You know, my husband worked with him. This man was brand-new on the force. But, I mean, here’s one of ours, and it was just a little piece in the paper.

And a lot of it is my feeling that the media is portraying Matthew Shepard as a saint. And making him as a martyr. And I don’t think he was. I don’t think he was that pure.

Now, I didn’t know him, but … there’s just so many things about him that I found out that I just, it’s scary. You know about his character and spreading AIDS and a few other things, you know, being the kind of person that he was. He was, he was just a barfly, you know. And I think he pushed himself around. I think he flaunted it.

Everybody’s got problems. But why they exemplified him I don’t know. What’s the difference if you’re gay? A hate crime is a hate crime. If you murder somebody you hate ’em. It has nothing to do with if you’re gay or a prostitute or whatever.

I don’t understand. I don’t understand.

MOMENT: TWO QUEERS AND A CATHOLIC PRIEST

NARRATOR: Company member Leigh Fondakowski:

LEIGH FONDAKOWSKI: This is one of the last days on our second trip to Laramie. Greg and I have been conducting interviews nonstop and we are exhausted.

GREG PIEROTTI: We are to meet Father Roger at seven-thirty in the morning. I was wishing we could skip it all together, but we have to follow through to the end. So here we go: seven-thirty A.M., two queers and a Catholic priest.

FATHER ROGER SCHMIT: Matthew Shepard has served us well. You realize that? He has served us well. And I do not mean to condemn Matthew to perfection, but I cannot mention anyone who has done more for this community than Matthew Shepard.

And I’m not gonna sit here and say, “I was just this bold guy—no fear.” I was scared. I was very vocal in this community when this happened—and I thought, “You know, should we, uh, should we call the bishop and ask him permission to do the vigil?” And I was like, “Hell, no, I’m not going to do that.” His permission doesn’t make it correct, you realize that? And I’m not knocking bishops, but what is correct is correct.

You people are just out here on a search, though. I will do this. I will trust you people that if you write a play of this, that you (pause) say it right, say it correct. I think you have a responsibility to do that.