From SC GLPM:
Our community has been rocked twice, first with the news of Sean Kennedy’s brutal murder, and second the shameful involuntary manslaughter indictment voted on by the Grand Jury. The Solicitor’s office acknowledged in its Oct. 22 press release the inadequacies of our state’s current statutes: “I hope the Kennedy family will join me to encourage the legislature to review their situation, and to modify our current statutory law so that we can address the present inadequacy in the law,” stated Robert Ariail, Solicitor of South Carolina’s 13th Judicial Circuit.
We are aware of the outrage that many of you feel regarding the indictment last Tuesday and the indefinite postponement of the arraignment, and many of us feel the same way. Therefore, the South Carolina Gay and Lesbian Pride Movement has partnered with Sean’s Last Wish Foundation and the South Carolina Equality Coalition in order to foster awareness and educate the public at large of the need for hate crimes legislation in our fair state. We will continue to work closely with Elke Kennedy [Sean’s mother] as well as the staff and Board of SCEC, to determine our next course of action. These future actions may include coordinated press conferences with organizations throughout the state, forums to educate our local communities, and a vigil to be held the evening of sentencing for Sean Kennedy’s murderer.
Elke Kennedy has been brave these last few months, fighting a homophobic mindset ˆstatus quoˆ that has taken the life of her 20-year-old son. While Sean, a member of the gay community, was brutally murdered five months ago, she continues to travel across our state fighting for his dream of equality and inclusion. Do not let her fight alone; join us in helping to make Sean’s last wish a reality, and let not his death be in vain.
For more information, or to be kept informed on the actions, please visit the following web sites:
Sean’s Last Wish
SC Equality Coalition
SC GLPM
To join our email listserv, and be kept up to date with all activities at the Harriet Hancock Community Center, and to be kept aware of what we are doing for Sean Kennedy and his family, please join the listserv by emailing scpridevols-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
Elke Kennedy, left, remembers her son at a vigil at the State House in Columbia. Since her son’s death, she has since been working to pass hate crimes legislation in South Carolina.