To Be Young And Gay In Wyoming

Despite its dangers, Matthew Shepard loved his home state. Now he is part of its legacy

Winter is coming fast to Wyoming, and it will be as it always is--beautiful and wicked. You could feel it in the air last week as ships of clouds sailed the blue sky above Laramie, snow-capped mountains rose in the distance, and a small herd of deer roamed the rocky ridge where Matthew Shepard, a gay student who loved Wyoming, was lynched.

They hold vigils and teach-ins in Laramie, a town searching its soul, but some people climb the hill as if there is something to confront up there. They go to where a small basket of dry flowers hangs from...

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