matthew

Today marks the 10th anniversary of that horrible day when two thugs beat an innocent kid to a pulp and left him tied to a fence to die. Matthew was beaten so badly that he was unrecognizeable and died five days later in the hospital.

Today on the The Early Show, Judy Shepard, Matthew's mom said, "This whole week is just (one of) remembrances. It's a great sadness and sense of confusion, of loss. We've actually tried to address issues that haven't changed. It's been ten years. Why haven't things progressed further than they have?"

But, Judy says, there's been progress since Matt's death: "There's definitely been positive changes, and for a lot of reasons. Theatrical productions, literature, television, novels, movies, all portray the gay community in a very positive, forward-thinking way, and that has really helped. People understand the gay community.

"The level of ignorance is just -- it's amazing that people just don't know more about the civil rights that are being denied the gay community, and we're moving forward and working at the grassroots level now trying to really educate people and make them aware of the gay community."

Judy observed that Wyoming "is, I think, one of four states left with no hate crime legislation at all. Wyoming had the perfect opportunity to actually set the tone, set the example, just to be what every state should have been had that happened in their state, and they didn't take advantage of it."

Matthew's death has served as a defining moment in the gay rights movement, and while things have changed drastically in the last ten years, not enough legislation has been pushed forward to protect the queers. Below is a state by state map of hate crimes laws in the US provided by HRC.

Please take a moment and say a prayer for Matthew's parents today, or if you don't pray just take a moment to reflect on all that we have gained from Matthew's death and all that we have lost. RIP Matthew, you are missed.

http://www.matthewshepard.org

http://www.hrc.org