Wassmuth Center to host play reading to honor gay man who died in Idaho hate crime

On Saturday, the Wassmuth Center for Human Rights is inviting the Treasure Valley community to a reading of “Walking Steven Home,” a play by Gregory Hinton in memory of Steven Nelson, a gay man who was killed in Caldwell in a hate crime. 

In April 2016, Nelson, 49, died after responding to an online ad promising a sexual encounter. He instead was attacked by then 23-year-old Kelly Schneider, who beat, stripped and robbed him near Lake Lowell, the Idaho Statesman previously reported. 

Schneider, now 30, is incarcerated at a federal prison in Kentucky with a release date set in 2052, federal inmate records show.

According to a press release, the play is an assemblage of the impact statements of Nelson’s family who spoke at the Canyon County courthouse during Schneider’s sentencing.

Where: Lincoln Auditorium, Idaho State Capitol Building, Boise
When: Saturday, Sept. 9. Doors open at 6 p.m. Performance begins at 6:30 p.m.

Hinton, an award-winning playwright, was inspired by the impact statements read by Nelson’s family, who in turn reflects on the “eloquence of their grief” in his play, according to the press release.

The community reading will include local public officials including former Idaho Supreme Court Justice Jim Jones, Sen. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, Boise City Councilman Jimmy Hallyburton, and Rep. Chris Mathias, D-Boise. The reading will also include Roger Sherman, the executive director of the Idaho Children’s Trust Fund, and Dan Prinzing, the education director at the Idaho Human Rights Education Center. 

The reading is expected to run about 45 minutes. 

The Wassmuth Center is hosting the event to keep with its mission, “to promote respect for human dignity and diversity through education and to foster individual responsibility to work for peace and justice,” according to the press release.