Survivor of anti-LGBT+ attack trains police to protect queer communities
After the attack on the premier, politicians addressed their security, but almost no one asked me if I felt threatened after the Tepláreň attack, says Radka Trokšiarová.
You can read the original story here.
Almost two years ago, Radka Trokšiarová was seriously wounded during the shooting at the Tepláreň LGBT+ venue on Zámocká Street in Bratilava. Now, she feels "more confident and stronger", crediting her work with the municipal police. Recently, she helped train 18 cadets, teaching them how to treat LGBT+ people with respect so the latter will not be afraid to ask for help.
Originally, we were supposed to meet a month ago on the occasion of International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia. However, after the attack on Prime Minister Robert Fico on May 15, you cancelled the interview because you did not want to draw attention to yourself. Did it affect you?
I absolutely did not understand the intention of the attacker. We live in a democratic country, and having a different opinion did not give him the right to shoot. The same applied to Tepláreň, where the attacker originally targeted then prime minister [Eduard Heger]. He shot at us only because he knew the LGBT+ community gathered at the bar.
Just as with the attack on Zámocká Street, the Handlová attack was accompanied by a flood of misinformation and hoaxes. Some people speculated that no blood was visible on Fico and that the attack had been staged.
When a bullet hits you, it doesn't work like in a movie where you see blood everywhere. I took two gunshot wounds and barely bled - due to shock. When the police arrived, they at first thought I had a broken leg since they didn't see any blood.
What happens then - after a month, after two years?
It's a long process, and there is no single way for a body to react. In terms of sounds, it's better now; before, I had problems with sirens and would get startled even if a child’s balloon popped. Recently, when I went to a shooting range with colleagues, I had no problem holding a gun and firing it. However, every time a shot was fired, it automatically made me flinch. You can neither control nor predict when and how a post-traumatic shock manifests itself. For example, not long ago I flinched when thunder struck during a storm. I still cannot distinguish which sounds are okay for me and which are not.
Is it possible to avoid post-traumatic stress disorder?
No, it's not. Some people manage to suppress it for a while, but then it catches up with them, say two or three years later, in a situation that reminds them of the trauma, and it resurfaces.
Do you think the attack on Fico will change anything?
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