Remember Matthew Shepard

Rising above all in the name of love

--Scarecrow, Melissa Etheridge

Remember Matthew Shepard.

The injustice done to Matthew Shepard should never be forgotten, in my opinion.

I was greatly saddened and angered when I first researched who "Matthew Shepard" was on the Internet.  Some of the images I encountered were so negative and infuriating -- picket signs that included such words, "God Hates Fags" and "Matt in Hell."

Why?

WHY?!

Wasn't it bad enough he was beaten to death out of hate?  Why are there people further beating Matthew Shepard with hate, even after his death? 

Nonetheless, there was a friend of Matthew Shepard, Romaine Patterson,  who fought this hate without a lick of violence.

Angel Action -- a peaceful counter-protest against haters's protest.

THAT, Ladies and Gentlemen, is completely and utterly AWESOME.

I am not an activist.  I am more of a no-substance chatter box than a doer with objectives.

I am not a great writer.  I do not spew out heartfelt poems or meaningful essays. 

I am less than a half-decent musician. I cannot write soul-wrenching lyrics or sing with moving emotions.

I am not even a competent artist.  But, I wanted to put out a positive image. 

Yuuuuuuupe, this is me trying to fight hate. 

For those of you who do not know who Matthew Shepard was, I leave you with a balladeer's Poster Child music video:

On a lighter note, Happy belated National Coming Out Day.