Matthew Shepard, Gay Student, Beaten, Robbed, Left to Die
Matthew Shepard, a gay student at the University of Wyoming, was beaten, robbed, and left tied to a fence outside Laramie, Wyoming, just after midnight on this day. He died five days later.
The attack and his death sparked national outrage over violent homophobia. His death led to passage of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, a federal law providing criminal penalties for bias crimes directed at lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered people. President Barack Obama signed the law on October 28, 2009,
Visit the Matthew Shepard Foundation: http://www.matthewshepard.org/
Read: Beth Loffreda, Losing Matt Shepard: Life and Politics in the Aftermath of Anti-Gay Murder (2000)
Learn about the Hate Crimes Prevention Act: http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/crm/matthewshepard.php