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# Cornwall sees two homophobic incidents in November
- URL: https://www.scenemag.co.uk/cornwall-sees-two-homophobic-incidents-in-november/
- Published: 2020-12-04T09:09:35.000Z
- Updated: 2020-12-03T13:41:56.000Z
- Description: Cornwall has seen multiple reports of homophobic harassment, both directed at gay men, throughout November.
- Author: Rachel Badham
- Tags: News, Devon, Galop, gay, gay rights, LGBTQ, UK News

![](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/cornwall-itv.jpg)

Major Troon-Collis told ITV about his experience with homophobia

**Cornwall** has seen two reports of homophobic harassment, both directed at gay men, throughout November, as the **Devon** and Cornwall police say anti-LGBTQ+ incidents are becoming increasingly common in the area. On **November 12**, a 24-year-old gay man, **Major-Troon Collis**, 24, was collecting medication at Boots in **Camborne**, when he was verbally abused by a group outside the store. He reported one man saying: *“If that was my son I would put it down”* while others threatened to physically attack him.

Collis spoke to [**ITV News**](https://www.itv.com/news/westcountry/2020-11-26/young-man-speaks-out-against-homophobia-after-being-verbally-attacked-in-camborne?ref=scenemag.co.uk) about the incident: *“I certainly don’t deserve it. I did nothing wrong. I said nothing. I was just collecting my medication…Pretty much every day I leave my house, I go about my daily business and unfortunately I’m always abused by others – name calling, homophobic abuse, sometimes even physical.”* He said the police response to the situation was ‘brilliant’ but suggested many are afraid to report such incidents.

![](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/cornwall-1.jpg)

Iain and Wahaj Mahmood-Brown

Another incident occured at the end of November, as a gay couple, **Iain** and **Wahaj Mahmood-Brown**, were verbally abused by a man who called their relationship an ‘abomination’. Following the event, **Sgt Dylan Bristow** of the Devon and Cornwall police told the BBC: *“We see a lot of crimes that are reported in relation to people’s sexual orientation,”* and said homophobic hate crimes were *“all too prevalent”* in recent years. Both incidents are being treated as hate crimes and investigations intend to continue; no arrests have been made yet.

The **UK** and **US** have seen a rise in anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes, with a November [**FBI** report](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/us-hate-crimes-at-highest-level-in-over-a-decade/) finding homophobic and transphobic hate crimes are at the highest level since the organisation began collecting data 30 years ago. [**Galop**](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/study-finds-transphobic-hate-crimes-increasing-in-the-uk/), a UK LGBTQ+ organisation and anti-violence charity, Galop, also found four in five transgender people have been the victim of a hate crime within the last 12 months.

![](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/cornwall-pride-lgbt-1.jpg)

A Pride event in Cornwall