Gay Man Claims Mummers Attacked Him; Others Allege Bias
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A man claims he was insulted and punched for being gay by members of one group that marched in the Mummers parade in Philadelphia on New Year's Day, as the event was marred by a protest and other allegations of racial and sexual bias.
Twenty-eight-year-old John Holtz told reporters he was walking his dog with friends when a group of Mummers approached with one calling him a gay slur before another punched him in the eye. Holtz says officers asked him to file a report, but he declined.
Another member of the same comic troupe, Finnegans NYB's, was seen yelling an expletive referring to gays.
Police and the mayor's office haven't immediately commented. But the comic troupe says on Twitter that "one bad apple" caused the problem and has been "dealt with in house."
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