A gay man living in Co Tyrone has opened up on the physical and verbal abuse he has suffered since moving to the area 18 months ago.
Dakota Ogden moved to Omagh from Toronto a year and half ago to be with his partner, who hails from Killyclogher, after the pair met in Canada.
Dakota has taken up a role with the organising committee for this weekend’s Omagh Pride festival, which will take to the Co Tyrone county town for its third year on Saturday.
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While he praised the work being done to improve the lives of those from the LGBT community in rural areas such as Co Tyrone, Dakota says he has been subjected to regular homophobic attacks since he moved here.
“In Toronto I didn’t really get much abuse for it, it’s a big city and there’s every type of person there,” he told Belfast Live.
“I didn’t really experience much negative stuff around it until I moved here
“Going out I would get called names, people would pick fights with me. I was grabbed by the throat once because someone was picking a fight with me.
“It was happening nearly every weekend when I went out here. In Toronto I never really experienced that because I would have gone to gay clubs or bars.
“So that was the hardest part of moving here was that there was no space dedicated to anyone that is from the LGBT community.
“You are going to find that no matter where you go, but it would have been happening on a weekly basis here.
“I would have a lot of people who would have my back also to support me if they saw that going on.”
Dakota says he has considered moving away from Omagh to more urban areas of Northern Ireland following the abuse he has received.
“I’m not going to lie, it has kind of started to be on my mind because it was happening so often.
“It did lead me to think that Omagh might not be the place for me, maybe I would be better off closer to Belfast. Just in terms of safety when I go out, maybe being in a bigger city might be better for me
“When my partner doesn’t come out with me he’s always concerned that something is going to happen, I feel like he’s on edge because he has seen what’s happened with me.”
Dakota got involved with Omagh Pride last year and performed as a drag artist during the celebrations, and despite some of the negative experiences he has gone through, he says he’s determined to make his new home a better place for those from the LBGT community.
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“Besides that it has been quite positive, joining the Pride committee has helped me join and connect with other people.
“We saw a great level of support for Pride last year from people in the community.
“I find that people are more open these days, especially in the younger generation. Now it’s so much more talked about and openly discussed.
“I feel like this is really helping people, and with the amount of flags we have put up around town here, it shows people that there is a lot of support available to them.
In terms of what message he has for those who continue to abuse people from the LGBT community, Dakota says it is fine for some to disagree, but it should never turn to disrespect.
“People are people, if you don’t like something just look the other way,” he says.
“Just because you don’t agree with something doesn’t mean you have to disrespect someone for it.”
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