Rants, ramblings, vitriol & occasional subversive venom
Gay Rights
Shopping for Groceries at the Hardware Store
Jan 27th
When it’s really clear that one is looking for the right thing in the wrong place, I often use the metaphor of shopping for groceries at the hardware store. Your intentions might be good, but no matter how hard you look, you’re not going to find ketchup in the plumbing aisle (except, perhaps, as a stain on the shirt of the hardware store clerk).
The most recent example of this disconnect is documented in today’s New York Times. The gist of the article is that a considerable number of influential Conservative Republicans are boycotting the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) because the unfortunately-named GOProud political action committee was co-sponsoring the event. Although I’m sure including gay people chafed, this breach of Republican tenets was somehow able to be overlooked by the other more conservative participants of that conference for GOProud to participate in the conference. After all, there are all those supposed gay dollars to be raised. But, for venerable institutions like Concerned Women for America, the Heritage Foundation, and all those other rabid right leaning groups whose names sound like they were created by some Internet conservative organization name generator, the fact that GOProud participated in the planning of the conference was too much for their weak little hearts to take and, thus, the boycott.
Desperation Politics in New York
Oct 11th
It’s probably risky making a judgment about something that’s going on 3,000 miles away. But that’s never stopped me before.
I’m referring to the governor’s race in the state of New York. What it looks like from the other coast is a multi-faceted story of desperation.
On the one hand, it looks like the Republican candidate — Carl Paladino — is engaging in some pathetically desperate moves to garner a few votes and possibly inch forward in the polls. His event yesterday during which he rubbed homophobic elbows with Orthodox Jews is only one such shameless attempt to align himself with people with whom he seems to have nothing else in common but their mutual distaste for gay people. I’m sure his anti-gay invective appealed to that particular audience. But I’m guessing that these so-called religious leaders were not recipients of his racist emails. Did they get to see the horse/human sexual interaction?
Then there’s the desperation of the Republican party. They’re clearly attempting to balance their undying desire to reclaim political power against the very real truth that the candidate that voters chose in the primary is extreme even for them. That part is kind of predictable, but it’s still fun to watch.
The part that’s not so much fun is the poll numbers. Cuomo still has a pretty commanding lead, according to just about every poll out there. But somewhere in the vicinity of 37% of New York voters are still supportive of Paladino. What kind of desperation leads voters to support someone as hateful and out of control as this candidate? And what does that say about the voters of New York? Do 37% of them truly share his extremist views? Or is that 37% of voters simply are willing to overlook the kind of bigotry and insanity that this man presents to us? Either way, it’s pretty scary.
We always hear politicians say how much they “trust the intelligence of the American people.” (It’s kind of a standard answer when a candidate is behind in the polls and they can’t think of anything else to hang their hopes on.) This election clearly brings that trust into question.
A Snapshot of Gay History
Sep 30th
Despite the progress that has been made in the struggle for the equality of GLBT Americans, these past couple of weeks provide a stunning reality check:
- A Senate defense authorization bill is filibustered by Republicans because it included the provision that would have overturned the U.S. military’s Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy. Republicans choose to indulge in their bigotry (either for its own sake or for some sense of political advantage) rather than fund the very troops they claim to be so supportive of.
- A gay blogger gets a not-so-veiled death threat posted in his comments; a little investigation reveals that the threat comes from the office of one of the Senators who championed the filibuster that blocked the passage of that Senate bill.
- A 13-year-old self-identified gay boy in Texas commits suicide by shooting himself in the head after seemingly endless bullying by his classmates at school.
- A talented young violinist leaps from the George Washington Bridge to his death after the public humiliation he faced after his college roommate broadcasts the man’s private gay sexual encounter on the internet.
- A 15-year-old boy in Indiana hangs himself after merciless anti-gay taunting by fellow students.
- A 13-year-old boy in California dies after an extended period on life support following hanging himself. He had been subjected to bullying and teasing about his sexual orientation.
- An Ohio boy has his arm broken by the football players on the team for which has become a cheerleader. The football players continue to threaten him because he has reported the injury to authorities.
- An Assistant Attorney General in Michigan
continuesescalates his bizarre campaign against the openly gay student body president, picketing outside the young man’s home, blogging obsessively about his activities, and appearing on national TV, apparently to extend the scope of his insanity. Michigan’s Attorney General (so far) defends the Assistant AG’s actions and refuses to terminate his employment. - Another ardent right-wing homophobe, Bishop Eddie Long, is accused of taking sexual advantage of his young male parishioners under the guise of mentorship and pastoral counseling. (While all the facts on this have not yet come out, there are now four young men who have come forward with similar highly plausible stories.)
We might still have some work to do. I’m just sayin’.
The Bigotry-Driven Life
Dec 19th
When Barack Obama spoke in August at the Saddleback forum during the presidential campaign, something smelled really stinky to me about Rick Warren. He had all the smarmy earmarks of a latter-day Elmer Gantry. I remember speaking with friends and predicting that we’ve not heard the last of Rick Warren.
