#matthew shepard

[thosemotivationalquotes]

I saw something in the news today that truly took my breath away. If you have been paying attention to U.S. politics over the past few days, you’ve most likely seen this woman:

This is Bishop Mariann Budde, and on Monday (Trump’s inauguration) she led an interfaith prayer for Trump and the incoming administration. During the service she asked him to have mercy for LGBTQ+ Americans and undocumented immigrants. This was badly received by the Trump administration (as expected).

After seeing headlines about this woman, I read something that I wanted to share. In 1998 a man named Matthew Shepard was murdered for being gay. I’m not going to get into the details of his death on this post, but please be warned it is extremely triggering if you do choose to read more on your own. Matthew Shepard’s death caused a lot of change in the U.S. regarding how LGBTQ hate crimes are handled, and laws that were passed to protect LGBTQ+ people.

Now you’re probably wondering what Matthew Shepard has to do with an Episcopal bishop. For years after Matthew Shepard’s murder, his family had held onto his remains, too scared to lay him to rest in fear of his final resting place being vandalized. In 2018, Budde had his remains interred at the National Cathedral, which is also the place where the interfaith prayer for Trump and his administration took place. The impact of this really had an effect on me. Budde could have led a non confrontational prayer service, and chosen not to mention the harm that will come to the people Trump and his administration are going after. Instead she chose to call out hate and fear in front of some of the most powerful people on the planet, and at a place that has such a large historic meaning to the LGBTQ community.

In the next few years there will be many challenges in protecting free speech, standing up against hate, and protecting those in our communities. But I would like to believe that for every Donald Trump and Elon Musk, there are people like Marianne Budde. There are those of us who can’t speak up for themselves, so it’s important for those of us who can to amplify our voices, even if it’s not the ‘popular’ thing to do.

“And he said you should apologize. Will you apologize?

I am not going to apologize for asking for mercy for others.” - Mariann Budde’s response in a Time interview

Link to articles: x x x

Link to the Matthew Shepard Foundation if you would like to donate

[bossvamp]

the trump administration is already slowly taking away our rights, no longer legally recognizing us and only seeing two genders in america — male and female — and passports no longer taking new gender maker changes or x gender markers. this is just the start of it most likely

they've erased mentions of LGBTQ on government websites and removed pages related to honoring nex benedict and matthew shepard, like they never existed. we know they existed though and we need to keep both nex benedict and matthew shepard's names alive and remember what horrible violence and hate crime took them away from us.

this is not to scare anyone. this is to inform the masses on what our government is doing. censorship is actively happening around us. do you know the world is protesting for us? no? the united states have already started their censorship, their propaganda for this administration. do not let them censor us and hide us from the truth. speak up, learn, adapt, and inform others.

[saywhat-politics]

This is the Reverend who asked Trump to show compassion.

[rvllybllply2014]

[soundop-central]

The first pride was a riot.

This is what online activists love to say, especially when anything especially horrible happens in our community.

What was originally intended to be a rallying cry of the queers has become a meaningess token slogan.

Jonathan Joss, beloved actor, Indigenous elder, a cherished queer elder was brutally murdered on the first day of Pride Month. The murder is being widely misreported and gone under the radar of many.

While there are tributes for him, especially from the King of the Hill fanbase, there is no outrage.

Are our queer indigenous elders not the very people That online activists say we must protect? Are they not on the fringes of our society, and do their lives not demand our outrage when they are taken?

If Pride is a riot, where are our bricks? Where are our cans? Where is our outrage?

Does Jonathan's story not reflect the brutal reality in which we live?

His home was burned down. His dogs were killed. He died saving the life of his husband.

Does his bravery mean nothing to you? Does his sacrifice not reflect generations of heroism from queer and indigenous peoples. Does his death only mean mourning to you?

If Pride is a riot, why do we take this sitting down. Why do we hold only funerals and not direct action since when has the queer community become so complacent?

