If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
The passage of time shows us that change is inevitable and progress is eventual. But we often can't see this looking ahead.
Folks turned up to be a part of the second inauguration of Barack Hussein Obama with hope in their hearts and a dream in their eyes. America was alive that day in Washington.
Several have noted the president's unapologetic tone in his second inaugural address. With the whole world watching, it was a call to action to end discrimination against gay and lesbian Americans. For that we can be proud. I know I am.
Obama's speech cleared up any lingering doubts about his commitment to LGBT equality. He signaled that he views this topic as more than a political issue to give lip service to. What we heard was a man who considers LGBT equality an important legacy issue.
The president's words struck me to the core. Just as I became an accidental activist when I transitioned, I was an accidental participant in the Stonewall uprising when I stumbled upon the chaos when I was trying to attend a concert at the Village Vanguard on the night of June 28, 1969.
Richard Blanco was the perfect choice for inaugural poet, embodying the rich kaleidoscope of our nation's people. He was conceived in Cuba, born in Spain, and came to the U.S. when he was two months old. Like Obama, he grew up negotiating different identities. And like the president, he loves his country.
It is vital to view the history of the Stonewall rebellion much more closely and not let that fight be reduced to simply the right of gay and lesbian Americans to get married. It is important to note that at the forefront of the fight were two transgender women, Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson.
A top first 100 days recommendation is for President Obama to sign an executive order to prohibit companies that receive contracts from the federal government to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.
Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications has revealed a passion within me for journalism and reporting that reached its highest peak this past weekend in Washington, D.C.
Somewhere in America there are little girls dreaming about being the first lady or the first female president, and Michelle's clothes give them hope... hope that they too can defy society's expectations and stereotypes.
The President gave a strong and progressive second inaugural speech, one that resonantly underscored the most important themes he's been promulgating since before anyone even knew who he was. What I don't see is the path that goes from our budget constraints to meeting the aspirations he articulated.
I had planned to go to Washington for the inauguration of President Barack Obama. But then the flu happened, and I decided it would be wiser to stay home than to take the bus to DC from Jersey and stand outside for who knows how many hours, coughing away in the winter weather.
That budget needs to expand, to take on the challenges that the President has powerfully outlined. Yet that budget has been shrinking for thirty years, on a declining trajectory started by Reagan and continued by every president since then -- including Obama in his first term!
What America needs now is not a new guest worker program but genuine immigration reform. Most Americans who aren't wealthy don't ask "guests" into their homes to do work on an almost permanent basis. Likewise, let's be honest about the term "temporary" worker.
By referring to the Stonewall riots in the same sentence as Seneca Falls and Selma, Obama put the LGBT rights struggle within the context of the great civil rights movements in American history. When the first African-American president says that discrimination is discrimination, that is profound.
With the country drowning in debt, why go through such a costly and excessive ceremony for a guy who already has the job? If that sounds negative and anti-American to you, well, you're wrong. It isn't. It's anti-waste.
