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Contact: Mary Van Buren

Film and Vigil to Honor Ryan Skipper and Other Victims of Hate Crimes

Ryan SkipperDaytona Beach, Fla., Feb. 25, 2008 -- Victims of hate crimes will be remembered March 7 with a candlelight vigil and the showing of a documentary film on the 2007 murder of Ryan Skipper, a 25-year-old man from Winter Haven, Fla.

Sponsored by the Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) and the Interest Group of Delta Lambda Phi, the events will be held at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, with Skipper’s parents, Patricia and Lynn Mulder, as guests of honor.

Two men have been charged with the first-degree murder of Skipper, who was studying computers at a vocational school in Lakeland, Fla., at the time of his death. The case has galvanized gay-rights groups, who compare it to that of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student whose 1998 murder in Laramie, Wyo., drew national attention to violence against homosexuals.

“Accessory to Murder: Our Culture’s Complicity in the Death of Ryan Skipper,” produced by Mary Meeks and Vicki Nantz, will be shown Friday, March 7, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the Miller Instructional Center auditorium on Embry-Riddle’s Daytona Beach campus at 600 S. Clyde Morris Blvd. Viewing of the film is free and open to the public.

Following the film, everyone is invited to join a candlelight vigil outside the Instructional Center from 7:30 to 9 p.m. in honor of all victims of hate crimes.

Donations may be made to the Ryan Keith Skipper Foundation.

The Gay Straight Alliance at Embry-Riddle was established to provide a support network for individuals interested in learning about or discussing human sexuality; to promote tolerance and understanding for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and still-exploring individuals; to promote diversity on campus; and to enhance a feeling of safety and comfort for all students.

Delta Lambda Phi is a national fraternity providing social, service, and recreational activities for gay, bisexual, and progressive men. Founded in 1986, the group is one of the fastest-growing fraternities, with more than 25 chapters and seven colonies across the nation.

For more information, contact Professor Paul Edson at (386) 226-6662 or paul.edson@erau.edu.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world’s largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, offers more than 30 degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business, and Engineering. The university educates more than 34,000 students annually in undergraduate and graduate programs at residential campuses in Prescott, Ariz., and Daytona Beach, Fla., through the Worldwide Campus at more than 130 centers in the United States, Europe, Canada, and the Middle East, and through online learning. For more information, visit www.embryriddle.edu.