On October 7, 1998, two men abducted Matthew Shepard and drove him to a remote area in Laramie, Wyoming, where they bludgeoned him, tied him to a rail fence, and left him to die. Shepard was found 18 hours later and rushed to the hospital, where he lingered on the edge of death for nearly five days before succumbing to his injuries. A student at the University of Wyoming, Shepard was targeted because he was gay. His assailants confessed that they approached Shepard at a bar and pretended to be gay to gain his confidence before they kidnapped and attacked him.
Matthew died 25 years ago Thursday October 12th. But even as horrific as his death was, it took another 11 years for a federal hate crime bill to be passed. Now here we are, 14 years later and we have moved backwards in time. ” Don’t say gay” bills are taking over our nation, including here in Indiana, leaving our people with two options, return to the closet and hide who we are or fight.
Please understand I throw no shade at those who hide. Hate crimes are on the rise and violence is an everyday occurrence in the country. We live in a community that wants things to remain the same. Most don’t know anyone who isn’t like them and they don’t want to. Hell even the Superintendent of Greensburg Community Schools and the lead of the inclusion committee at Decatur County Memorial Hospital refuse to meet with us, even in the name of unity. And as for our community leadership, Mayor Marsh’s office has yet to return my email asking for a meeting. Let’s face it, the county is an uphill battle, but battle we will continue to do. We are a part of this community and we plan to be a public part of it. We will fight on, no matter how tough things get. We fight in the name of Matthew Shepard, Billy Lucas, and all those who have given their lives for this community, this movement.