Stunned Voices No Longer Silent
I do not know if fifteen year old Lawrence King played video games, nor do I know if Brandon McInerney, the boy who murdered him, did either. Of course, I would not be the least bit surprised if either or both of them did. However, I am not about to pull a Jack Thompson stunt here and try to blame video games for this, because this was a killing based on hate. (I suppose this tragedy is too small time for ol' Jack to speak out about, or maybe he is afflicted with the same hatred as Brandon.)
When I first heard the news about young Mr. King, I wanted to rush out and make sure you all knew about it, but until we could verify the real nature of the crime, we didn't want to make baseless assertions. However, now it is well accepted to have been a hate crime, and I am compelled to saying something about it. The vast majority of you can probably identify in some way with Lawrence and his 8th grade turmoil. It is a turbulent time even for those who don't carry the social burden of being gay. Many of us are pressured into silence, but Lawrence wasn't. He was allegedly even so bold as to ask the boy who would later be his killer to be his valentine.
I've been really upset that this pointless killing has received minimal attention in the media. However, I am not alone in breaking the silence. GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, has joined with Logo to produce a public service announcement featuring some recognizable faces who are also speaking out.
"We applaud Logo, MTV Networks and the caring celebrities who starred in this PSA for recognizing the need to speak out against anti-LGBT name-calling, bullying and harassment," said GLSEN Executive Director Kevin Jennings. "Logo and MTV Networks have been longtime supporters of ensuring safe schools for all students, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. Hopefully this PSA will help raise awareness as we prepare for the National Day of Silence on April 25 that this year will be held in memory of Lawrence King ...
Read the full press release after the jump.
GLSEN Partners with LOGO to Launch PSA in Wake of Lawrence King Tragedy
Mar 10, 2008
GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, is honored to partner with Logo on a new public service announcement campaign denouncing hate in the wake of junior high student Lawrence King's murder.
King, a 15-year-old from Oxnard, Calif., was shot and killed in school on Feb. 12 by a 14-year-old classmate because of King's sexual orientation and gender expression.
"We applaud Logo, MTV Networks and the caring celebrities who starred in this PSA for recognizing the need to speak out against anti-LGBT name-calling, bullying and harassment," said GLSEN Executive Director Kevin Jennings. "Logo and MTV Networks have been longtime supporters of ensuring safe schools for all students, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. Hopefully this PSA will help raise awareness as we prepare for the National Day of Silence on April 25 that this year will be held in memory of Lawrence King."
The 60-second PSA, which premiered this morning at LOGOonline.com, features community activist, writer and actress Calpernia Addams (Logo's Transamerican Love Story), Andre 3000 (OutKast), R&B artist Ashanti, singer/songwriter Sarah Bareilles, actress Portia de Rossi (Arrested Development, Nip/Tuck), international performer Estelle, singer/actress Janet Jackson, actor T.R. Knight (Grey's Anatomy), R&B artist Little Sister, actor Darryl Stephens (Logo's Noah's Arc) and singer/songwriter Taylor Swift.
"One more murder, one more life lost, one more attempt to provoke fear and one more reason hate crimes must end. We hope this PSA will help inspire more people to join the fight against hate crimes," said Brian Graden, President, MTV Networks Music Group Entertainment; and President, Logo.
About GLSEN
GLSEN, or the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, is the leading national education organization focused on ensuring safe schools for all students. Established nationally in 1995, GLSEN envisions a world in which every child learns to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. For more information on our educator resources, research, public policy agenda, student organizing programs or development initiatives, visit www.glsen.org.
GLSEN Partners with LOGO to Launch PSA in Wake of Lawrence King Tragedy [GLSEN]
Mikey
Posted to Hot Stuff, Miscellany on 14 March 2008
· Comments (9)
So what going to to happen the 14 year old?
It a total shame that this even happen.
Ellen had a very touching moment on her show about this story as well.
It's a shame there is no other word for it, tragedy, but also emblematic of this country.
It is far too acceptable in the US to hear the word faggot, fairy, queer, dyke, whatever terms you want to throw out there in all areas of society. You can hear it in the playgrounds, on X-box live, in the barrens chat, in corporate offices. I try to always stand up when these words are uttered but it gets so tiring and eventually one stops trying (especially in the video game environment) but for Lawrence, and even his killer Brandon who I know was probably just brainwashed into his mindset, I think I'll start trying again because this should not be tolerated anywhere.
Brandon, the killer, will be tried as an adult. 14 years is the very minimum age for his state.
It's truly sad. I was hurt emotionally for days after hearing about it. It somehow snapped me back to my middle school days when I was picked on, and I didn't even have half the courage Lawrence did.
I hope both boys find peace and their families find compassion.
The killing of Lawrence King is one of the most awful hate crimes I've ever read about. Imagine how many times throughout history this has happened.
Heartbreaking, that I had to click on a link on a gay site to know about this.
Everyone knows about Columbine; they should know Lawrence King's name as well. His name should inspire new charities, new causes and new laws.
Truly sad, but I must say I don't have any compassion for his killer like the rest of you seem to do. I hope he gets raped plenty in jail and if I believed in an afterlife that he suffered there for eternity afterwards.
Indoctrination is as ridiculous an excuse as videogames for this kind of thing. Especially since a lot of people don't fall for that kind of indoctrination.
=\ This has been on my mind since I read it. The media really should be presenting this story, because similar scenarios happen everywhere, regardless of age, and it's kind of a disgusting thing about humanity =( RIP. And I don't have any compassion for his killer either, but it makes me think that maybe if people spent more time acknowledging people as humans instead of being offensive towards them for any sort of differences, this entire scenario wouldn't have happened. -sigh- All we can do is fight and hope for a better tomorrow.
Truly sad, but I have one question: Is this PSA going to reach anybody other than the gay community? I didn't catch anywhere that said it would be shown outside of Logo, and I think that's a heavy case of preaching to the choir, don't you? Unless I'm wrong about what's being done here, this public service announcement won't extend to the mass media, and isn't that the problem we're having already with nobody having heard of this story? As nice as it is, I'm not sure this PSA will get us anywhere.
I'm not even sure what to say. I keep trying to write something but then erase it.
This kind of thing doesn't make sense to me, and it never will. I don't see violence or murder as a solution to anything, and genuinely can't comprehend how that thought process works. We all have our dark side, and our violent side but express them in different ways than actually harming life, hopefully anyway.
I of course know what hate feels like, but it is crazy that some people feel that feeling that means they should go out and kill someone.
The murdered kid had a lot of courage and knew himself a heck of a lot better than I knew myself at that age. Being gay for me came as a slow gradual realization. I didn't really struggle to much with it, but my brain took small slow steps showing me what I was ready to see, and kept me in my comfort level until I was ready to see it completely.
For him to know so clearly who he was at that age and be comfortable and open with it is amazing. An emotional prodigy if you will.
The world won't be the same without him.
This boy had more courage than i ever had at his age. Why did this have to happen to him? I hope that wherever he is, he's happier.