Hundreds Rally Against Hate In Austin

Hundreds of people in Austin marched Saturday behind a banner that read "Austin March Against Hate" as they walked from a downtown gay bar to City Hall, the Austin American-Statesman reports.

The march route retraced the path two gay men, Emmanuel Winston and Matthew Morgan, took last weekend when they were attacked in what appears to be an antigay assault. The men said they were wearing jerseys from the "Shady Ladies" gay softball team and that the attackers used slurs about their sexual orientation.

"Ignorance is not the way. Fear is not the answer. Love will conquer hate, Winston told the crowd Saturday. "Hate will not be tolerated, and we will not be silenced."

Police chief Art Acevedo, who attended the rally, said it was up to prosecutors to decide whether there was enough evidence to charge the four suspects with a hate crime. No arrests have yet been made.

See the American-Statesman's photo essay from the rally here.