"For a minute I need to talk to you about something that's really serious and really sad ... An openly gay 15-year-old boy, named Larry, who was an eighth grader in Oxnard, California, was murdered by a fellow eighth grader named Brandon ... Days before he was murdered Larry asked his killer to be his Valentine ...
A boy has been killed and a number of lives have been ruined. And somewhere along the line, the killer, Brandon, got the message that it's so threatening and so awful and so horrific that Larry would want to be his Valentine -- that killing Larry seemed to be the right thing to do.
And when the message out there is so horrible; -- that to be gay, you can get killed for it, -- we need to change the message. Larry was not a second-class citizen. I am not a second-class citizen. It is OK if you're gay ... I know there are entire groups of people who face discrimination every single day and we're a long way from treating each other equally. All of it is unacceptable. All of it.
But I would like you to start paying attention to how often being gay is a punchline of a monologue or how often gay jokes are in a movie. And that kind of message, -- laughing at someone cause they're gay is just the beginning. It starts with laughing at someone, then it's verbal abuse, then it's physical abuse and then it's this kid, Brandon, killing a kid like Larry.
We must change our country, and we can do it. We can do it with our behavior. We can do with our messages that we send our children. We can do it with our vote ... There is a lot of talk about change. I think one thing we should change is hate. Check on who you're voting for, and does that person really truly believe that we are all equal under the law? And if you are not sure, --change your vote, -- we deserve better. My heart goes out to everybody involved in this horrible, horrible incident, ... all the families, ... even you know, Brandon's life is changed because he did this. "
A boy has been killed and a number of lives have been ruined. And somewhere along the line, the killer, Brandon, got the message that it's so threatening and so awful and so horrific that Larry would want to be his Valentine -- that killing Larry seemed to be the right thing to do.
And when the message out there is so horrible; -- that to be gay, you can get killed for it, -- we need to change the message. Larry was not a second-class citizen. I am not a second-class citizen. It is OK if you're gay ... I know there are entire groups of people who face discrimination every single day and we're a long way from treating each other equally. All of it is unacceptable. All of it.
But I would like you to start paying attention to how often being gay is a punchline of a monologue or how often gay jokes are in a movie. And that kind of message, -- laughing at someone cause they're gay is just the beginning. It starts with laughing at someone, then it's verbal abuse, then it's physical abuse and then it's this kid, Brandon, killing a kid like Larry.
We must change our country, and we can do it. We can do it with our behavior. We can do with our messages that we send our children. We can do it with our vote ... There is a lot of talk about change. I think one thing we should change is hate. Check on who you're voting for, and does that person really truly believe that we are all equal under the law? And if you are not sure, --change your vote, -- we deserve better. My heart goes out to everybody involved in this horrible, horrible incident, ... all the families, ... even you know, Brandon's life is changed because he did this. "
On Jan. 21, 2008, gender non-conforming teenager Adolphus Simmons, just 18 years old, was shot at the Bradford Apartments complex in South Carolina by a 15-year-old boy.
On Feb. 12, 2008, openly gay teenager Lawrence King, only 15 years old, was shot to death in a California classroom by a 14-year-old boy.
On Feb. 22, 2008, transgender teen Simmie Williams Jr., at only just age 17, was shot dead on a Boulevard in Florida after witnesses allegedly heard an argument that included anti-gay slurs.
Denise King, the mom of Simmie Williams, 17, visits his gravesite
at Sunset Memorial Gardens in Fort Lauderdale.
Williams was an openly gay teen who was shot
in what police are investigating as a possible hate crime.
His brother, Tavaris, 14, went with his mom to the cemetery.
(Sun-Sentinel / Mike Stocker)
On Feb. 12, 2008, openly gay teenager Lawrence King, only 15 years old, was shot to death in a California classroom by a 14-year-old boy.
On Feb. 22, 2008, transgender teen Simmie Williams Jr., at only just age 17, was shot dead on a Boulevard in Florida after witnesses allegedly heard an argument that included anti-gay slurs.
Denise King, the mom of Simmie Williams, 17, visits his gravesite
at Sunset Memorial Gardens in Fort Lauderdale.
Williams was an openly gay teen who was shot
in what police are investigating as a possible hate crime.
His brother, Tavaris, 14, went with his mom to the cemetery.
(Sun-Sentinel / Mike Stocker)
