Judy Shepard, left, mother of Matthew Shepard, right, speaks out against harassment of gay students in the TV announcement

October 4, 1999
Web posted at: 11:02 a.m. EDT (1502 GMT)

In this story: 'Don't let there be a next time' California extends protection for gays RELATED STORIES, SITES

ATLANTA (CNN) -- A new public-awareness campaign intended to help reduce anti-gay taunting in public schools features Judy Shepard, the mother of a gay college student who was fatally beaten in Wyoming last year.

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The television announcement unveiled by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network is scheduled to air this month on MTV.

Matthew Shepard died October 12, 1998, days after he was beaten unconscious and tied to a ranch fence outside Laramie, Wyoming. Two men were accused of luring the 21-year-old student out of a bar, driving him to a remote prairie spot and then robbing and pistol-whipping him.

Russell A. Henderson, 21, was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to murder and kidnapping. Aaron J. McKinney, 22, is scheduled to go on trial October 11.

In the announcement, high school boys in a locker room shout anti-gay insults. Then Judy Shepard says: "The next time you use words like these, think about what they really mean."

A photo of her son flashes on the screen with the dates 1976-1998. Then the words "Murdered" and "Hate" are followed by a shot of Mrs. Shepard with her head bowed.

"Please don't let there be a next time," she says quietly.

Shepard died in 1998 after he was beaten unconscious and tied to a ranch fence outside Laramie, Wyoming

"I'm a newcomer to this fight, but I will be here for a long time," Mrs. Shepard said Sunday in Atlanta where GLSEN showed the television announcement at the group's third annual national conference.

The announcement is designed to get viewers to "think maybe there is a connection between their casual use of words like 'faggot' and 'homo' and a culture of intolerance that sometimes manifests itself in anti-gay violence," GLSEN spokesman Jim Anderson said.

Kevin Jennings, the group's founder and executive director, said Mrs. Shepard played a key role in prompting California Gov. Gray Davis to sign legislation extending protections based on sexual orientation to students in public schools.

Davis signed the legislation late Saturday to outlaw the harassment of gay students and teachers in public schools and colleges.

"While I am interested in seeing hate crimes laws passed, my primary interest is not in punishing future killers such as the men who take the lives of people like Matthew Shepard," Jennings said. "My goal is to prevent those killers from being created in the first place."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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