The Rainbow Connection Network

 In October of 1998, Matthew Shepard, left, was abducted, beaten and left tied to a buck fence to die on the high plains of Laramie, Wyoming. Matt identified himself as gay.

His killers had identified themselves falsely as gay, gaining his trust. In the aftermath of the crime, the town of Laramie was deluged with media, inaccurately portraying it as a cradle of hate and homophobia.