Despite my prediction, I had no idea we’d be facing the firestorm that we’re currently facing.
I am so insulted at the choice of of Rick Warren to give the invocation at Barack Obama’s inauguration, I could spit. The gay community and other true progressives are still reeling from the passage of Proposition 8 in California. How can Obama start his term in office with a position of prominence for someone who is so overtly homophobic? Rick Warren is so out of touch with the issues that gay people face that he laughs people ask him if he’s homophobic. He clearly has no understanding of the separation of church and state.
This guy is clearly the heir-apparent to Jerry Falwell. He’s just learned how to package his bigotry a little more slickly to make it a little more palatable — and profitable.
Gay Connecticut, Past and Present
Nov 13th
I couldn’t let the first day of gay marriage in the state of Connecticut pass without a bit of reflection.
Having grown up in Connecticut (run-down mill town Connecticut, not Bette Davis movie Connecticut), it’s astonishing to see the progress that’s been made in the decades since I’ve lived there. The town I grew up in, Winsted, was only about 125 miles from both New York and Boston, but culturally, it was as far away as Wasilla.
My existence there was so sheltered, I grew up literally not knowing that there was such a thing as a gay person. In junior high school, I remember stumbling upon a definition of “homosexual” in a dictionary I had and and feeling that shameful sense of self-recognition. I literally had no information — no Ellen, no Will and Grace, no Advocate. Where I came from, the “love that dare not speak its name” didn’t even know it had a name. I didn’t exactly pretend to be straight, but rather I simply didn’t know that there were any other viable options.
In my late teens, I met someone who was openly gay and whose gaydar was well-tuned. I pretended that my curiosity was purely sociological when he asked me to accompany him to a meeting of the Kalos Society in Hartford, which at the time was equal parts social group, political activism, and group therapy. Afterwards, my eyes were agog when members of the group went to The Warehouse, a gay club that I remember being snugly and discreetly nestled under an entrance ramp to Interstate 84. Until that night, not only did I not know that there was such a thing as a gay bar, I also didn’t know that there were enough homosexuals in the world to keep a gay business of any type afloat.
In the wake of Prop 8′s passage in California, it’s easy to think that we haven’t come very far. But, over the long haul, we’ve made huge progress. Witness Connecticut.
Some Prop H8te Afterthoughts
Nov 10th
It’s been remarkable to see the outcry over the last several days about the passage in California of Proposition 8. For gays and lesbians (and those who love them), the elation that we ought to be feeling wholeheartedly along with our fellow Americans is tempered with the knowledge that the same election that ushered in a new era in politics and government also stripped us of rights that other citizens have.
For me, it’s like deja vu all over again. In 1992, I had just moved to Colorado about a month prior to the November election. The relief we felt knowing that Bill Clinton would soon be in the White House was overshadowed by the understanding that Amendment 2 had also passed in Colorado. Amendment 2 was put on the Colorado ballot and funded by the same hyper-religious zealots that got Prop 8 on the ballot in Colorado. (The California initiative has the dubious distinction of having buckets of money poured into it by the Mormons, who apparently left behind the concept of separation of church and state in Missouri somewhere. And based on election returns this year, we’d be hard pressed to find the concept alive in Missouri today.) Amendment 2 stated that non-discrimination laws that included sexual orientation previously passed by several Colorado municipalities would be deemed illegal.
In the wake of Amendment 2′s passage, the GLBT community in Colorado was stung, taken almost completely off guard by the amendment’s passage. There had previously been a belief, because gays and lesbians were largely able to create pleasant lives for themselves in Colorado, that the work of liberation was complete. It was a giant wake-up call to know that 54% of one’s fellow citizens thought it was alright to be fired or to lose one’s home simply because one was gay or lesbian.
The community took to the streets, held candlelight vigils, organized weekend workshops, bickered about whether a boycott would be helpful or harmful, and did everything in our power to undo the injustice that was done by the election.
Sound familiar?
The lesson to be learned, I think, is that the legal fight to overthrow Amendment 2 wound its way through various courts up to the United States Supreme Court and was finally overturned. But that was nearly four years after its original passage.
I completely support the Prop 8 protest marches and I’m grateful that such marches are popping up all over the country, particularly those aimed at the Mormons and the other churches who completely violated the separation of church and state, and who give new meaning to the term ‘bully pulpit.’ I’m glad people are coming up with creative ways to respond to the inherent injustice of Prop 8.
But I’m also realistic enough to believe that legal remedies are our best option. And while the pace may seem glacial, especially to the instant gratification set, we have to remind ourselves that the struggle for equality has gone on for decades already. The struggle will go on while Prop 8 is being fought, and it will go on long after Prop 8 ultimately goes down in flames.
So, what good has come of this? Well, I can name at least one thing.
