Here’s what Wyoming’s senior senator reportedly had to say about LGBTQ Americans in the state where Matthew Shepard was beaten, tortured, and left to die on a fence post two decades ago in one of the nation’s most brutal anti-gay hate crimes:
Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) told a group of high school and middle school students last week that it’s fine to be a member of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer community ― as long as you aren’t too open about it.
On Thursday, Enzi spoke to students at Greybull High School and Middle School and responded to a student who asked him what he was doing to support LGBTQ communities in Wyoming.
He said that “the guy who wears a tutu to the bar and is surprised” when he is treated different is “asking for it.”
Mathew Burciaga, an editor at the Greybull Standard, was at the event. He said he has audio of the exchange, which the paper will release on Wednesday.
“Max D’Onofrio, a spokesman for Enzi, said the senator stressed the importance of respecting other people and argued that protections mandated by Washington are not always the best solution,” according to the Huffington Post. Odd, because it was both Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr.’s murders that led to historic federal hate crimes legislation getting signed by former President Obama in 2009. And it’s hateful rhetoric like Sen. Enzi’s that often incites even more violence against LGBTQ people.
According to the Huffington Post, Enzi released a statement claiming he believes “all individuals should be treated with respect. I do not believe that anyone should be bullied, intimidated or attacked because of their beliefs.” Except of course, when you do and then tell a bunch of school kids—many of whom might be wrestling with their sexuality—that maybe they were just “asking for it.”
Enzi’s offensive remarks earned a swift rebuke from the foundation Matthew’s mother set up following his murder:
“Sen. Enzi’s comments are exactly the kind of hateful remarks we are working against in Wyoming and beyond,” the Matthew Shepard Foundation said in a statement to HuffPost. “To tell a person that they are ‘asking for it’ is the same kind of harmful rhetoric people use to disqualify the claims of sexual assault victims. It’s the same kind of rhetoric that keeps up to 61% of hate crime victims from reporting because they are afraid of not being believed while also having to be fearful of being re-victimized by those in power, who should be defending their rights. The Matthew Shepard Foundation will continue to fight against this kind of hate speech as long as it continues.”