My ordinary Wednesday ended with the best feeling of victory, for me, my friends, my family and the country. News that President Obama signed the first major piece of gay rights legislation broke. October 28, 2009, almost a year after the Prop 8 debacle, the Matthew Shepard Act officially became law with the signature of our President and I could not be more elated. Tears of sorrow I shed following Election Day 2008 and the passage Prop 8 are now tears of joy for a real sense of victory and a sense of justice. I kept faith in my vote for President Obama and I truly believe this is just the beginning. Some patience. Some protesting in the streets. Some blind faith in America. Finally, a touch of equal protection under the law has come to fruition.
The story of Matthew Shepard and the vicious crimes committed against him always resonated with me. A high school student at the time of his death, I remember the fear it instilled in me. I remember coming to terms with the fact that this could happen to me any day and I remember the paranoia I lived with for so many years. Growing stronger than that fear and that paranoia was quite a journey, and in reality, I am still on this journey. Today, I remember Matthew Shepard and his story. Today, I celebrate that he did not die in vain and I thank him for helping me be a stronger member of the gay community.
A lot of people questioned President Obama’s Nobel Peace prize, but my friend pointed out that today’s act is the reason why he received the award. Providing civil rights to the citizens of his own country works towards equality and justice. If an injustice is a threat to justice everywhere, then today, President Obama has reduced the threat to justice and in turn, brought our quest for peace one step closer. We know and he knows that there is far more work to be done at the federal and state level, but for now we celebrate the passage of the Matthew Shepard Act, the LGBT inclusive hate crimes law. Harvey Milk said that “You gotta give them hope” and with the enactment of this legislation, President Obama has given me an even stronger sense of hope.
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January 26th, 2010 at 3:09 am
Simply excellent news. We can also support the Shepard foundation by buying the Matthew Shepard pendant because 100% of the nets go to them. And it is simple and nice.