Have we torgotten what "rioting" means? Have we grown so used to terror that we allow it to make us complacent? Have we become so stricken with fear that we allow ourselves to stare such injustice in the face and take it lying down?

We praise our black, trans, indigenous and GNC ancestors for their unrelenting bravery, but we use it as a sheild. We allow these stories to comfort us and to make us "Think" we are doing something by remembering them.

But we are not remembering them. Their actions towards liberation are meaningless without continued struggle.

We currently live in a world where queer people are under attack We live in a nation that is dismantling queer rights brick by brick. What are we doing to fight this?

Screaming "Pride is a Riot!" while begging elected officials to do something? Who do you thine Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera were rioting against?

If you think there is something that can be saved in this current system, you are WRONG. They want us DEAD. They are killing us, our queer children, our queer elders, with every piece of legislation that is passed.

When will enough be enough? When will you be tired of taking this injustice and moving on?

Our complicity will be our definition if we do not take up the mantle of liberation our elders passed down to us.

Begging for justice is not enough. We must create our own justice. We must rebuild our world where our justice is revolutionary.

The lack of response is revolting. It is a stain on ourselves. This stain can only be cleansed by truly remembering our history and putting its lessons into action.

There is no justice in a corrupt system. There will be no peace until this system burns. Pride will be the first riot that leads to revolution; but that cannot happen unless we throw the first brick.

Rest in Power Jonathan Joss, Sylvia Rivera, Marsha P. Johnson, Sam Nordquist, Matthew Shepard, and all other queer lives that were taken. Your deaths must be remembered through revolutionary action and nothing less.

[puddlellama]

Do not forget Brianna Ghey.

Do not forget Nex Benedict.

Do not forget Aaron Bushnell.

Do not forget Luigi Mangione.

Do not forget Matthew Shepard.

Do not forget Brianna Boston.

[victusinveritas]

For 20 years Matthew Shepard had no permanent resting place due to concerns his grave would be vandalized, and when Reverend Budde learned of this, she invited the Shepards to inter him inside the Washington National Cathedral. She co-officiated the service which stated Matthew was now and forever home in the church where he was loved.

Here's a piece from 2018 on the interment.

[andrewisdoing]

Things That Definitely Made Me GAY (Part 2):

MUSIC ICONS: Part of my Coming Out would be incomplete without the music that found me during that time. I’d wager my survival had every bit to do with the singers, songwriters and entertainers I was playing at the time. I especially credit Madonna, Janet Jackson, Barbara Streisand and Rufus Wainwright. They were the unexpected heroes in my ears everyday reminding me it was okay to embrace the dramatic, funny, complex, sexual situations of life in song.

FILMS: I am a firm believer that people are always searching for bits of themselves in the movies. So, being the teen I was, I wanted to find parts of my being in the movies to be affirmed that I wasn’t alone. Whether it was a documentary or rom-com, I wanted to escape into a potential future or an idea of what it looked like to be a gay man in 2009. Documentaries were a gift from heaven because I got to see where we had been and where we were going. I still feel that way as a 30 year old. I feel like I still am eager to see stories of us and find parts of myself on celluloid.

VOGUEING/PARIS IS BURNING: This movie quite simply changed and saved my life in a LOT of ways. When Madonna’s Vogue (BEST SONG FOREVER ON REPEAT) came into my life, my godmother introduced to me to the Houses of New York City, the Ballrooms and the origins of Vogueing. I had never felt so seen as a black gay person in a film prior to seeing PIB. It was the antidote to existing in a suburb in Washington. To know I wasn’t alone in the world and that there was a place beyond Washington where people like me exist, was (and still is) the greatest gift anyone, especially from kin, could’ve given me.

QUEER AS FOLK: THIS SHOW TOOK ME THERE. I remember hiding the box sets at many friends’ houses when I first had come out. While the show can be a bit dated, the stories and original characters really shaped what being a part of the LGBTQ+ community could potentially be as I grew into adulthood.

