‘When I See the Hate the Donald Trump Has Brought to His Campaign for President, It Terrifies Me’
Following the 18th anniversary of the brutal attack and anti-gay hate crime that resulted in her son Matthew Shepard’s death, Judy Shepard has teamed with pro-Hillary Clinton super PAC Priorities USA Action to denounce Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s campaign.
“I’ve seen what can happen as the result of hate,” Shepard begins, proceeding to recall the horrific events that led to her son’s death in 1998. Her tragic tale of the two men who pretended to be gay luring Matthew Shepard from a gay-friendly establishment before beating him and leaving him for dead is accompanied by headlines and news stories of the time.
“In the aftermath of Matt’s death, my family saw the best of America in the love and support we were shown,” she says. “So when I see the hate the Donald Trump has brought to his campaign for president, it terrifies me.”
Clips of Trump’s behavior follow, including those at his rally cheering at his incitement of violence, his mocking of a Serge F. Kovaleski, the reporter who is disabled, and even Trump boasting that he could “stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody.”
“Words have an influence,” Judy Shepard cautions. “Violence causes pain, hate can rip us apart.”
“I know what can happen as the result of hate, and Donald Trump should never be our president.”
Watch this important 60-second video:
