Twenty years ago, the btal killg of a young gay man Laramie, Wyo., drew natnal attentn and led to an expansn of a feral hate-crim law.
Contents:
- THE TTH BEHD AMERI’S MOST FAMO GAY-HATE MURR
- MATTHEW SHEPARD: THE LEGACY OF A GAY LLEGE STUNT 20 YEARS AFTER HIS BTAL MURR
THE TTH BEHD AMERI’S MOST FAMO GAY-HATE MURR
* shepard gay man *
ET Matthew Shepard, the young gay man btally killed on a chilly night Wyomg 20 years ago this month, was fally laid to rt at Washgton Natnal Cathedral on Friday. A reflective, mic-filled service offered stark ntrast to the anti-gay protts that marred his funeral two s ago. Gene Robson, the first openly gay man elected a bishop the Epispal Church.
Prosecutors alleged that Shepard was targeted simply bee he was gay. In the years sce, the circumstanc surroundg the se have been disputed, but Shepard's murr has neverthels e to be seen as a classic hate crime, highlightg anti-gay bigotry.
MATTHEW SHEPARD: THE LEGACY OF A GAY LLEGE STUNT 20 YEARS AFTER HIS BTAL MURR
Matthew Shepard was abducted, beaten and killed 20 years ago bee he was gay. * shepard gay man *
Shepard's killg beme the basis for a play, The Laramie Project, which brought wispread attentn to the problem of homophobia. Shepard's parents, Dennis and Judy Shepard, tablished the Matthew Shepard Foundatn and beme activists for gay rights and more vigoro prosecutn of hate crim. Shepard's funeral 1998 was met wh noisy protts by anti-gay ants.
The horrific killg of Matthew Shepard 1998 is wily seen as one of the worst anti-gay hate crim Amerin history. They pistol whipped him wh a gun then tied him to a fence eezg ndns and set fire to him before leavg him to attack beme a e célèbre: precipated a natnal backlash agast hyper-macho culture and tac tolerance of homophobia.
The 1999 play The Laramie Project explor the te story surroundg the ath of Matthew Shepard, a young gay man who was beaten and left to die Laramie, Wyo., 1998. The se, which beme a landmark symbol for hate crim, still elics varied reactns — which is why on Oct. 12, hundreds of other theaters around the world will perform The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later, an Epilogue. * shepard gay man *
As a rult of Matthew’s ath, many good thgs have happened for the gay muny. Policians and celebri pledged support and fundg to bat anti-gay hate crime.
The Shepard fay have bee mpaigners for gay rights. Jimenez has been acced of beg a revisnist, a cricism ually rerved for extreme rightwg iologu that ny the Holot, and labelled a homophobe. When he started he was nvced that Matthew died at the hands of homophob, but he soon disvered that Matthew’s tragedy began long before the night he was killed.
“This do not make the perfect poster boy for the gay-rights movement, ” says Jimenez. But this is not the Matthew Shepard who beme a celebrated figure for the gay-rights movement Ameri. But the town also has a number of mobile home parks at the edg, some more ndown than the eveng of 6 October 1998, Matthew went to the Firi bar, a lol hangout that was purportedly gay-iendly.