On September 17, a student walking back from a Wawa near the University of Florida campus was confronted by another student who shouted homophobic slurs and attempted to assault him.
The attacker recorded the incident on his phone, labeling the victim as an "Indian" and a "fot," and proceeded to push him, causing the victim to stumble.
The targeted student filmed the assault for his own safety, and when the attacker tried to rummage through his backpack, he was forced to defend it.
UF Public Safety logged the event as a hate crime; the video posted to the university’s unofficial Reddit group helped identify the assailant, who is now under investigation.
A nearby resident who witnessed the confrontation later shared the footage with campus security, prompting swift action.
The university plans to hold a campus‑wide forum on hate crime prevention later this month, while the assailant faces potential criminal charges under Florida’s hate crime laws.