Two days after the thwarted assassination attempt, unable to reach Sipple, Caen wrote of Sipple as a gay man, and of a friend of Milk, speculating Ford offered praise "quietly" because of Sipple's sexual orientation. Sipple was besieged by reporters, as was his family. His mother refused to speak to him. Gay liberation groups petitioned local media to give Sipple his due as a hero. Caen published the private side of the Sipple's story, as did a handful of other publications. Sipple then insisted to reporters that his sexuality be kept confidential. Reporters labeled Sipple the "gay ex-Marine", and his mother disparaged and disowned him. Later, when Sipple hid in a friend's apartment to avoid them, the reporters turned to Milk, arguably the most visible voice for the gay community. Of President Ford's letter of thanks to Sipple, Milk suggested that Sipple's sexual orientation was the reason he received only a note, rather than an invitation to the White House. However other sources indicate that Sipple's parents never fully accepted him. His mother, just after news broke of Sipple's sexual orientation, hung up on Sipple saying she never wished to speak to him again. His father is said to have told Sipple's brother to "forget had a brother." Finally, when his mother died, his father did not allow him to attend her funeral.