In Loving Remember of Lawrence King

At 15, Lawrence King was small—5 feet 1 inch—but very hard to miss. In January, he started to show up for class at Oxnard, Calif.'s E. O. Green Junior High School decked out in women's accessories. On some days, he would slick up his curly hair in a Prince-like bouffant. Sometimes he'd paint his fingernails hot pink and dab glitter or white foundation on his cheeks. "He wore makeup better than I did," says Marissa Moreno, 13, one of his classmates. He bought a pair of stilettos at Target, and he couldn't have been prouder if he had on a varsity football jersey. He thought nothing of chasing the boys around the school in them, teetering as he ran.

But on the morning of Feb. 12, Larry left his glitter and his heels at home. He came to school dressed like any other boy: tennis shoes, baggy pants, a loose sweater over a collared shirt. He seemed unhappy about something. He hadn't slept much the night before, and he told one school employee that he threw up his breakfast that morning, which he sometimes did because he obsessed over his weight. But this was different. One student noticed that as Larry walked across the quad, he kept looking back nervously over his shoulder before he slipped into his first-period English class. The teacher, Dawn Boldrin, told the students to collect their belongings, and then marched them to a nearby computer lab, so they could type out their papers on World War II. Larry found a seat in the middle of the room. Behind him, Brandon McInerney pulled up a chair.

Brandon, 14, wasn't working on his paper, because he told Mrs. Boldrin he'd finished it. Instead, he opened a history book and started to read. Or at least he pretended to. "He kept looking over at Larry," says a student who was in the class that morning. "He'd look at the book and look at Larry, and look at the book and look at Larry." At 8:30 a.m., a half hour into class, Brandon quietly stood up. Then, without anyone's noticing, he removed a handgun that he had somehow sneaked to school, aimed it at Larry's head, and fired a single shot. Boldrin, who was across the room looking at another student's work, spun around. "Brandon, what the hell are you doing!" she screamed. Brandon fired at Larry a second time, tossed the gun on the ground and calmly walked through the classroom door. Police arrested him within seven minutes, a few blocks from school. Larry was rushed to the hospital, where he died two days later of brain injuries.

The Larry King shooting became the most prominent gay-bias crime since the murder of Matthew Shepard 10 years ago. But despite all the attention and outrage, the reason Larry died isn't as clear-cut as many people think. California's Supreme Court has just legalized gay marriage. There are gay characters on popular TV shows such as "Gossip Girl" and "Ugly Betty," and no one seems to notice. Kids like Larry are so comfortable with the concept of being openly gay that they are coming out younger and younger. One study found that the average age when kids self-identify as gay has tumbled to 13.4; their parents usually find out a year later.

What you might call "the shrinking closet" is arguably a major factor in Larry's death. Even as homosexuality has become more accepted, the prospect of being openly gay in middle school raises a troubling set of issues. Kids may want to express who they are, but they are playing grown-up without fully knowing what that means. At the same time, teachers and parents are often uncomfortable dealing with sexual issues in children so young. Schools are caught in between. How do you protect legitimate, personal expression while preventing inappropriate, sometimes harmful, behavior? Larry King was, admittedly, a problematical test case: he was a troubled child who flaunted his sexuality and wielded it like a weapon—it was often his first line of defense. But his story sheds light on the difficulty of defining the limits of tolerance. As E. O. Green found, finding that balance presents an enormous challenge.

Larry's life was hard from the beginning. His biological mother was a drug user; his father wasn't in the picture. When Greg and Dawn King took him in at age 2, the family was told he wasn't being fed regularly. Early on, a speech impediment made Larry difficult to understand, and he repeated first grade because he had trouble reading. He was a gentle child who loved nature and crocheting, but he also acted out from an early age. "We couldn't take him to the grocery store without him shoplifting," Greg says. "We couldn't get him to clean up his room. We sent him upstairs—he'd get a screwdriver and poke holes in the walls." He was prescribed ADHD medication, and Greg says Larry was diagnosed with reactive attachment disorder, a rare condition in which children never fully bond with their caregivers or parents.

I DO NOT OWN THE RIGHTS TO THIS SONG!

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• News

[zjacks]

Thank you. Larry was a family member. He was a great kid with a beautiful soul. This is the perfect song. This song reminds me of my own Mom, Larry's Grandmother. They are together now and in a better place. RIP Larry on Mom. We love you.

[evanstoler]

@ichbineintoober Absolutely.

[ichbineintoober]

Now that we are getting more information, it looks like McInerney should have shot that evil cunt Epstein. Putting children in the care of jewish lesbians is very cruel and unusual.

Lawrence King was a sick little pawn. Brandon should have attacked the greater evil but it's not really fair for me to judge a 14 yr old kid who opted for the simpler act of self-defence. A kid doesn't see the big picture.

The mentally ill kid is dead now and his victim rots in a cell. Epstein remains unpunished.

[rocketlauncher2]

What I am more worried is what the HELL is going on with school security? Why can't you take extra measures to prevent shootings from happening? it's a public place you have no other choice but to go, and to have to go there worried that someone could pull a gun and end your life is just terrible. Have metal detectors, take your jacket and bag off when you walk in and have them checked, etc.

If you are worried about someone, talk. They'll check the guy out

[AustinHewittFilms]

what the fuck. the description is so wrong. get your facts straight you fucking morons.

[AbsolutRachel]

My 2 youngest brothers went there, and Larry was their friend. =[

They both have pictures of them playing together on their MySpaces. =] I love thoes boys.

[justinucla]

he didnt ave to die

[Thor468]

How terrible and cruel people can be.

[RodTalon0000]

Agreed ;)this horrible even relates to homosexuals, but especially feminine homosexual men. They are designed by nature to be very affectionate children and a powerfully creative force, who are outcast by everyone if they dont conform fast into a fake outer macho exterior... limiting their ultimate potential... which causes many mental disorders. It's very sad... hopefully we learn to appreciate their gifts...

[GabyKayleeTube]

how did he no something was gonna to him i dont get that