Hate 2 Hope

Mission

Before moving to Northern California, Matthew Boger spent most of his life in Los Angeles, where in early 2004 he left a long and very successful career as one of L.A.’s elite hair colorists to the stars to pursue a very different path as a volunteer at the Museum of Tolerance. Moving very quickly from volunteer to Program coordinator for the Law Enforcement programs and in late 2006, Matthew was named the Museum’s General Manager.

It was at the Museum of Tolerance where Matthew met another inspiring gentleman, Mr. Tim Zaal who is a facilitator and consultant for the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s National Task Force Against Hate Crimes. The two men formed mutual respect for one other, both personally and professionally, while working together to combat prejudice, racism, bulling, etc.

It was in late 2005 when they realized that their lives had intersected once before. In what would become a life-changing conversation for both men, they realized that 26 years earlier in an alley in West Hollywood California, a group of Neo-Nazi punks attacked and beat a young gay homeless 14 year old boy, who only months earlier had been kicked out by his mother for being gay.

Matthew Boger was that young boy, and Tim Zaal was a member of the group, who believing they had killed Matthew, left the alley never knowing that he had survived and was sitting in front of him.

Through their program entitled: HATE2HOPE, they share a story of the ultimate act of forgiveness and redemption: a gay, homeless teenager forgives an attacker of the brutal hate crime perpetrated against him 26 years earlier.

Today, these two extraordinary men are friends, and share their story change and hope in order to educate and inspire students, educators, professionals, and law enforcement personnel about the consequences of bullying, racism, and prejudice through an open and honest dialogue.

Their story was also the inspiration for the recently released novel “Freaks and Revelations” by Davida Wills Hurwin.