A gay man in Washington, D.C., is speaking out after Dupont Circle Shake Shack employees allegedly assaulted him for kissing his boyfriend in the restaurant.
D.C. resident Christian Dingus, 28, said he was at the restaurant on Saturday night waiting for his food when the incident transpired.
He told NBC News:
“While we were back there [in the restaurant] — kind of briefly — we began to kiss."
“And at that point, a worker came out to us and said that, you know, you can’t be doing that here, can’t do that type of stuff here.”
The two then separated, but Dingus said his boyfriend was troubled by the comment and went to speak to the employee.
Dingus' partner was then escorted out of the restaurant, where an argument took place. Dingus verbally interjected when an employee began speaking disrespectfully to his partner.
And that's when things became physical, according to Dingus.
“And then one of the men, pretty forcefully, like, pushed me out of the way on my shoulder."
“And then, you know, next thing I know, that kind of just, I think, sparked the rest of them…. They all just kind of started attacking me at that point, dragging me back, threw me on the floor and continuously punching me in my head.”
A patron inside the Shake Shack recorded the incident and gave the recording to Dingus.
The video shows employees beating Dingus as he fell to the ground and continuing to assault him while he was curled up on the sidewalk.
An ambulance arrived on the scene, but Dingus refused it at the time. He later, however, went to the emergency room for intense jaw pain.
He was diagnosed with a concussion and trauma to his jaw.
Dingus told NBC News:
“There was a desire to be violent towards me, and I think it’s very evident in that film."
A spokesperson for Shake Shack said all employees involved were suspended pending further review.
You can watch below.
- YouTubeyoutu.be
People on social media learning of Dingus' story were absolutely appalled.
NBC News/YouTube
NBC News/YouTube
NBC News/YouTube
NBC News/YouTube
And they don't believe "suspension" is punishment enough.
NBC News/YouTube
NBC News/YouTube
NBC News/YouTube
The attack is being investigated as a hate crime. According to a copy of the police report filed with the Metropolitan Police Department (per NBC News), police have classified the alleged offense as a simple assault with an anti-gay bias motivation.
The spokesperson for Shake Shack said in a statement on Sunday:
“We are aware of the incident on Saturday, Aug. 17 involving team members and a guest at our Dupont Circle location and are taking it very seriously."
“At Shake Shack, the safety and well-being of our guests and team members are our top priority, and we have a zero-tolerance policy for any form of violence.”
They added that the establishment is "committed to taking the appropriate actions."
Dingus also wants appropriate action to be taken, but he wants to feel safe in his own community, as well.
“You hear all the time that this stuff happens, but, you know, I started kind of believing that it didn’t, right?”
“I’ve been ... thinking of progress and how great that community is here, and then for that all to kind of be shattered, you know, kind of sucks.”
