Never Stop Fighting
There is a list out there that unfortunately keeps accumulating names. Most recently added to that list were Lawrence King and Simmie Williams, Jr.
King, the 15-year-old we've previously mentioned here, was brutally murdered in Oxnard, Calif. on Feb. 12 by fellow classmate Brandon McInerney. Williams, 17, was attacked and killed on Feb. 22 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. by two young men while he was dressed in women's clothing. Both murders are being investigated as possible hate crimes. Both individuals, who I consider children, were openly gay and now have joined the long list of LGBT people who were murdered in the U.S. because of their sexuality or gender identity.
We all remember Matthew Shepard, killed ten years ago this October, who has served as the face of hate crimes against LGBT people for the past decade. We all remember Brandon Teena, a female-to-male transgendered murder victim who was the inspiration for the film "Boys Don't Cry."
We all remember Sean Kennedy, the 20-year-old Greenville native who was murdered a year ago tomorrow after leaving a bar in the upstate. But there are many more that we don't hear about - that don't make the national news. These are the ones that are not noticed by the country and often forgotten after the short-lived local media attention their deaths might receive dies down. There are many more lives that have been lost to hatred and cruelty. On her Feb. 29 talk show, Ellen Degeneres made an emotional tribute to King, whose brutal murder took quite a while to make it onto the national news. "A little boy has been killed, and a number of lives have been ruined," Degeneres said. "When the message out there is so horrible, that to be gay, you can get killed for it, we need to change the message...We must change our country."
Scott Hall thought it was time for that change as well. Hall, who lives in Cocoa Beach, Fla. wanted to honor these LGBT victims in a way that their memorial would help bring a stop to hate crimes in the nation. Hall has been an activist in the gay community for many years. He has volunteered at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force's Winter Party, the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival and many other events. Hall was a victim of a hate crime 20 years ago. His goal - to create a traveling multi-dimensional memorial called Gay American Heroes that will be displayed at college campuses, Gay Pride events and in cities where there have been hate crimes committed.
"It takes courage to live an openly gay lifestyle," Hall told Express Gay News Online. "I applaud the people who can do that." On Sept. 9, Hall along with the Gay American Hereos Foundation (GAHF) board released the scaled model of the Gay American Heroes Memorial and has since displayed it at Gay Pride events and fundraisers in New York, Florida, Washington, D.C. and California. The memorial is designed to be made up of 8-foot by 12-foot multi-colored sections that display on one side the word "heroes" and features photos and names of hate-crime victims on the other side. Joining Hall in the effort to make the Gay American Heroes Memorial a reality are Chip Arndt, winner of "Amazing Race 4," legendary gay rights activist Dr. Franklin Kameny, Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., Sean Kennedy's mother Elke Kennedy and many others.
I've grown up with fear. My family has spent years with fear. Its something, unfortunately every LGBT person has likely experienced at least once in their lives. We are all aware of the hate that still exists out there. We cannot coward behind it though, and we must not forget those who stood up for themselves in the face of it. The GAHF website states that "all people who live honestly about their sexual orientation or gender identity are heroic, as it takes great strength and courage to face the daily struggles for personal freedom in the face of enormous opposition; to ultimately give their life for said freedom makes them heroes." Lawrence King, Simmie Williams, Jr., Sean Kennedy, Ryan Skipper, Michael Sandy, Philip Walsted, Gwen Araujo, Satender Singh, etc. etc. - the list contains too many names to mention here. The list needs to stop building. The fear and hate needs to stop. No matter what your views on LGBT equality are, there is no reason for any life to end because of hatred.
As stated in the promotional video for GAHF (which quotes E.E. Cummings), "To be nobody but yourself in a world that's doing its best to make you somebody else, is to fight the hardest battle you are ever going to fight. Never stop fighting."
For more information about GAHF, visit www.gayamericanheroes.com. You can also make a donation to Adopt-A-Hero for $25. In doing so, you will receive a photo of your hero and the family, friends and partners of your hero will receive a card, along with your personal message, letting them know about the adoption.
OUT & ABOUT
Friday, May 16 - A candle light vigil will be held from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. on May 16 at Main Street Plaza in Greenville to remember the life and death of Sean Kennedy and raise awareness about the need for LGBT-inclusive hate crime legislation. For more information, visit www.seanslastwish.com.
Friday, May 16 - South Carolina Gay and Lesbian Business Guild will host its annual awards gala at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Columbia. Featured entertainer will be Anthony Kalloniatis, familiarly known as Ant. The openly gay stand-up comedian and actor is the host of VH1's reality series "Celebrity Fit Club." There will be a networking reception from 6 - 7 p.m. followed by dinner. Tickets for SCGLBG Members are $60 and $70 for non-members. For more information, go to www.scglbg.org.
Until next week, have fun and be safe.
-Chris Rudisill, Weekly Surge