Gay American Heroes

[metta]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5uNcXQwKvg&feature=player_embedded[/ame]

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The Rainbow Memorial is the opportunity to shine a
light on our Heroes and share their stories with the
rest of America. The Memorial gives hope to the family
and friends of those LGBT people who have been
murdered in hate crimes and shows that a brighter
future is on the way.
The goal of the Gay American Heroes Foundation is
to build a traveling memorial to take to communities
throughout the USA to honor the lives of LGBT
people who have been murdered for simply being
themselves.

The Rainbow Memorial also will educate the public
about LGBT hate crimes and inspire compassion and
acceptance of all people.

The Gay American Heroes Foundation reaches out to
communities as soon as possible following a LGBT,
hate crime murder. The foundation, with the support of people like you,
gives a broader voice to the family and friends of victims
of LGBT, hate crime murders and strives to work
constructively with local officials, law enforcement, and
service organizations to provide counseling, outreach,
and education.We need your help to build the Rainbow
Memorial!
Please join us in this historic project. Adopt a hero and
send us your tax-deductible donation today!
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http://www.gayamericanheroes.info/​

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[Horschallen]

THat narrator is gorgeous!

 

[metta]

^
this is off-topic...but...he has a nice ass too.

(***runs away***)

http://www.myspace.com/chrissalvatoremusic

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54o3nbB028s&feature=player_embedded[/ame]

 

[Telstra]

do you know the guy(narrator) metta ?
he is hot !!!

 

[tonyboy]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5uNcXQwKvg&feature=player_embedded

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http://www.gayamericanheroes.info/​

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Thank you Metta for sharing that with us..

Listening to that story brought tears to my eyes.
Yes, the narrator is a handsome guy (as some have pointed out ^)... but the story here is that a young man was killed because he had the temerity to ask another boy to be his Valentine.

Damn man, that makes me so sad. I hope others here read this thread you have created... and not just to look at how handsome Chris Salvatore is... I hope jubbers will look at the American Heroes website.

May that young boy RIP... And I'm so sorry that is life was cut so short by a stupid act of violence.

 

[Fire]

As heartfelt as that video was and as important as I think this project is, a cursory glance reveals that the vast majority of these men and boys are not heroes. I understand the temptation to use the word in tragic situations--the 9/11 attacks come to mind as a prime example; I've even heard the term bandied about in reference to suicides--perhaps because people believe that referring to them as "victims" is disrespectful, that they are somehow being diminished. By casting them as a courageous figure in your minds instead, some sense is made of a senseless situation; there is comfort in the idea that these victims (and this is what nearly all of them are) were not totally at the mercy of the forces that assailed them. By bestowing them this posthumous honor, the utter cruelty and waste of life--which had until then been too horrible to truly contemplate--are transmuted into a digestible form.

While I'm sure someone will argue that these guys were heroes "because they were courageous enough to be themselves," exhibiting this sort of courage alone is rarely enough to warrant the name "hero." Indeed, it seems the reason these men have so publicly earned the title where countless millions of other out gay folk have not is because they've been murdered.

I suppose this all sounds rather callous, but I surely intend no disrespect to the dead, and I certainly don't mean to deemphasize the unfathomable ugliness of these crimes, motivated as they were by the most despicable of emotions. This is not a case of nitpicking however--the word "hero" means something very specific, and a man who is strangled to death in his home by a guy he picked up at a gay beach is not one. By calling him that, you are disrespecting real heroes and contributing to the semantic erosion which is gradually making the word meaningless.

 

[metta]

^
I personally do not disagree with you, however, the organization itself is a very good cause. I would rather not get hooked up on the word hero and look at what they are actually doing.

 

[ChickenGuy]

I just visited the site. It is good to see that there are so many businesses, charities, and organisations that are supporting the effort.

19 states where LGBT murders go unreported? If that's true, then what is needed in each of those states is someone who WILL report and investigate, bring charges, and is backed up by legal expertise. No hate crime should be left out of the public eye.