Yesterday's decision by the California Supreme Court to uphold Proposition 8's ban on gay marriage is a sad, though expected, decision.
Now gay Californians have no way legally to protect themselves; they have zero legal recognition. All these couples have are California state domestic partnerships, which provide every single legal protection that marriage provides. The difference being the use of that dreaded (antiquated) "M" word.
The gay movement, seeing the Prop 8 decision as the end of the world, had rallies all around the country. These are the same type of reactionary rallies that have been staged by gay activists in the New York area over the last several months. I've expressed my view that these rallies were counterproductive and wouldn't change any hearts or minds. New polling in New York shows that I was right.
Over the last month, gay marriage support in New York has fallen 14 percent. This is a fairly stunning turnaround, with drops among independent voters, New York City voters, young voters, women and African-Americans.
Not that any of this is shocking, exactly. New York Gov. David Paterson's (D) job approval is a pathetic 18 percent. It's not helping gay marriage that Paterson has made it one of his major issues -- it's actively hurting our chances at marriage equality in New York.
The gay movement needs proper focus and fresh ideas, not more rallies, if we want to keep our forward momentum.
Originally posted on The Hill. Visit Ryan's blog & follow him on Twitter.
Meet in the Middle is a rally that I am attending this Saturday in Fresno. I'm going because Fresno reminds me of where I grew up in Concord, North Carolina. A small town where there was NO gay influence (in the 80s may be different now). I'm going to the rally so that some of the children who have been completely sheltered from a gay life will see us.
I'm going to Fresno so that Gay Evangelical Children who are holding signs saying awful things about themselves will see that their very own homosexual feeling are just possibly not going to lead them down the road to hell and damnation. I'm going to go in the hope that 1 gay evangelical child will learn to love him/herself as they are sometime in their future. I'm going so that 1 evangelical gay child might not turn out to be rabidly homophobic and lead his state and his people into passing anti-gay legislation. I'm going so that one gay evangelical kid doesn't turn out to become Tim Haggard. I'm going in the hope that someone else might derive hope from the rally.
That being said, part of the multifaceted approach to a civil rights movement is having peaceful protest. You can't just sit at home and write checks to have commercials play on television and expect people to give you rights.
As far as the 14% drop in approval rating, I'm wondering if really evil commercials and really horrible pamphlets are being distributed throughout the state. That's what happened in California. They are coming for your children, what's next beastiality, they are pedophiles, they will also want to marry turtles, we won't be able to have sunday services anymore, and so on and so on. . . I'm guessing something like that is responsible for the drop instead of a few thousand people in new york city having a peaceful demonstration. Unless you back that statement up, it holds no truth.
You failed to make your case. Writing a (very brief) article emphatically stating your opinion of why a poll turned a little negative in New York did not support your point.
The right answer? When civil rights are abridged for a minority, that minority needs to get out there and be seen. Come out of the closet. Write and call and visit politicians. Write editorials. March. Keeping quiet and staying home has always been the minority's worst strategy.
I've spent my life feeling like an evil criminal for who I love. No more. I served my country and paid my taxes, and now I want to be treated like the person I am.
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our invisible soft power seeping into the straight consciousness is most obvious when opponents carp about the superficial style points of civil protest such as what we look like screaming on tv, what language we use when we let off steam, what history they avoid admitting, what we look like on a float, how we use our hands, and which particular misread bible passages they think send us to hell.
As long as we allow the religious right's obsession regarding the use "genital sharing", and with whom we deign to share them with, we're lost. It's none of their GD business.
It is strictly a matter of "Civil Rights", nothing more. Obama should put his foot down on this, and DADT, and use the refrain sung by Stubby Kaye in "Guys and Dolls".....
"Sit down, Sit down,Sit down,Sit down, Sit down you're rockin' the boat."
We do best not when we play the political games of "strategy" but when we get ourselves out there and plead our cases.
We will get nowhere as long as we are not seen and heard.
It is tough to vote against a neighbor it is easy to be against some "Strategy and focus"
We'll get more support for equal rights if we push for the right to be ourselves in all the mad splendor than we will if we push for right to be what we're not - straight.
and if you are not supportive of equality because of superficial negative style points, you were never a supoorter to start with.
civil unrest, like democracy, is messy. but you know that we're not like to be violent, just more visible and undecorous as we let off steam and figure out how 95% of the world can let us live inpeace and equality.
Well, let's start by letting a little common sense and intelligence back in to the discussion. This is not about a word, it is about equal rights. And the rights are not equal for gays and lesbians in CA. Good grief. Like get a clue. Marriage, by virtue of the arrangement granted by the State, automatically get federal benefits. Those benefits are not granted to domestic partnerships. If you don't think that's a big deal try giving them up next year at tax time.
I agree that rallies dont really do anything - go to any of them and you see "marriage NOW" next to "legalize pot" or "free tibet" or "meat is murder" signs. It just gets to be a big progressive jumble.
Those leaders that are particularly good at relating to those outside the LGBT community are rarely listened to as leaders from within the community.