The victim of a brutal attack at Tamaki Makaurau’s Family Bar is adamant that it was a homophobic attack.
The incident occurred in the early hours of Sunday morning when Julian Suarez was attacked in the club’s bathrooms.
“I decided to go to the toilet - [the] next memory is when I’m getting taken out of Family Bar with the ambulance,” he says.
“I was bleeding everywhere.”
Family Bar, located on Karangahape Rd, is commonly known as a takatāpui bar. Suarez has attended the bar for many years, but only recently started feeling unsafe.
“I don’t get how this brutality happens inside of an establishment where there [is security]. [You] could hear an attack like that. [Where were] they,” he says.
The attack unfolded at 2am on Sunday. The 34-year-old was hospitalised overnight with a fractured nose and laceration in his eye.
“I reported three guys attacking me [in] the bathroom but it’s not clear.”
“I’m speaking out for [all] of our community. This shouldn’t happen to us in any place, first instance. [Especially not] in a place that is our bar.”
Suarez’s friend, Robbie Dalgetty, approached the bar to issue a public acknowledgement of the incident before taking to social media.
“It’s something that [doesn’t] seem to matter that it’s a gay or straight thing. The amount of people that are commenting on the injustice is nice to see,” Dalgetty says.
“[Family Bar] needs to continue to have our back. Going forward, I’d like to see the appropriate security measures.”
Suarez has spoken to Family Bar about his issue.
“[The owner] said ‘I’m disgusted and will address this personally’ I was called [by] the other owner and she said she was so sorry.”
He has also lodged a complaint with police in pursuit of the alleged offenders.
“Police told me they were gonna investigate - [they] were gonna go through CCTV footage.”
Originally from Columbia, Suarez has called Aotearoa home for the past seven years. After another recent incident at Family Bar which he deemed homophobic, he is questioning the safety of the establishment.
“Are we safe in there? [I] don’t think so - not after this, unfortunately,” he says.
“To the person or people that attacked me - this behaviour is unacceptable.”
Suarez expresses his gratitude to those who supported him during the incident.
“Although I am an immigrant here, you all have made me feel like I am part of your family.”
Suarez is still waiting for a formal police response, and wants better security measures to safeguard takatāpui.
Te Ao Māori News has asked police and Family Bar managers to comment, without success.