Dare To Be Different
In the early hours of Saturday 11th August 2007 a young couple, Robert Maltby, aged 21, and his girlfriend Sophie Lancaster, aged 20, were at Stubbylee Park in Bacup, Rossendale in Lancashire, England.
Without provocation Robert Maltby was attacked by a group of teens. Sophie Lancaster tried to protect her unconscious boyfriend. Sophie asked them to leave him alone, so they decided to also beat, kick and stamp on Sophie. Both were severely beaten and were left unconscious by this act of gratuitous violence.
Robert eventually came out of a coma, but was left with permanent brain damage.
Sophie never regained consciousness, and died on the 24th August 2007.
The motive for the attack was because Robert Maltby and Sophie Lancaster 'dressed differently.'
This is a poem I wrote regarding the senseless killing of Sophie Lancaster.
Dare To Be Different.
Dare to be different
Where you might stand out from the crowd
Inadvertently expressing your distinctiveness
In a society where non-conformism is frowned upon
Whilst the plethora of force-fed social-multi-media celebrity false idols are kowtowed
Dare to be different
You may possess an acerbic enquiring mind
With a beautiful dazzling personality
You may just simply be articulate and well-read
But attire yourself in a garb of subculture accoutrement
And incur the wrath of the hordes of demonic street-cred hell
Dare to be different
In the anonymity of the night
Where a mob ambushed a young couple walking through a park
The quarry which the mindless horde aggressed
Punching, kicking, and stamping repeatedly 'til they had their fill
For no other reason than the way which they were dressed
Dare to be different
A man reduced to a bleeding shell, shielded in his soulmate's arms
The degenerates honed in on the lone damsel pleading with them to, "Leave him alone...."
Twilight spent as the shroud of quiescence enveloped the dark angel's brow
Evil reneged back into the night, in it's wake laid testament to their state
These human beings, this sullen traumatised prey of morally vacuumous hate
Dare to be different
Imagine how heartbreaking it must have felt
For the family to see their loved ones lying there helpless in intensive care
Connected to an array of life support machines
Disfigured by their injuries in a catatonic nightmare clinging tenuously onto life
Dare to be different
Hope upon hope that they will both survive
Contrasted by the uncertainty that complications may turn for the worst and contrive
The stark moment when you're told that your daughter isn't going to pull through
Holding her hand, refusing to let go, saying your last goodbyes
The warm light of the life that you brought into the world, stolen away by the actions of an unspeakable few
Humanity fades, hope draws her last ebbing breath, quietly slips away, and dies
Dare to be different
What is wrong with our society when we cannot tolerate others
Just because their appearance is contrary to yours
Embrace the spirit of Vive la différence
Instead of making a goth, or mosher, a punk, an emo or a skater the bigot's punch-bag to abhor
Be yourself
Never forget the senseless way that Sophie Lancaster's life was taken
No one should be persecuted because of their clothes or the subculture which they follow
Sophie's spirit lives on in all of our hearts and there is a message we can all share:
Stamp Out Prejudice Hatred and Intolerance Everywhere
by Alan White
Dedicated to the memory of Sophie Lancaster xxx
Dedicated to Robert Maltby.
Sophie Lancaster
26th November 1986 - 24th August 2007
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| Stamp Out Prejudice Hatred and Intolerance Everywhere |
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