Pride & Opinions

I’m not the type to live in fear - never have been.  In fact, I have only one true fear in life at all.  My fear is that when I die I will be forgotten as though my life did not matter in the first place.  In other words, I’m scared of not making a true impact, a difference, in the world around me.

When I first learned of the Gay American Heroes Project it was one of those "why didn’t someone think of this sooner?" moments.  There have been so many gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people killed in hate crimes and all too often those news stories are buried on some back page below the fold.  the Gay American Heroes Project founder Scott Hall couldn’t accept that and decided to do something about it. 

By building a national memorial to GLBT hate crime victims, Hall hopes to see to it that no member of the GLBT who is killed because of their sexual identity is ever forgotten, and it seems as though his idea his catching on.

• Chad Allen (actor)
• Alan Cumming (actor, director)
• Barney Frank (U.S. Representative)
• Ana Gasteyer (Saturday Night Live)
• Robert Gant (Queer as Folk)
• Iman (supermodel)
• Cyndi Lauper (singer, activist)
• Christopher Rice (author, A Density of Souls)
• Sgt Eric Alva (gay U.S. Marine)

A Final Note from Michael:  It is hard to believe that a memorial of this nature has never been done before, but with the diligent efforts of men and women like Scott Hall, perhaps we will bring new light to the senseless murders of our gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender family.  It is only through education that we can affect change, and only by raising our voices in unison as a community that we can ever hope to stand up and be counted.

I encourage each and every person reading this - regardless of your sexual identity - to visit the Gay American Heroes Project web site and learn more.  If you are able, I hope you will support the organization in any way possible. 

In Germany, they came first for the Communists,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist;
And then they came for the trade unionists,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist;
And then they came for the Jews,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew;
And then . . . they came for me . . .
And by that time there was no one left to speak up.
Martin Niemöller (1892–1984)

If we do not speak up for ourselves, who will?

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Tags: gay american heroes project gay lesbian bisexual trans transgender hate crime matthew sheppard scott hall glbt hate crime memorial