Photo Courtesy, www.stophate.us
Simmie Williams Jr., 17, a hero who was loved by many, but most of all by his mother Denise King, her tears of anguish and pain on her face is heartbreaking as she holds a picture of her son.
“I gave him $2 for the bus and he never came back,” said King, who lived with her son west of Fort Lauderdale. “He was a quiet person, kept to himself. He had a lot of friends. He wasn’t a troubled child. He was a happy person.”
Williams was attacked in the 1000 block of Sistrunk Boulevard by two young men who wore dark clothing and might live in the neighborhood, police said. Williams, who was wearing a dress and was known in the area by his first name or as “Chris” or “Beyonce,” was shot about 12:45 a.m. on Feb. 22,2008 and soon afterward died at Broward General Medical Center.
Could you image how you would feel if you said goodbye to a loved one, thinking you would see them later that day or the next but never get to see them alive again, only to find out they were murdered for being gay? So many are stolen from us each year for living out and proud. It’s time we honor all of them with the National Rainbow Memorial.
Williams, like many teens, feel safe and are strong enough to handle the price they pay like being picked on, bullied, beaten and have paid the ultimate price – their life. They are soldiers fighting on the frontlines in neighborhoods where it can be a living hell, as proven by all the recent LGBT suicides over the past few months.
These are children, brothers, sisters, and every time one is murdered we should feel the pain of loss and sadness, but we should also feel empowered to do more until the senseless murders of LGBT people in America stops. We fight hate and those who teach it together or we die alone at the hands of hate. According to his mother, Williams wanted to be a chef and he really like to cook. King, who passed away at the end of 2009 from a medical condition, had been very supportive and active in our community by speaking at rallies and town hall meetings to help teach love and understanding. She was also a member of the Gay American Heroes Advisory Board. We will miss King and Williams, but never forget them. For more information, visit www.gayamericanheroes. comSimmie Williams Jr., 17, a hero who was loved by many, but most of all by his mother Denise King, her tears of anguish and pain on her face is heartbreaking as she holds a picture of her son. “I gave him $2 for the bus and he never came back,” said King, who lived with her son west of Fort Lauderdale. “He was a quiet person, kept to himself. He had a lot of friends. He wasn’t a troubled child. He was a happy person.”
Williams was attacked in the 1000 block of Sistrunk Boulevard by two young men who wore dark clothing and might live in the neighborhood, police said. Williams, who was wearing a dress and was known in the area by his first name or as “Chris” or “Beyonce,” was shot about 12:45 a.m. on Feb. 22,2008 and soon afterward died at Broward General Medical Center.
Could you image how you would feel if you said goodbye to a loved one, thinking you would see them later that day or the next but never get to see them alive again, only to find out they were murdered for being gay? So many are stolen from us each year for living out and proud. It’s time we honor all of them with the National Rainbow Memorial.
Williams, like many teens, feel safe and are strong enough to handle the price they pay like being picked on, bullied, beaten and have paid the ultimate price – their life. They are soldiers fighting on the frontlines in neighborhoods where it can be a living hell, as proven by all the recent LGBT suicides over the past few months. These are children, brothers, sisters, and every time one is murdered we should feel the pain of loss and sadness, but we should also feel empowered to do more until the senseless murders of LGBT people in America stops. We fight hate and those who teach it together or we die alone at the hands of hate.
According to his mother, Williams wanted to be a chef and he really like to cook. King, who passed away at the end of 2009 from a medical condition, had been very supportive and active in our community by speaking at rallies and town hall meetings to help teach love and understanding. She was also a member of the Gay American Heroes Advisory Board. We will miss King and Williams, but never forget them.
For more information, visit www.gayamericanheroes. com
