September 7, 2009

In the early morning hours of August 30, a young Brooklyn woman was abducted, savagely beaten and left bound to a utility pole. Her assailants also left her with an ominous message, the letter “V” crudely painted on her chest, presumably as a warning to others. Her transgression? Sharing a drink with a vampire co-worker from her office.

The woman, whose name has been reported simply as “Sheri B.,” was discovered at 4:30 a.m. in an alley in the DUMBO area by a passerby walking his dog. She is currently listed in serious but stable condition at a local hospital. Police have no clear suspects in the case but are scouring cell phone camera footage collected from onlookers who arrived at the scene for possible leads.

This is the latest in a scattered trend of assaults targeting vampire-friendly citizens. In every case, the victim has been scourged with a bright red “V” scrawled on their person or clothing. Often written in the victim’s own blood, the letter has been dubbed by news reporters as “The Scarlet V” and appears to have become a unifying symbol of terror for the nascent but increasingly violent anti-vampire movement.

For the AVL, these attacks mark a most regrettable moment we hoped would never arrive: The day when a human is injured for standing up against the persecution of vampires. If it weren’t for the generous help of all our human AVL supporters, the Vampire Rights Amendment would still be a joke bandied about Congress and many vampires would still be living in the shadows, a persecuted minority. The AVL won’t forget the contributions our human friends have made, and we’re working vigorously with law enforcement to expedite the investigation of these hate crimes and bring their perpetrators to justice. And rest easy, Sheri B. We’re doing everything in our power to prevent this from happening to anyone else.