An 18-year-old woman was punched unconscious because she rejected advances from men who followed her and her friend when they were on a night out.
Gabrielle Walsh and her friend were out in central Manchester on a Saturday night when they were approached by three men.
Both girls walked away from the men, but they kept following them and trying to talk to them.
"I'm sorry, I'm not interested," Gabrielle said in an attempt to get the men to go away. But this sparked a row and one of them physically attacked her.
Gabrielle, a college student, said: "They kept harassing us. I was saying to [my friend] Kyle: 'Let's go'. Then he hit me - he fully knocked me out.
"When I woke up I was on the floor and the three of them had jumped on Kyle as well."
Volunteers from the Village Angels community safety group came to the women's rescue and provided first aid.
A photo of Gabrielle's injuries following the attack was shared online and it went viral with web users showing support for her.
Gabrielle, who said the attack had left her fearful of going out in public on her own, explained: "I'm not a rude person, I just said: 'Sorry I'm not interested'.
"I think it was a jealousy, ego thing because I rejected him in front of his friends."
She added: "Girls feel like they can't say 'no'. They feel like if they say no then they might hurt you and in this case it was true.
"It's scared me, I'm scared to go out, I've always got to be with somebody."
Gabrielle before the attack
Councillor Pat Karney, Manchester City Council's city centre spokesperson, condemned the attack and said he would see if officials can help identify the attacker through CCTV.
No comments:
Post a Comment