Matthew Sheppard Act Passes!!!!

Dear Stephaun,

I've been waiting for months to write this.

With your help, the U.S. Senate has just passed the Matthew Shepard Act! I want to thank you, personally, for everything you've done to help make this moment possible. HRC supporters sent 350,000 emails, made 30,000 calls to Congress, and wrote over 5,000 letters to local papers. Your commitment was inspiring. And even Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) acknowledged the work of the Human Rights Campaign during debate on the Senate floor.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your incredible support.

But even as we celebrate this victory – we know we face a tough road ahead. The bill has to survive final negotiations between the House and Senate before it gets to President Bush. Even then, he has threatened to veto it. As you know, pressure from the radical right will be fierce the whole way. Our support must be fierce as well – so we will continue to ask for your support over the coming weeks. It's been nine years since Matthew Shepard was senselessly murdered because of who he was. HRC stands firmly committed to this being the year we finally make sure every American is protected from this kind of violence. We just made history. Thank you for getting us this far. Now, let's see it through to the end.

Warmly,

Joe Solmonese
President

***************************************************************************
MY TAKE: I am so very glad that this bill has finally passed. I have had the opportunity to advocate, research, and speak on behalf of this piece of legislation and although this is a sure sign of progress in the fight for human rights, being a Black Gay Man in this country, I know that the fight is no where near over. As it has been said before, THIS battle has been won....but the war is far from over. Thank you to all of those who have supported progress and progressive change.

Stephaun Clipper-Wallace (aka Stephaun Elite Manolo Blahnik)