Shooter of Virginia Journalists Alleged Antigay Harassment

Bryce Williams, the now-deceased killer of two young journalists, said he was disparaged by coworkers because was a gay black man.

Neal Broverman

Neal Broverman is the Editorial Director, Print of Pride Media, publishers of The Advocate, Out, Out Traveler, and Plus, spending more than 20 years in journalism. He indulges his interest in transportation and urban planning with regular contributions to Los Angeles magazine, and his work has also appeared in the Los Angeles Times and USA Today. He lives in the City of Angels with his husband, children, and their chiweenie.

Read Full Bio

Neal Broverman

August 26 2015 3:01 PM EST

True

November 17 2015 5:28 AM EST

Nbroverman

We need your help
Your support makes The Advocate's original LGBTQ+ reporting possible. Become a member today to help us continue this work.

The man who today shot to death two young journalists -- his onetime coworkers at a Virginia TV station -- before killing himself was a self-described gay man who alleged racist and homophobic treatment in a rambling fax sent to ABC News.

"He says has suffered racial discrimination, sexual harassment and bullying at work," ABC News reports. "He says he has been attacked by black men and white females. ... He talks about how he was attacked for being a gay, black man."

The 23-page fax was sent to ABC News this morning. In it, Bryce Williams described enduring sexual harassment at his workplace. He also described buying a gun and declared admiration for notorious mass shooters such as Seung Hui Cho, who murdered students at Virginia Tech.

But it was the killings at a historic black church in Charleston, S.C., that sent Williams over the edge.

"The church shooting was the tipping point ... but my anger has been building steadily ... I've been a human powder keg for a while ... just waiting to go BOOM!!!!," he wrote. He also noted, "Yes, it will sound like I am angry ... I am. And I have every right to be. But when I leave this Earth, the only emotion I want to feel is peace."

Trending stories

All 6 rogue Mississippi cops got long prison sentences in 'Goon Squad' torture of 2 Black men

40 sexy pics of Colton Underwood, gay 'Bachelor' and official daddy

Christen Press and Tobin Heath celebrate dog adoption in new PETA campaign (exclusive)

11 lesbian & sapphic reality dating shows & where to watch them

Checking out: nhow London, the city’s coolest hotel

A hairy situation! 25 LGBTQ+ celebs showing off their chest hair

'King of Drag’s Pressure K says drag is the 'cheat code' for defeating their trauma (exclusive)

Joe Biden has tied the record for most LGBTQ+ judges confirmed in federal courts

Gays went feral at an iconic Pride celebration in Pensacola, Florida

VIDEO: A man living with HIV discusses his journey to fatherhood

How climate disasters hurt mental health in young people

BREAKING: Supreme Court rules to save free access to preventive care, including PrEP

Electric Forest is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for everyone in the LGBTQ+ community

Wilderness, woods, and Wigstock: Drag icons light up the Catskills

Drag Race's Amanda Tori Meating reveals social media hiatus—here's why

Best LGBTQ+ reality dating shows and where to watch them

This HIV Long-Term Survivor Day, listen to this leader from God's Love, We Deliver

Donald Trump wants to revoke Rosie O'Donnell's citizenship—she claps back

France becomes world’s first country to enshrine abortion rights in constitution

5 lesbian power couples who play on rival sports teams

Out and About with Christian Cooper

Elon Musk uses burner accounts on X, doesn’t fact-check: report

Trump admin guts $258 million in funding for HIV vaccine research

Watching JD Vance's motorcade get ruthlessly roasted will recharge your soul

1985: the year the AIDS crisis finally broke through the silence

Williams's real name was Vester Lee Flanagan; he used the name Bryce Williams professionally. Early this morning he shot to death reporter Alison Parker and camera operator Adam Ward, and wounded Vicki Gardner, the woman Parker was interviewing in Moneta, Va. Gardner is hospitalized in stable condition.

Parker and Ward worked for WDBJ, a CBS affiliate serving the Roanoke-Lynchburg television market. Williams was fired from the station two years ago.

Police tracked him to northern Virginia, where his car ran off the road, and they found him inside, having sustained a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He died at a hospital in Fairfax, Va., about 1:30 p.m., according to ABC.

Just hours after the shooting, Williams posted on Twitter that Parker had once made racist comments, and he had filed a report with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Vocativ reports. His Twitter account has now been deleted, He had sued a previous employer, Tallahassee, Fla., TV station WTWC, in 1999, alleging racial harassment.

His social media accounts contained several posts about his disappointment with the TV news business, and he also described himself as being a model and having been "a high paid 'companion.'"