Gay Man Claims Bideford Is Homophobic After Being Abused

A gay man claims Bideford In North Devon is 20-30 years behind the rest of the UK after suffering homophobic abuse in the sleepy Devon town.

Mekhi Heward reported on social media how he was ashamed of Bideford after being abused walking home from Tesco.

Describing himself as ‘gay looking’, he tells how a group of youths from the town pulled up in a car and started shouting relentless homophobic abuse at him, stating it is not the first time he has come under attack.

Locals in Bideford have been accused of calling him ‘dirty’ whilst being ‘riddled with Aids’ and telling him ‘To kill himself’, which has disgusted the gay man.

Now he’s telling the town through social media,’ Just because I’m a ‘fag’ doesn’t mean you have the right to come at me for being me’ and that he wants to be who he is and will stand by it at any cost.

Meanwhile, he states he’s made many complaints to the local Bideford Police Force, who, according to the complainant, have taken no action regarding his complaints.

Now, a gay rights group based in Bristol are preparing to start a campaign to educate the people of Bideford.

Group leader Simon Pike told Global247news, ‘ It’s typical of a rural Devon town; the gay community in towns like this are always scared to ‘come out’ due to the Police doing nothing.

‘There will always be far more gay people in a town like Bideford than people realise and those who aren’t need educating and bringing into the century’.