Woman Brutally Beaten—Possibly Raped—In Midtown Bar

Reposted from Gothamist: A man attacked and possibly raped a pediatric nurse in a bathroom stall in the midtown bar Social, police said. The perp fractured the 30-year-old woman's skull, and broke her eye socket and nose after she reportedly refused to dance with him in the three-story Eighth Avenue bar and lounge. According to the Times, the attack occurred at around 2:30 this morning when the Connecticut woman declined to dance with the perp. After "she rebuffed his advances," the attacker followed the woman into the ladies bathroom, kicked open a bathroom stall door and assaulted her. Law enforcement sources believe she might have been raped because her pants were partially off when she was found. One of the nurse's girlfriends discovered the victim unconscious in the bathroom stall. She was taken to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, where according to ABC, she underwent surgery. Police are trying to find video of the man entering or leaving the bar.

Competition for Local Changemakers, Hollaback!

Green Mountain Coffee and Ashoka's Changemakers are hosting a competition to find and help fund the most innovative ideas that improve communities in the Northeast (Maine, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, or Massachusetts). The best innovations will be awarded prizes totaling USD $50,000, and nominators are also eligible for prizes. Hollaback has applied (check out our application and leave us a comment!) and we encourage you to apply too. Got a great idea? We'd be happy to nominate you! Just shoot us an email at hollabacknyc@gmail.com and visit http://www.changemakers.com/en-us/Revelation for all the details. You can enter or nominate innovations from now until April 21, 2010.

It's so Hard to Find Good Help These Days

I am 15 right now, and at the time of this "incident" I was 14. The scene is just out in downtown Darien, Connecticut, which is a pretty safe state if I do say so myself. I was waiting on a bench right next to a family restaurant FULL of people, while my friends left to go to a Starbucks not 50 yards away. While I was sitting and waiting for my parents to pick me up, I noticed two "gentlemen" come up to me. They said a few sentences, but all I managed to get out was "Are you alright? You sure look alright. You want us to wait with you?" All the while they kept leering at me and smiling, and I could tell they were smashed. I just kept saying "I'm fine, I'm okay" until they crossed the street. I immediately went to go to my friends at the Starbucks and I said "Those drunk guys were hitting on me" to which a guy friend of mine responded "Those weren't just any drunk guys, those were firemen!"