The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths About the Murder of Matthew Shepard [Unabridged] [Audible Audio Edition] Author: | Language: English | ISBN:
B00FAV9N8O | Format: PDF, EPUB
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Late on the night of October 6, 1998, Matthew Shepard, a twenty-one-year-old gay college student, left a bar in Laramie, Wyoming with two alleged "strangers" Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson. Eighteen hours later, Matthew was found tied to a log fence on the outskirts of town, unconscious and barely alive. He had been pistol-whipped so severely that the mountain biker who discovered his battered frame mistook him for a Halloween scarecrow. Overnight, a politically expedient myth took the place of important facts. By the time Matthew died a few days later, his name was synonymous with anti-gay hate.
Stephen Jimenez went to Laramie to research the story of Matthew Shepard's murder in 2000, after the two men convicted of killing him had gone to prison, and after the national media had moved on. His aim was to write a screenplay on what he, and the rest of the nation, believed to be an open-and-shut case of bigoted violence. As a gay man, he felt an added moral imperative to tell Matthew's story. But what Jimenez eventually found in Wyoming was a tangled web of secrets. His exhaustive investigation also plunged him deep into the deadly underworld of drug trafficking. Over the course of a thirteen-year investigation, Jimenez traveled to twenty states and Washington DC, and interviewed more than a hundred sources.
Who was the real Matthew Shepard and what were the true circumstances of his brutal murder? And now that he was larger than life, did anyone care? The Book of Matt is sure to stir passions and inspire dialogue as it re-frames this misconstrued crime and its cast of characters, proving irrefutably that Matthew Shepard was not killed for being gay but for reasons far more complicated - and daunting.
Books with free ebook downloads available Download The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths About the Murder of Matthew Shepard [Unabridged] [Audible Audio Edition]
- Audible Audio Edition
- Listening Length: 11 hours and 45 minutes
- Program Type: Audiobook
- Version: Unabridged
- Publisher: steerforth press l.l.c.
- Audible.com Release Date: September 24, 2013
- Whispersync for Voice: Ready
- Language: English
- ASIN: B00FAV9N8O
In The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths About the Murder of Matthew Shepard, journalist Stephen Jimenez reveals how little of the narrative we've all come to know is accurate, as he spent more than a decade slowly peeling away protected layers until the real picture emerged.
I was admittedly floored to have something so assuredly resolved be completely upended. I was also intrigued because in the mid 90s, I worked at a daily newspaper where my daily job was covering criminal trials. I've spend hours watching entire murder and rape trials unspool, and am always fascinated watching people online jump to wild conclusions based on scant information, but be completely assured that they have locked in on the crucial bit of information.
So, as I became fascinated by the existence of such a narrative-changing book, it was interesting watching the online world pick it apart before reading it. On one online site, an entire thread arose because Jimenez mentioned what started him down this process: an anonymous letter he found by accident in the previously-sealed court records.
The letter said the anti-gay nature of the crime was completely wrong, because Aaron McKinney (one of the defendants) had been a male hustler who was no stranger to sex with men. This, of course, set the comments flying about how irresponsible it was to write a book based on an anonymous letter.
But, having been a journalist for years, this didn't seem strange to me at all. Anonymous tips were a normal part of the job. They aren't sources, they are things to investigate, and sometimes prove to be true. Mystery is often a part of journalism.
Mr. Jimenez has spent 13 years extensively researching and writing a very compelling book regarding the brutal beating and murder of Matthew Shepard in 1998. The result is much more complex story than what most us ever had an inkling too. Perhaps more than any other horrible crime in recent history, that has shocked our nation, the murder of Matthew Shepard immediately captured our hearts and compassion. We asked ourselves "Why?". Why would two young men in Laramie, Wyoming sadistically beat in another young man's skull and leave him to die tied to a fence post? The "reported answer" to that question came out almost immediately in the days following the murder. In retrospect the "answer" came out far too quickly.
As the media descended on Laramie en mass to report on the story as it unfolded word soon began to spread that one of the young men arrested for the murder was claiming a "gay panic" defense. That he had beat Matthew because Matthew had made sexual advances towards him. He wanted to teach Matthew a lesson by beating him. The news that this was an anti-gay hate crime spread like wild fire and we were all quick to believe it. Celebrities and Politicians were very vocal in expressing their outrage and to strengthen the case for Hate Crime Laws.
In writing this book Mr. Jiminez's intent was not to dispel the accepted story of the Matthew Shepard murder. He originally intended to write a screen play on the story. However while conducting his research he started to uncover clues that there was much more to this story. As a journalist he knew that "truth matters" and a more complete story needed to be told.
What is revealed is the dark world of the Crystal Meth scourge that was quickly spreading through Wyoming, adjoining states and beyond.
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