HISTORY: When I first came out, I made it my personal mission to read up on all things gay history to understand who came before me and whose footsteps I was walking behind. I found so much solace in the bravery we displayed as a community. I know that I am free to be me because of the folks who came before me. I hope that as time goes on, we discover more unsung gay heroes.

HEROES: I went out to of my way to find people who were like me and people who had the same interests as me. Finding people who made me feel understood and created the work to express all the facets of not only the human experience but the gay experience. Whether it be through dance, poetry, filmmaking or photography, I credit these artists for saving my life through their work.

FATSO: Some kids first cartoon crushes were Aladdin, Hercules, HELL, I could even bet that some had crushes on The Beast, BEFORE HE BECAME HUMAN! Me? Mine was (and still is) Fatso. Some have read him as a queer coded character and for my sake, I really hope that it’s true.

PORN & The Pornstars That Make Em’ : As weird as it may seem, discovering Porn really helped me feel liberated and free to understand my sexuality and what I really liked. Also..boy, oh boy, the men and the videos that still to this day..get me off is a list that’s too long to count. From Zeb Atlas to Tom Katt, these men served the fantasies that were so hot and beefy, I still can’t believe my eyes. Being gay certainly has its perks.

NOAH’S ARC: In the same vein as QAF, Noah’s Arc made me feel not only seen as a gay man but as a black man. I love that the show gave the community so many versions of our existence. Making us more than a side character or the uplifting and sassy character, at that. We were portrayed as human and proof that we exist.

[modern-politics111]

DID YOU KNOW for 25 years Matthew Shepard had no permanent resting place due to concerns his grave would be vandalized Reverend Budde learned of this, she invited the Shepards to inter him inside the Washington National Cathedral.

She was and is a real hero.

[scopophilic1997]

scopOphilic_micromessaging_996 - scopOphilic1997 presents a new micro-messaging series: small, subtle, and often unintentional messages we send and receive verbally and non-verbally.

[dozydawn]

“Lieutenant Dennis Adler and Prosecutor Cal Rerucha stretch out the chain used in the murder of Matthew Shepard while defendant Russell Arthur Henderson, seated, watches in the Albany County District Court in Laramie, Wyoming. Henderson, along with Aaron James McKinney, lured Shepard to a field on October 6, 1998, savagely beat him, tied him to a fence, and left him for dead. He died of his wounds six days later.”

Pat Lopez.

[darthbreezy]

Today I learned...

[our-queer-experience]

i cried for hours when i found about nex. they were a child. sometimes i think about matthew shepard and it makes me feel like i'm going to lose my mind. why is the world like this

i didnt cry until i watched an interview with the cops and nex, and the officer said smth along the lines of “hopefully i’ll see you around when this is over and you can wave and say ‘hi, officer ———!’ and you’ll be back in school and all that”. my heart shattered.

[gregdotorg]

Laramie, Wyoming would like to forget Matthew Shepard and his murder there, thank you very much.

[100gayicons]

Actor Nathan Lane has a long list of credits on Broadway, Movies, and Television - including A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (stage), The Producers (stage & film), The Addams Family (stage), Lion King (animated film), Birdcage (film), Penny Dreadful (TV), and Only Murders in the Building (TV).

When he was 21, Lane came out as Gay to his mother. Joking, he said she replied "I'd rather you were dead." But he added, "Once I got her head out of the oven, everything went fine."

Lane was motivated to come out to the public in 1999 after the murder of Matthew Shepard, a young gay man in Wyoming who was attacked by a homophobic gang. Since then Lane has worked tirelessly - campaigning for LGBT rights and fundraising for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Human Rights Campaign Equality, and Matthew Shepard Foundation.

November 2015, Lane married Devlin Elliott his partner of 18 years.

[goodfriendo]

Link to the 2018 NPR article.