. Why would anyone choose to be gay when we are socially mistreated, have fewer human rights and are the victims of prejudice and discrimination, often to the point of suicide or homicide?

Quite simply: they wouldn’t.

Just ask Stuart Walker.

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