now this is just wrong.
a young student is killed because he was gay.
15-year-old Lawrence "Larry" King was shot in the head at the E.O.
Green School in Oxnard, California, reportedly for being gay. He was in
the eighth grade.Three days after the shooting, on February 15, King was taken off life support and pronounced dead.
King’s killer, 14-year-old Brandon McInerney, apparently
targeted the student because he was openly gay and sometimes dressed in
women’s clothes. King also wore makeup and jewelry to class on
occasion. It’s possible that McInerney, who has been charged with
murder and the commission of a hate crime, will be tried as an adult,
which means he could face 50 years to life in prison if convicted.
now, there are many deaths of young people each week. all are tragic, but it seems especially senseless when surrounded in a hate crime. what upsets me most is that the fear that perpetuates a hate crime is manifested in such a young person. will we see more of this as youth come out at younger ages?
read more here , here, here you can also find some tribute videos
in a side thought: i wondered what godtube thought of "homosexuality" some interesting results, though not surprised.
Gavin,
This is horrible, but you know, I don’t think I’m that surrprised that young people can hate in such a way. If anything it’s more probable than an older teenager or 20-something. It would be surprising if this kid wasn’t raised in a home where homosexuality is not only condemned, but feared and loathed as something inhuman. Think back to your own childhood…how long did it take you to question your parent’s politics and start forming your own? We all have all sorts of social assumptions that we inherit. The thing is, sometimes they aren’t even spoken. I’ll give you an example. When I was young I was much more of a default/unthinking conservative. Mostly this was because my dad really disliked Bill Clinton and I sort of imbibed that during the first term. Along with the spoken political assumptions, I took on a number of beliefs that sort of went with the package, including support of the death penalty. It wasn’t until years later as I went deeper in my Christian walk and started to question whether I could support capital punishment and voiced these concerns to my dad that I discovered he was pretty set against it in most cases. As a former Highway Patrolman and a private investigator he wasn’t at all gung-ho about it. That sort of surprised me, but looking back on it, I’m not sure why because it is much more in keeping with his character. We’d just never spoken about it and, as a child and a young teen I made assumptions. The same could be true in this case. An off hand remark about how “disgusting” something is could carry all sorts of connotations for a child. That’s something that should give us pause as people in ministry, and even more broadly as adults and parents: what we say can have ramifications far beyond anything we consider. I get nervous about some of the assumptions surrounding the idea of hate crimes, but the underlying concept is important and true: hate spreads. The thing is, it doesn’t have to be overt to do so.
So the question is, how do we live in such a way that our Christian children, rather than ridiculing, attacking or (God forbid) killing someone, instead are willing to befriend them when no one else will. How do we teach that we’re to lead with love, whatever else we may believe about someone’s actions.
I suppose we have to try to live that way…
Gavin,
This is horrible, but you know, I don’t think I’m that surrprised that young people can hate in such a way. If anything it’s more probable than an older teenager or 20-something. It would be surprising if this kid wasn’t raised in a home where homosexuality is not only condemned, but feared and loathed as something inhuman. Think back to your own childhood…how long did it take you to question your parent’s politics and start forming your own? We all have all sorts of social assumptions that we inherit. The thing is, sometimes they aren’t even spoken. I’ll give you an example. When I was young I was much more of a default/unthinking conservative. Mostly this was because my dad really disliked Bill Clinton and I sort of imbibed that during the first term. Along with the spoken political assumptions, I took on a number of beliefs that sort of went with the package, including support of the death penalty. It wasn’t until years later as I went deeper in my Christian walk and started to question whether I could support capital punishment and voiced these concerns to my dad that I discovered he was pretty set against it in most cases. As a former Highway Patrolman and a private investigator he wasn’t at all gung-ho about it. That sort of surprised me, but looking back on it, I’m not sure why because it is much more in keeping with his character. We’d just never spoken about it and, as a child and a young teen I made assumptions. The same could be true in this case. An off hand remark about how “disgusting” something is could carry all sorts of connotations for a child. That’s something that should give us pause as people in ministry, and even more broadly as adults and parents: what we say can have ramifications far beyond anything we consider. I get nervous about some of the assumptions surrounding the idea of hate crimes, but the underlying concept is important and true: hate spreads. The thing is, it doesn’t have to be overt to do so.
So the question is, how do we live in such a way that our Christian children, rather than ridiculing, attacking or (God forbid) killing someone, instead are willing to befriend them when no one else will. How do we teach that we’re to lead with love, whatever else we may believe about someone’s actions.
I suppose we have to try to live that way…
There is simply too much hate in this world today and people are acting on emotions in irresponsible ways like never before.
There is simply too much hate in this world today and people are acting on emotions in irresponsible ways like never before.
This is so very sad…this Sunday I am speaking on Embracing others with love…a sermon within our sermon series introducing the new vision and mission statements of our church. To most loving is not a big deal, as long as the folks we’re loving look, dress and act like us. It’s when there’s diversity that the hesitancy comes in. I’m trying to figure out how to say we need to love as Jesus loved…we need to love EVERYONE in such a way that each person thinks about it…but I imagine there will be some who sit, arms folded, thinking that this “stuff” has nothing to do with them at all.
This is so very sad…this Sunday I am speaking on Embracing others with love…a sermon within our sermon series introducing the new vision and mission statements of our church. To most loving is not a big deal, as long as the folks we’re loving look, dress and act like us. It’s when there’s diversity that the hesitancy comes in. I’m trying to figure out how to say we need to love as Jesus loved…we need to love EVERYONE in such a way that each person thinks about it…but I imagine there will be some who sit, arms folded, thinking that this “stuff” has nothing to do with them at all.
That is very sad. This is the first I’ve heard of it. I’m praying for his friends and family and for a culture that could produce such hate and violence.
That is very sad. This is the first I’ve heard of it. I’m praying for his friends and family and for a culture that could produce such hate and violence.
it is just a sad state of events. thanks for all your thoughts. jody, thanks for the story share.
it is just a sad state of events. thanks for all your thoughts. jody, thanks for the story share.