When I was 15 years old, a gay man named Matthew Shepard was brutally tortured and murdered. That was 25 years ago, today, October 6, 1998.
This was not called a hate crime at the time, and it was another 10 years before gender, sexual orientation, and disability were included in federal hate crime legislation.
I'd like to say that the world has changed. In some ways, it has. (Hi! I'm gay! — and I'm an engineering manager at a major global corporation, which I couldn't have imagine would be possible in my lifetime.)
But in many ways, the world hasn't changed. The same intensity and depth of stigma is still there in many parts of the world. We've created little channels of tolerance here and there, but bias and the stigma that powers is are still swirling around us, like an airborne virus barely held back by positive pressure.
Keep it up, and don't let your guard down. I can't.
#MatthewShepard
@saraislet @kaoudis I know that things are terrifying right now but also this past summer I stopped off for a coffee in Laramie and there were pride flags hanging everywhere downtown
@regehr @saraislet @kaoudis it feels hard being LGBTQ+ at the moment, but when I marched at Pride in Manchester there was only one hate group and they were fewer than 20. They were a minority, and they were drowned out by the rest of the parade.
@cherryxgrenade @regehr @saraislet @kaoudis
I was at Torbay Pride a while back, with my local American football team, great event, lots of famies and everyone was super friendly and welcoming. We were there to support the event, promote the team and be part of it. We are now looking forward to the 2024 event.