In his Special Comment tonight, Keith Olbermann spoke out against the people responsible for the passage in California of Proposition 8. (The complete text of that comment can be found here.) The fact that a straight former sportscaster is going to bat in a big way on behalf of gays and lesbians is an indicator of remarkable progress.
About Prop 8, Marriage Rights, and Civil Rights
Nov 2nd
I realized I’ve been mostly silent on the issue of Prop 8 here in California. There’s no question that I support the defeat of the proposition.
But I guess I’m old school enough to still be focusing on gay rights more than marriage rights. Back in the dark ages, when the issue of gay marriage started to show up regularly as part of the national discourse, somewhere around 1991, I remember feeling uneasy. I feared that focusing the gay rights struggle on marriage would divert the national attention away from the core issue of equal rights. I also was afraid that gay marriage would be just the kind of flashpoint issue that the so-called religious right would latch onto.
Now, lo these many years later, all of that has come true. And, in spite of all that coming true, we’ve made significant headway on the marriage issue. But this progress has been made if not at the expense of gay rights in general, then at least it has marginalized the struggle.
By framing the issue as being about marriage, we’ve managed to tap into the law of unintended consequences and skirted the core issue of rights. So I’m posting a list of Federal rights, as enumerated by the Government Accounting Office (GAO), that are compromised or made unavailable to GLBT people as a result of the failure of the Federal Government to provide a way for us to marry: GAO Marriage Rights
Until the right to marry is provided at the Federal level to all Americans, we’re not going to have true equality. And, until then, we’ll have to revel in the victories on a state-by-state basis.
Logo’s Presidential Forum: The Biggest …
Aug 12th
Before I get too deep into this rant, I guess I should first take a few moments to acknowledge the progress that LGBT folks have made. Six presidential candidates consented to a Presidential forum sponsored by HRC and Logo. (It’s not a surprise that no Republicans participated.) So, compared with previous campaigns, when we’ve had to settle for even smaller crumbs, this represents many steps forward.
That being said, I can’t help but be disappointed in the overall response from the candidates, with a few notable exceptions. Here are some impressions:
- Biggest Disappointment: Bill Richardson. I previously believed Richardson to be more evolved in his views on gay rights and gay marriage. This poor lost soul just kept digging himself deeper into a hole.
- Biggest Mixed Message: Barack Obama. I’ve been a fan of Obama’s since he came on the scene. And I have great respect for his attempts to bring some dignity back to the political process and some hope back to the American people. But, like with several of the candidates at the forum, his appearance seemed a little calculated. This appearance, like other recent appearances of his, revealed that he needs some consciousness-raising.
- Biggest “If-Only”: Dennis Kucinich. This man has the most common-sense approach to gay issues, and most other issues, as well. If only he were 6’2″ with a lantern jaw, he’d be president.
- Biggest Resignation: Hillary Clinton’s inevitable candidacy. Don’t get me wrong. The nation could do a lot worse than with Mrs. Clinton (like with any of the festering tragedies on the Republican side). But Hillary is a polarizing figure, and she’s bound to inspire the wrath of the right wing as we get closer to the election. Silly me. I was actually hoping for a little harmony. (I’m really too old to be this naive.)
- Biggest Unasked Question: “If you don’t support gay marriage, what will you do to ensure that all of the same rights are afforded to all U.S. citizens?” I have to take the panel to task for not holding all of the candidates’ feet to the fire a little more. The right wants to frame the gay marriage issue in a variety of ways, none of which are an accurate representation. They either want to blur the lines between church and state, and impose a particular religious view on others, or they characterize gay marriage as a frivolous issue, as if gay people are merely fighting for the right to register our china patterns at Macy’s. The Democrats, sadly, capitulate to these mischaracterizations all too frequently.The much broader reality of the gay marriage issue is that GLBT people only have a subset of the rights afforded to heterosexual Americans. The gay marriage fight is one attempt to help even the playing field. So when the debate’s moderators failed to dig deeper on this issue and re-frame it in the context of equality, they gave the candidates an escape hatch. How can we expect the Democrats to step up if we don’t even raise the issues?
Where Would Jesus Advertise?
Apr 25th
I almost drove off the road in Indiana when I saw this billboard:
Seeing this billboard made me realize how (relatively) easy it is to be out in places like New York and Los Angeles and, conversely, how much courage it takes to post a billboard like this on the outskirts of Indianapolis. As you might expect, there was all kinds of outrage in the newspapers and on talk radio about this.
Cured!
Feb 13th
It’s amazing. The beloved Pastor Ted Haggard is claiming that he has been “cured” of his homosexuality. In a mere three weeks, Ted and his posse have been able to do what scientists, theologians, philosophers, doctors, and psychologists have never been able to do, as Reuters and other sources have reported.
If you had any uncertainty how out of touch Haggard and his cronies are, this most recent assertion should help clarify things.
I guess we’re s’posed to believe that he was getting busy (for pay) with a male hustler for three years for the purpose of religious and spiritual research.
