02/18/2008
Huge Vigil Turnout for Gay California Teen Slain in Hate Crime
A quickly scheduled peace march in Oxnard, California on Saturday drew nearly 1,000 people distraught over the tragic killing of Lawrence King, the 14-year-old boy who was gunned down by a classmate last week because he was gay.
The L.A. Times reports: "'Larry, Larry, Larry!' the crowd chanted before marchers clasped hands in a moment of silence for the fallen student. There were no bullhorns, no speeches and no politicians. Just a mass of mostly adolescents wearing bright clothing, carrying signs and singing John Lennon's 'Imagine' and 'Give Peace a Chance.' The size of the turnout surprised police, school officials and even the two Hueneme High School sophomores who put the event together just three days ago, spreading the word with fliers, cellphone calls and MySpace bulletins. 'We were expecting maybe 100 or 200 people,' said Courtney LaForest, 16, as she gazed at a broad 'peace circle' formed by march participants at Plaza Park in downtown Oxnard. 'This is incredible.' Courtney said the turnout reflected a community's anguish over a senseless shooting that has destroyed the lives of two young men. It was also a public plea for tolerance on school campuses for those who are different, she said."
A memorial service is scheduled for King on Friday at 3 p.m. at Westminster Presbyterian Church at 755 Bard Road in Port Hueneme.
Over 200 messages have already been left on a website set up to remember King.
View an AP news report on King AFTER THE JUMP...
Sphere: Related ContentPosted 9:55 AM EST by Andy in Bullying, California, Crime, Gay Youth, Lawrence King, News | Permalink
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Posted by: Jimmyboyo | Feb 18, 2008 10:21:42 AM
What is sad is where were all those students when he was alive? Now its cool to stand up for him? I doubt none of those marchers stood up for that poor kid when he was being bullied. Maybe just maybe if people stood up for this kid and didn't make him an outcast this might have not happened.
Posted by: dalai | Feb 18, 2008 10:36:55 AM
this is so wonderful that so many people have turned out to pay tribute to this courageous child who dared to live his life so openly and paid the ultimate price for being different... it could have been any of us... it makes me so sad, so angry that words cannot express my sorrow at this horrible tragedy, 2 lives are destroyed by the ever-increasing hate and ignorance of the insane religious-political bigots in this country who spread their poison throughout the land ultimately affecting and influencing children like like lawrence king's murderer.
Posted by: the queen | Feb 18, 2008 10:43:19 AM
Well put, THE QUEEN. Larry King must have come from a very special family. He looked so happy in all of his photographs (shown on the memorial website. Yes, that could have happened to so many of us just based on how we look, walk, speak, mannerisms.
Sometimes, it makes you wonder: who really has the highest rate of killing? Iraq or the United States.
Posted by: Derrick from Philly | Feb 18, 2008 10:50:12 AM
It is a very tragic story indeed, but sadly Larry was living in a residential center for troubled youths, so I'm not quite sure how special his family really was for him. Without knowing them personally I doubt we can say.
This said, every news outlet is painting this as they want. Just check the range of titles on Google news to see. A point has been made, but beyond that it's starting to feel like his death is being exploited.
Posted by: gregus | Feb 18, 2008 12:44:46 PM
Thanks, GREGUS, I didn't have all the facts. Larry seemed very happy as a child (in the photos). I don't know his situation as a teenager. Also, the father's description of him didn't seem negative. But you're right, I don't know the facts of his family life. Many trans teenagers (or any gender non-coming kids) often find themselves without a home. Their parents either put them out, or the whole neighborhood makes life at home intolerable and dangerous.
Posted by: Derrick from Philly | Feb 18, 2008 1:02:31 PM
Sorry but only ONE life was destroyed and that was Larry's. I refuse to be sympathetic to the murderer.
All these people came out because of guilt Dalai. They didn't stand up for Larry when he was alive and harassed so now they feel uncomfortable because of it and for good reason.
Posted by: queendru | Feb 18, 2008 2:18:06 PM
In minimizing the risks faced by LGBT students each and every day in America’s schools, John Cloud betrays either a lack of understanding of the data or a misreading of it when he accuses the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force of exaggerating the degree to which gay kids suffer in school.
As research by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) makes clear, LGBT kids are far less likely to feel safe or very safe in school than their heterosexual counterparts (78% versus 93%), and almost one-fifth (18%) of those surveyed had been physically assaulted over the previous year.
What is more, Mr. Cloud mischaracterizes a statistic regarding the reporting of harassment or assault and suggests that much of it wasn’t significant enough to report. In fact, fewer than half of the students who did report incident(s) of harassment or assault felt that it made any difference. And among those who did not report being victims of harassment or assault fully 50% said that it was because they expected nothing would be done about it or that they personally would suffer repercussions.
On the heels of a premeditated murder of a vulnerable child taunted for being openly gay, John Cloud seems bent on whitewashing the harsh realities of a broad range of LGBT kids in our schools. I can’t imagine such gross indifference to a child being murdered after having been taunted for being Jewish, or Latino, or heterosexual. Cloud’s lack of outrage builds a strong case for exactly what he argues against – increased penalties for a range of crimes that the state and the wider culture have long dismissed as insignificant.
Jaime M. Grant, Ph D
Policy Institute Director
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
Posted by: Jaime Grant | Feb 20, 2008 10:19:58 AM