Alleged hate crime victim pledges to commit an act of tolerance a day

Richard Tso was scheduled to speak at a conference in Baltimore in Aug. 2010. As vice president of marketing for the technology company Spigit, he was doing quite well for himself. But before dinner with a couple of potential clients, he headed to his hotel room to drop off his laptop.

A man whom he passed near the hotel's elevator lobby muttered the word 'fag' as he walked by. After Tso dropped off his laptop and jacket in his room, he returned to the elevator and realized the man who had just accosted him was riding the same elevator into which he had just stepped. Tso immediately exited the elevator, but the "obviously intoxicated" man approached him and began to once again call him a 'faggot'. And Tso said the man began to punch him in the face.

"I pleaded with him, asking him why he was doing this and reminding him he didn't even know me," Tso told EDGE, adding a scuffle ensued when he tried to kick his assailant. He began to scream for help, but Tso said the man only continued to hit him.

"I then grabbed the glasses the man was wearing and he told me he would let me go if I gave them back," said Tso. "I threw them down the hall."

Tso eventually escaped, but not before the attack left him with a swollen face and several bumps and bruises. Authorities have since charged Tso's alleged assailant with assault and a hate crime. And Tso later learned the man he said attacked him has a prior assault charge.

It is hard to conceptualize that man standing before this reporter-confident, outgoing, and driven-was on the receiving end of an alleged gay-bashing less than a year ago. The Seattle resident is adamant about not allowing himself to become a victim. And "the incident," to which Tso refers to it, spurred his interest in working for a non-profit dedicated to making sure these incidents don't happen to anyone else.

He left his home in California, moved to Seattle and became executive director of TAP (Tolerance, Americanism and Patriotism) America. TAP's stated goal is to promote patriotism, tolerance and Americanism through education and multimedia educational programs.

"America was founded on the ideals of tolerance, patriotism and embracing all individuals," said Tso. "We at TAP believe it is the differences between Americans that make our country so unique and powerful. Once we look past these differences we realize that we are more similar than we are different - we are all Americans."

TAP also encourages people to exercise, back equality for all Americans and to support the country's economy by purchasing American-made products.

"We are a lot broader than civil rights-we are really more about educating people on the bad side of humanity; getting them to understand that violence and hate are wrong."

On a personal level, Tso has refused to let his attack define him or his life in a bad way. "I'm learning how to protect myself through self-defense classes," he said. "I've also joined the Seattle Men's Chorus and have become much more active in the community as I move forward."