In honor of Pride Month, we thought it would be special to cover the case of Matthew Sheppard. His death was a tragedy, but it made way for some very important change regarding the rights of LGBTQ+ people in our justice system. If you are part of the LGBTQ+ community, we see you and are so glad that you exist. This episode is dedicated to you and all of the wonderful allies continuing to make our world a better and more accepting place.
**PLEASE NOTE THIS EPISODE CONTAINS TRIGGERS IN REGARDS TO LGBTQ+ HATE CRIMES.**
By the time Matthew Shepard finished high school he had already traveled to Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, and Morocco. He loved traveling and could just make friends anywhere he went. But his real passions were politics and advocating for equality in the LGBTQ+ community. Matthew’s work would eventually be cut short after being assaulted in one of the most notorious anti-gay hate crimes in American history.
Sources for this episode:
Matt Shepard Is a Friend of Mine Documentary
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-45968606
https://www.matthewshepard.org/about-us/our-story/
https://www.matthewshepard.org/what-we-do/eliminating-hate-crimes/
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Matthew-Shepard
https://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/murder-matthew-shepard
