AN American woman has told how she was savagely beaten in the street for being a Goth.
Gena Willenberg, from Texas, was set upon as she visited her sister-in-law in the Dumbiedykes area of Edinburgh.
The 32-year-old suffered a broken nose, a cut and badly swollen eye and severe bruising all over her chest in the attack on Friday evening.
Gena, who has a six-year-old son and only moved to live in Scotland last year, said: “They started shouting at me and my friend that we were goths and they were going to kick our heads in.”
“It was intimidating and I didn’t understand it because I’m not a goth. My friend had blue hair, but it was still just foul abuse.
“We turned out back and just kept going and that was when they attacked me. One of them tried to smash a bottle over the back of my head, but fortunately it didn’t break. Then they started punching and kicking me.”
Gena, who also had a mobile worth £300 stolen in the attack, needed stitches in her eye and had to have her nose reset.
“It’s one of the worst things I’ve ever had to deal with in my life and I had no idea that people could be so cruel to complete strangers just because of the way they look.”
Cameron Rose, a local Conservative councillor, said: “I am appalled by this incident and I feel very sorry for the young lady from Texas.
“I would encourage anyone with any information to come forward.”
