There were many heroes on that fateful day in September 2001.Firemen, policemen, EMTs and co-workers many of whom gave their life to help others.
And we’ve heard the stories of the brave and selfless act of many aboard United Flight 93 who must have known they were doomed whether they remained in their seats or acted as they did to overcome the terrorists who commandeered that plane which was speculated on it’s way to Washington, DC to create more mayhem and kill more innocents.
One of those heroes was Mark Bingham, a man who happened to be gay.
The fact that Bingham was gay doesn’t lessen nor elevate his status as a hero.
It does prove that anyone, on any given day, at any given time and in any given circumstance can rise above personal risk to themselves and act with great personal sacrifice to protect others regardless of who or what they are.
Mark Bingham’s mother Alice Hoagland was interviewed by Aliene Voisin for an article in The Sacremento Bee in 2011 as she reflected on her son, the causes she now fights for and that day in September.
“On Aug. 27, 1991, Mark mumbled a bunch of words, then told me he was gay. As a parent, of course, that’s never easy to hear. But you love who you love, and I would support Mark no matter what, so that (gay rights) is one of my causes.”
In a day when so many look for inspiration from those in the LGBT community who are comfortable with who they are for all the world to see, they need look no further than Mark Bingham, hero and gay man.
