In Matt's memory: a new book from the Matthew Shepard Foundation aims to show youth the real faces of gay men and lesbians. (Books).One of the biggest deterrents to coming out of the closet for gay and lesbian youth has to be the paucity of out role models. If young men and women don't identify with any of the characters from Will & Grace--as worthy as they sometimes are as role models--what do they have to look forward to once they finally decide to cross that threshold? Recognizing this, the Matthew Shepard Foundation The Matthew Shepard Foundation was founded in December 1998 by Dennis and Judy Shepard in memory of their 21-year old son, Matthew, who was murdered in an anti-gay hate crime in Wyoming in October 1998[1]. , which was set up by Shepard's family after his brutal murder in 1998, has sponsored a coffee-table book cof·fee-ta·ble book n. An oversize book of elaborate design that may be used for display, as on a coffee table. coffee-table book Noun a large expensive illustrated book Noun 1. chock-full of images of happy gay men and lesbians of all different ages, sizes, and races. Most of the photographs are from the 2000 Millennium March on Washington Millennium March on Washington was a controversial LGBT event held April 28 through April 30, 2000 in Washington, DC.[1] A march from the Washington Monument to the front lawn of the Capitol took place on April 30, where the crowd was addressed by several members of for Equality. "We wanted the book to shatter shat·ter v. shat·tered, shat·ter·ing, shat·ters v.tr. 1. To cause to break or burst suddenly into pieces, as with a violent blow. 2. a. stereotypes and show young people just how many different kinds of gay people there are out there," says Judy Shepard of the book, A Face in the Crowd A Face in the Crowd (1957) is an epic motion picture starring Andy Griffith, Patricia Neal, and Walter Matthau, directed by Elia Kazan. The screenplay was written by Budd Schulberg, based on his own short story "The Arkansas Traveler". : Expressions of Gay Life in America. "We wanted them to see that being gay won't keep them from growing up to be happy adults with great jobs and successful relationships." Following are some of the photos from the collection. |
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