Watch this sad but true video about an unmarried same sex couple and the unfair treatment that occurs when one of them dies.

This is a sad but true YouTube video by a young gay man whose partner died in an accident. The video, which has gone viral on the internet,  painfully illustrates the second-class citizenship of a same sex couple who cannot legally marry.

As of today, more than 3,875,640 people have viewed the video titled “It Could Happen To You,” resulting in about 69,000 likes and 1,500 dislikes.

Shane Bitney Crone’s heart-wrenching story is told in a 10-minute video that outlines how unmarried gay couples are treated unfairly and unequally when one of the partners dies without a will. Crone was deeply in love with Tom Bridegroom, and they were in a relationship as a couple for six years before Bridegroom died.

The same sex couple were engaged to be married, but California’s Proposition 8 prohibited marriage equality. Although Prop 8 was declared unconstitutional, the appeals process is currently ongoing in court.

In the video, Crone shares how Bridegroom’s family from Indiana, who were hostile toward their son after he came out, manipulated the grieving partner, stopped communications with him, even threatened to harm him if he attended the funeral, and refused to furnish information about Tom Bridegroom’s death, autopsy and burial.

“Had Tom and I been legally married, many things would have been different. Losing a loved one is devastating enough, but to then be rendered legally insignificant only makes the pain worse,” Crone says in the video.

His ordeal has inspired Crone to fight for what's right. “I need to fight for what’s right. I need to fight for what I believe in and I can’t just stand back any more. Maybe that’s why this all happened, maybe this is part of the reason, to open my eyes and inspire me to want to make a change and fight for equality,” he says in the video. 

“I just don’t know if people will listen. I guess no one’s going to listen if I don’t talk. So I’m talking.”  Crone hopes that his story will inspire people to share it with others.
Shane Crone on Ricki Lake.shares briefly about his experience.


Other Related Resources.  Click here for Tom Bridegroom's memorial page on Facebook

Click here for Equal Love Equal Rights

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