Bullied gay homeowner bailed out by Amersfoort

The municipality of Amersfoort is buying the home of the homosexual man who was forced to flee after being bullied out of his home in the Liendert neighborhood last Summer.

In this way, the municipality hopes to give the man a new lease of life, to "give him the opportunity to start anew", a spokesperson said on Wednesday.

For years, the man was bullied, cursed and threatened by the people he lived amongst in his neighborhood. He was being discriminated against almost daily for his sexual orientation.

Since the Summer, the man stayed in a temporary home. He did not and still doesn't want to return to the neighborhood he was so unceremoniously bullied away from. He worked together with the municipality to find a solution. Mayor Lucas Bolshuis thinks that an "exceptional solution" may have been found at last.

Last week, on Sunday, community members organized a 'pink picnic' to support the man, which was attended by many people.

"Amersfoort has made it clear that we don't accept this", Bolshuis said. "Anybody who bullies, discriminates and threatens must be reprimanded."

The police in Amersfoort is still, however, busy with investigations into the homophobic offenders.