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Telephone booth advertisement for gay-dating site vandalized in apparent hate crime

March 8, 2017 By Hannah Wulkan

An advertisement for a gay dating site on the side of a phone booth in Astoria was vandalized yesterday with black spray-painted graffiti.

The vandalized phone booth at 34th Street and Broadway advertises a gay dating website called Squirt.org, and depicts one man unbuttoning another man’s shirt and has the words “Your place or mine?” written on it. The vandal spray-painted a blotchy shape over the center of the ad, obscuring the faces of the men and the text.

Though it is fairly unclear what shape the graffiti is it, some reports have stated that it resembles a swastika, a hate symbol of the Nazi movement.

The website GiveMeAstoria was first to report on the vandalism.

“I strongly denounce any symbol of hate in our community. Vandalizing a piece of city property with a symbol of anti-Semitism is bigoted and despicable. As we see anti-Semitic hate crimes on the rise across our city, Astoria must stand together in support of respect and tolerance,” said Councilman Costa Constantinides.

The phone booth advertises Squirt.org, a site that is used primarily to help gay men find casual sex with other men in the neighborhood, similar to Tinder.

The vandalism comes on the heels of a spike in hate crimes following the presidential election. The NYPD announced in November that hate crimes had spiked more than 30 percent in 2016, rising from 250 to 328 reported incidents in the year.

In the week following Donald Trump’s election, the City saw a spike in hate crimes to 11 reported incidents, six of which involved the painting of swastikas, including several tied to issues of sexual orientation.

email the author: news@queenspost.com

26 Comments

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Pootieman

Tom you sound like a mad little queen, relax, the ad is inappropriate, if it was an inappropriate straight ad id say the same thing. Calm down cupcake. As far as the spelling i made a mistake, like your parents did when they had you

Reply
DE

Here’s a thought. It’s about gays. If a gay man is attracted to another man. And he’s in the gym, in locker room. And I take off my shirt and pants to change. Isn’t it possible that he might be looking at me sexually if he thinks I’m hot. Why can’t I go into the woman’s bathroom. It’s the same thing. Ps. I never go into the locker room anymore ever since I seen two guys in the same shower stall. I should have the right to go into the woman’s bathroom!! And I don’t hate gays IDGAF. just don’t have sex in the bathroom in the gym!

Reply
Jim

So you want separate gay and lesbian bathrooms? So everyplace will have 4 bathrooms? Yes, people shouldn’t be having sex in the showers but come on. Gay and straight men have been using the same locker room since the beginning of time.

You never had gay friends/roommates in high school or college?

Reply
Anonymous

don’t worry Jimmy Van Bramer isn’t going to like this — photo-op at his best cleaning it up

Reply
Iced T

Podium, speech, the works. Meanwhile he does nothing to improve infrastructure or reduce the rapid pace of development

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Anonymous

“Help gay men find casual sex with other men in the neighborhood”
this is great advertisement for little children to see.
Pathetic

Reply
Thomas Buckley is a hypocrite

Anonymous- Yes we all should live life and look at life through the eyes of an 8 year old. You’re pathetic.

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Anonymous

No we all don’t see life through the eyes of an 8 year old. But there are standards. It’s trash like you that make Astoria what it is.

Reply
Jim

Anonymous- It’s not trash when it’s a straight ad to you which shows your hypocrisy., That’s the definition of having different “standards” for those who are not like you. You’re a phony.

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Pootieman

And to call it squirt.com , obviously a sexual reference. Why couldnt it just me called men for men? This ad deserve to be defaced . Whoever did it good for you

Reply
Thomas Buckley is a hypocrite

-Pootieman- There is a Freudian slip in your post, loser. “The lady doth protest too much, methinks”

Reply
Thomas Buckley is a hypocrite

Pootieman- “Good. You want to be straight fine, you don’t need to advertise it”

Reply
Billy

@Poorieman. When was the exact moment you decided you wanted to be straight? What was the exact event that changed your mind?

Reply
yasss

kids don’t need to see this to begin with.

it’s inappropriate for kids. if it was hetero, gay, lesbian. inappropriate.

Reply
Thomas Buckley

“If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.” (Leviticus 20:13)

Reply
Thomas Buckley is a hypocrite

Thomas- RomansCH.14:10: You have no right to criticize your brother or look down on him. Remember each of us will stand personally before the Judgment seat of God.

Reply
Dawn

I love when the devout Christians quote the Old Testament and totally ignore what’s written in the New Testament. Hypocrite is right on the money.

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