Date: Fri, 9 Oct 1998 14:42:18 -0700 From: Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Subject: GLAAD AND NATIONAL COALITION OF ANTI-VIOLENCE PROGRAMS EXPRESS SORROW AND HORROR AT ATTACK ON GAY MAN IN WYOMING MEDIA RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Jennifer Einhorn, Director of Communications phone: (212) 807-1700 x14 e-mail: einhorn@glaad.org pager: (888) 656-9045 Jeffrey Montgomery, NCAVP Steering Committee phone: (313) 537-3323 e-mail: trijeffm@aol.com GLAAD AND NATIONAL COALITION OF ANTI-VIOLENCE PROGRAMS EXPRESS SORROW AND HORROR AT ATTACK ON GAY MAN IN WYOMING _______________________________________________________________ "Hateful rhetoric fosters a fearful and intolerant environment--all the ingredients necessary for putting people in harms way. What Matt Shepard is going through is unthinkable. That there are people who hate him for being open and honest about his life is unconscionable." -Joan M. Garry, GLAAD Executive Director _______________________________________________________________ NEW YORK, NY, THURSDAY, 9 OCTOBER, 1998 -- The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP) today expressed their sorrow at the attempted murder of 22-year-old University of Wyoming student Matt Shepard, who was found on Wednesday night in Laramie near death and tied to a fence, after having been beaten, burned and slashed. Mr. Shepard, a junior studying political science at the university, had been attacked twice previously in recent weeks, once having his jaw broken. The report of the Wyoming attack comes one day after the Center for Reclaiming America and Coral Ridge Ministries held a joint press conference with the Family Research Council to announce a new series of anti-gay television advertisements, in the same vein as their previous campaign, which was placed in major newspapers this summer. The National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs condemned the attack as well. "We at NCAVP are all too familiar with the increasing violence facing the lesbian, gay bisexual and transgender community, and the increasingly vicious nature of these crimes," said NCAVP Steering Committee member Jeffrey Montgomery. "What happened to Matt Shepard may shock and horrify you, but something like it happens on a day to day basis in this country. What's worse, Wyoming has no hate crimes bill to protect victims and prosecute those who target them, because radical religious groups insisted it would extend 'special rights' to lesbians and gay men, who have become less than equal in their eyes. Is it a 'special right' to not be beaten into a coma because of who you are? Ask the victims of the thousands of anti-gay hate crimes...they're the ones who know." GLAAD Executive Director, Joan M. Garry continued, "We invite those who are so obsessed with the lives of lesbians and gay men to examine the tone and tenor of their remarks well before they issue them. Think of who will hear their words. Think of who will see these indelible images. If you think homophobic advertisements like those which ran in our newspapers this summer are devoid of repercussions--think again. These ads give people permission to hate. They are inciteful vehicles. They have a real impact on real people's lives." GLAAD is the nation's lesbian and gay media advocacy organization. GLAAD promotes fair, accurate and inclusive representation of individuals and events in all media as a means of combating homophobia and all forms of discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity. The National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP) addresses the pervasive problem of violence committed against and within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and HIV-positive (LGBTH) communities. NCAVP is a coalition of programs that document and advocate for victims of anti-LGBTH violence/harassment, domestic violence, sexual assault, police misconduct, and other forms of victimization. NCAVP is dedicated to creating a national response to the violence plaguing these communities. Furthermore, NCAVP supports existing anti-violence organizations and emerging local programs in the efforts to document and prevent such violence. -30- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) glaad@glaad.org TO REPORT DEFAMATION IN THE MEDIA - Call GLAAD's Alertline at 1.800.GAY.MEDIA or go to the GLAAD Web Site at www.glaad.org and report through our Alertline Online. TO JOIN GLAAD AND RECEIVE GLAAD's DISPATCH AND QUARTERLY IMAGES MAGAZINE, call 1.800.GAY.MEDIA or join on the Web today at www.glaad.org/glaad/join/join-about.html TO SUBSCRIBE TO GLAAD-Net, GLAAD's electronic mailing list, send e-mail to majordomo@vector.casti.com with the message "Subscribe GLAAD-Net" TO UNSUBSCRIBE, send e-mail to majordomo@vector.casti.com with the message "Unsubscribe GLAAD-Net" GLAAD is a national organization that promotes fair, accurate and inclusive representation as a means of challenging discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "GLAAD" and "Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation" are registered trademarks of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, Inc.