Cody Rogers: A victim of hate-An interview by Erin Nanasi

Cody Rogers wants to be an architect. His mother, Sarah, laughingly told me Cody was addicted to Legos, and Cody grinned, as if he was remembering building massive fortresses out of little plastic blocks.

Eighteen year old Cody Rogers has been thrust into the spotlight thanks to an event happening more and more often in America. Cody Rogers was the victim of a brutal assault because he is gay.

Eight months ago, Cody started the Facebook page “Help Stop The Stomping.” At the time, it just seemed to be a good idea, but he didn’t really know why. He knows now. Cody attended a farewell party for another gay friend a few weeks ago, and spent most of the evening on the upper level of an apartment, chatting with other friends, including a young woman. At some point, other guests became angry that gay men were at the party, and Cody’s female friend, along with others, asked those guests to leave. Cody’s friend went outside to make certain the men were leaving when one of them “put their hands on her.” She suffered a fractured wrist. Cody jumped to her defense, was grabbed and pushed down on the ground and kicked and stomped until he lost consciousness.

Sarah Rogers knew there was something wrong when Cody didn’t come home. At nine o’clock in the morning, she and her daughter were frantically searching their home for old cell phones, as Sarah’s brand new phone did not have Cody’s information loaded in yet. When Cody finally walked through the door at 11:00 AM, Sarah heard her daughter say “What happened?!” She saw her son, battered, bruised and bloodied.

Sarah told me her first reaction was rage. Wait till Mom gets hold of these people, she said. Three days later, that anger had turned to sadness. Sadness for the people who had assaulted her son; she felt pity for people who need to live lives filled with so much hate. She believes they are missing out on an amazing community, filled with love and friendship, and hopes that this experience is one that opens their eyes and their hearts. As she shared her story, Sarah Rogers glowed with pride for Cody.

When Cody came out to his family it was a “celebration.” Both Sarah and Cody say it was a great day, filled with love and acceptance and joy. Sarah was proud of her son: proud that he had the courage to live life openly and honestly, and proud that he would not have to hide or pretend. The Rogers family is a close knit one, and friends are welcomed in with the same love and joy as a sibling. Sarah believes it takes a village to raise a child and she loves her village.

I asked Cody if he would do it again, if he would defend a friend even at the risk of personal harm. Without hesitation, he said yes. Sarah agreed. She said they have taught Cody to think for himself, and to make the right decisions. She is proud of the decision Cody made that evening, more proud I think than he may even know. It is thanks to Cody’s family that his new notoriety has not changed him in any way. He is humble and polite, funny and open, and seems unaffected by the media attention. Cody did share that he feels blessed to have so many people supporting him and sending him their prayers and love and light, and he accepts it all with a grace far beyond his years.

Imagine creating a Facebook page titled “Help Stop The Stomping,” eight months before you are stomped in an assault. Imagine realizing that your page describes what happened to you, but months before it happened. Cody feels now that his page serves a purpose, and Sarah finds it incredibly moving that people are not only posting supportive messages to Cody, but sharing their stories as well. It’s become a hub of sorts for people all over the world to not only tell Cody “we love you,” but tell him he is not alone.

Cody shared a bit about the case with me, including why his assault is not being prosecuted as a hate crime. Cody said if, when these men were kicking and stomping him, instead of “f-ing queer,” they had yelled “f-ing black” or “f-ing Asian,” or “f-ing” anything other than queer, the state would be treating this as a hate crime. Cody was kicked and stomped for being gay, but in the state of Oklahoma, that doesn’t count. Cody told me that the Tulsa police expressed frustration about this, as well, and without going into details, let me know the men responsible for this are being prosecuted, but not for a hate crime.

In order for this to change, and for Oklahoma to change its laws regarding hate crimes, the legislature requires 100,000 registered voters in Oklahoma to sign a petition. Cody is hugely grateful for the Change.org petition and others that are spreading the word about changing the laws in Oklahoma, but wanted people to understand the legal requirements to change those laws.

This was a truly humbling experience for me, meeting such a strong and heroic eighteen year old man and his equally powerful and brave mother. We had a wonderful chat at the end about architecture and activism and what it’s like to fight against a powerful force. Cody Rogers will always be a hero, not for what happened to him at the hands of a few bigots, but for what he has in his heart, his mind and his soul. Sarah Rogers is immensely proud of her son, and he of her. Having met them both, I can understand why.

Follow MadMike’sAmerica on Facebook and Twitter and don’t forget to visit our HOME PAGE .  Did you “LIKE” this story?  If so please tell us by clicking the “LIKE” button just below this post.

Happy

0 0 %

Sad

0 0 %

Excited

0 0 %

Sleepy

0 0 %

Angry

0 0 %

Surprise

0 0 %