Stirland

When Matthew shepherd was beaten and murdered, the legislature hadn’t passed any law regarding hate crimes. The New York Times covered the fact that there was no current legislation for hate crimes in Wyoming. The New York Times highlights the fact that Wyoming had rejected three hate crime bills since 1994 even until February, eight months, before Matthew’s murder. In an article by James Brooke in the New York Times published October 13 1998, a day after Matthew died, Brooke frames the fact of there being no legislation in 19 states. The New York Times is fair and presents both sides of the debate which shows ethical journalism.
The movie frames and emphasizes the fact that there was no current legislation preventing and heightening the punishment of hate crimes. Throughout the movie cultivation is used to try and get you as the viewer to support gay rights legislation.
The movie mentions that the bill did not pass for 4 years this is true and can be fact-checked in the New York Times opinion article titled “The Matthew Shepherd Act”. It wasn’t until august 2009 that the hate crime bill was actually signed by president Obama.
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Over the ten years of trying to get this bill passed, many tried and failed in the act, including, Matthews mother and father Judy and Dennis Shepherd, and Senator Kennedy of Massachusetts. This act would prevent motivated violence toward victims of perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability. A hate crime occurs when the perpetrator of the crime intentionally selects the victim because of who the victim is.