We came, we chanted, we cheered, we danced—and if we didn’t
completely conquer, we opened some minds and kept the dialogue
alive. We are here; we are queer—and we’re not going away.
We’re LGBT Americans fighting for our rights. And in front of
more than 300 city halls all across the United States and around
the globe, we stood together as one—all of us a multi-colored
manifestation of the Latin phrase that decorates our dollars:
E Pluribus Unum—Out of many, one. We are one nation, from
many colors—and as LGBT Americans, we are all united together.
In Miami Beach, there were more than 600 of us—on a splendidly
sunny day, with the Mayor in attendance, bearing a sign that
read LOVE NOT HATE. There were students and
fathers, Catholic girls and straight chicks, fashion queens and
activists, dog-owners and mothers, sisters and cousins—people of
all colors. One lesbian, with her partner of thirteen years,
addressed the crowd, saying, “I am from
Spain where gay marriage is legal.” The crowd cheered wildly.
“It was not easy,” she continued. Think about it: from the
ashes of Franco’s authoritarian regime rose a progressive
democracy, enabling gay marriage. Here in the US, we are
finally emerging from being Bushwhacked for eight years. If it
can happen in Spain…
There was one lone dissenting voice, from the religious right,
bearing a placard with a Biblical verse. Not the one from Book
of Ephesians, mind you—the verse that advocates slavery
(Ephesians 6:5-8). Funny how you never see that verse from the
religious right when they’re picketing those of us who preach
the love.
All around the nation, we were out in force--4,000 in New York,
12,000
in LA, 10,000 in San Francisco, and
25,000 in San
Diego—reminding the populace of who we are—and why we
matter. We are your neighbors, your family, your children, your
teachers. We are your fellow Americans.
At day’s end, the question arose: What next? And now what?
Well, for one thing, keep talking. Make sure your friends and
family know—who you are and why you matter and how your civil
rights are important—for the betterment of society.
Next on the calendar, there’s Day Without a Gay on
December 10th—a date that also happens to be
International Human Rights Day. Hello? Get the connection?
The proponents of this movement are proposing that all of us as
LGBT Americans think about calling in “gay” to work—and instead,
donate our time to service. Check out their website:
http://daywithoutagay.org
Think about it. Who better than those of us who know so much
about love to help organizations in need of our compassion?
Click here for a list of volunteer opportunities.
And also, in the event that you’re interested in boycotting
those who support hate and intolerance, here’s a link to the
list of those who financially supported Proposition 8:
http://www.hrc.org/news/11542.htm
And as for those Mormons who supplied $40 million to pass
Proposition 8, here’s a link to some of the wealthiest:
http://www.famousmormons.net/bus.html
Boycott or not, from now on, forever and ever, let’s keep
talking—to everyone we know. Let them know how we feel about
having our civil liberties denied us—and let’s try and get them
to understand—it’s all about love. Plain and simple, it’s about
love.
