Straight men across the Netherlands are sharing pictures of themselves holding hands, following an alleged street attack on two gay men in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Jasper Vernes-Sewratan, 35, and Ronnie Sewratan-Vernes, 31 were walking down a street in Arnhem, in the country's east, when they were allegedly attacked by a group of teenagers.
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Dutch men hold hands to protest homophobia
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Straight men across the Netherlands are sharing pictures of themselves holding hands following an allegedly homophobic attack.
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Dutch men hold hands to protest homophobia
Straight men across the Netherlands are sharing pictures of themselves holding hands following an allegedly homophobic attack.
In an appearance on Dutch television show Pauw, the couple said they were attacked by "six to eight" young men after they were spotted holding hands in public.
The story provoked outrage from the Dutch people, with the country's prime minister, Mark Rutte, condemning the alleged incident.
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But it was politicians Alexander Pechtold and Wouter Koolmees from the country's Democrats 66 party who made the strongest statement, without using any words at all.
The pair arrived at a government meeting on Monday in the ultimate show of solidarity: holding hands themselves.
Wij doen mee! Stop geweld tegen homo's. #allemannenhandinhand @barbarabarend pic.twitter.com/zsLY7Z0SqM
— Alexander Pechtold (@APechtold) April 3, 2017
"We think it is quite normal in the Netherlands to express who you are," Pechtold said to Dutch News.
As pictures of the two men spread across the internet, more Dutch men decided to speak out against the alleged attack in the same vein.
Using the hashtag "#allemannenhandinhand ("all men holding hands"), men with occupations ranging from politicians to football players and even reverends have shared pictures of themselves holding hands on social media.
N.E.C. keert geweld tegen homo's de rug toe. #allemannenhandinhand #handinhand @3FM pic.twitter.com/ADxjti0iMO
— N.E.C. Nijmegen (@NEC_Nijmegen) April 3, 2017
Omdat liefde (&zorg;) voor en van iedereen is. #allemannenhandinhand.Chirurg @JelleRuurda hand in hand met verpleegkundig sp. Carlo Schippers pic.twitter.com/n4tu8ehTNI
— Cancer Center UMCU (@cancercenterumc) April 5, 2017
LOVE my 2yr old son who is already supporting #LGBTQI rights! #allemannenhandinhand pic.twitter.com/2w1HAdOcE8
— frerieke (@frerieke) April 5, 2017
Male colleagues from the Dutch Embassy London holding hands in protest against violence towards the LGBTQIA community. #allemannenhandinhand pic.twitter.com/Bp6Mz6UiyY
— Dutch Embassy London (@NLinUK) April 4, 2017
The Netherlands is one of the world's most progressive nations when it comes to LGBT rights.
In 2001, it became the first country in the world to legislate for marriage equality, with public polls regularly suggesting over 90 per cent of the population supports same-sex marriage.