Equality March Snapshots

I find it interesting how most of the criticism this weekend has been dished out by people within the LGBT and allied community.

It's very discouraging and frustrating when folks verbally attack each other. It comes off as very selfish in many ways. I don't quite understand whose rights you are fighting for... rights for queer youth to wear rainbows on their faces, rights for the drag nuns to dress in any way they'd like to, rights to be obviously trans and still get hired... or just rights for yourself to get a domestic partnership.

Referendum 71 is undoubtedly a pressing issue here in WA. Lets keep in mind this is only ONE issue. If we're unable to dress the way we'd like to because it will be off putting to "potential allies" or as some call the movable middle... I don't quite see it as a legitimate argument, or even an effective tactic. You're no longer fighting to keep the identity of the community. It doesn't matter what the "gay mainstream" is. What matters is every person who wants to express themselves in whatever way that is is supported. Sounds like you are an ally of some sort... saying these folks should stay out and they don't represent the "mainstream" is very hurtful and you're forcing folks to go back into the closet. I wouldn't consider you a bigot Zan-O, I think you have good intentions. But what you're saying, I would consider to be homophobic and bigoted.

When you have people in your own neighborhood confused on how they should be voting this coming election, you know there has to be an additional strategy to reach out to people. The problem isn'... read more e lack supporters, the problem is we don't' have enough supporters going out to VOTE.

Take also into consideration how folks were impacted this weekend. One of the volunteers of the events after attending the this weekend and connecting with many people like him and finding there is support, called his mother during one of the events and came out as gay to her. Hearing that alone made tall the organizing work worth it.

The events were put on by young activists with the support and mentorship of more experienced activists in the community. There was great intergenerational collaboration going on in the planning of these events, it truly represented a vast majority of ideas in the community.

Keep in mind Zan-O, even though we don't know who you are, even though we may disagree as to the impact this weekend had on folks, know we are out there organizing to not only fight for "equal protections in all matters under the law" for LGBT folks and allied folks, we are also trying to create a more accepting community. Having domestic partnerships is not the end all be all. There will still be queer youth getting kicked out of homes, there will still be deep rooted internalized homophobia that cause unhealthy relationships and can also lead to suicide and increase in HIV infection risks.

Cleve Jones' (founder of the AIDS quilt and co-chair of the National Equality March) response on the Anderson Cooper show in reference to Barney Frank's concerns about the march needs to heard by more folks. He said.. no.. a march, a petition, a phone bank, a letter, a check, lobbying... all these things on their own are not enough to create change.. but all of them together.. YES.

I apologize it's such a lengthy response.. but.. I feel I had to state what the intentions were for the march. Zan-o... you are part of the community and I appreciate you expressing your concerns and ging us some input. Sounds like you have an idea of how things can be organized, feel free to visit www.seattleoutprotest.org for updates on the next organizing meeting. Best way to get what you want... is to do it. Time for complaining, criticizing, whining and nonconstructive criticism is no longer appreciated and needed. Time to step up and lead or support a strategy. We already have your vote Zan-o... help us get others.

take care,
Eduardo

uh, Mike ---- it's not like I've lived in CH since yesterday

and the fact you think I might have just because I find hamstringing the movement for gay equality to demonstrations of circus culture indicates some root of the problem (fyi, there's a marked difference between a "lefty group" and a group that advocates the overthrow of the U.S. government, using codewords to propagate support for political violence ... the worst kind of violence of all [if one is worse than another]; unfortunately, the self-righteous and self-assured enjoy ignoring messages of blood-drenched violence as long as it fits with their desire to self-identify habitation in a zone of the self-proclaimed 'creative class', the saddest kind of intellectual ignorance achievable)

I would have to agree with Zan-O. It is hard for me to take someone dressed in costume seriously...

"There were no chicks in the march."

I will apologize for that. From the angle of the photograph I thought it was a woman and not a man. That was unintentional and not intended as a slight.

"The point of these groups dressing up as drag nuns is to be visible."

Al-Qaeda creates a lot of visibility for Islam, too, and Fred Phelps creates a lot of visibility for Christianity.

This has nothing to do with transgender, this is a circus freak show designed to fulfill a masturbatory desire for attention.

You think that kind of visibility is beneficial when you're beating the drum that to a family in rural Lewis County that gays are normal, average, everyday people, too? If so, you're really disconnected and you may want to alight into your golden chariot to descend off The Hill every now and again ... or even once.

This is a hysterical sideshow and nothing more. It's not to be taken seriously and it won't be taken seriously by anyone outside of a 30-block radius of Broadway & John.

As the often erudite Barney Frank said last week, these marches are "only putting pressure on the grass."

Zan-0, you just compared charitably oriented drag nuns to Al-Qaeda and the the extremist far right. You just compared an LGBTQ group to parties that would burn them at the stake if they had the chance. Dressing up and looking non-mainstream doesn't make people violent and closed-minded, just so we're clear.

clearly you're a lunatic

This is the prob ... no one under the age of 200 remembers 1960-whenever, it's not relevant to 90-percent of the gay population - just the extremely vocal, self-appointed - mostly old and decrepit, 30, 40 and 50-something - leadership caste and a very small number of young hangers-on they've conned into following them. The bulk of the Washington gay population is as fed-up with these street circuses and ridiculously demonstrative buffoonery as everyone else. You, however, have yourself so insulated from the real world that you think you actually are, somehow, representative of mainstream LGBT rather than an off-kilter fringe that's co-opted the LGBT community.

Your choice of verbiage belies your own agenda that is at odds with any real notion of progress for gay rights. Your use of sexual epithets to describe Congressman Franks belies your agenda and the destructive path it's weaving on the LGBT community.

People like you occupy a weird niche in time. You're rejected in wholesale by young gays and old gays, it's just that weird middle-age group of bears with whom you can find comfort. My opera tickets are next to an older gentleman in his early '80's who is gay (at least I'm 90% sure he is because he's unmarried and he once offered to show me how to fold my pocket square when my girlfriends were unable) and I can tell you, he is a gentleman of refinement and class - not this proletariat street circus nonsense. He'd be as non-plussed at the idea of being represented by this freak show as pro-LGBT straights like myself are ...

Wasn't even worth a skim. You lost me with your prior hate filled comment.

You can't fight hate with hate.

"I'm certainly not willing to risk a person's right to march with us just because you think it's going to turn off voters."

That's fine, sweetie. That's absolutely your right.

In RealPolitik, however, you will meet with total failure at the ballot box (see: Prop 8) if you make the choice to not be sensitive to the realities of group dynamics but we all make choices and you've made yours. Best of luck, honey.

BTW - D&D players are all anti-social, school shooter lunatics. You should know that if you know any.

Once again, your words reveal your dogged determination to paint yourself into a corner of complete and utter irrelevance. They reveal your choice of self-insulation into a tiny fringe of the surreal is so complete that you actually think this is how 99% of the population behaves.

At no time during my two years in Paris were the characters in the circus of the bizarre viewed as anything more than they are here: a fringe group of street trash, ridiculed by the mainstream of society and locked-out at every level through social norms that don't require laws to enforce.

It takes very little to make or repeal laws. It takes a lot more to craft or change attitudes. Until LGBT cast-off the yoke of the dictatorship of the surreal there will never be any real success; at best some rewritten words in the RCW and USC.

You need more people like Photo #1, less people like Photo #2, 3 and 4. Unfortunately, you've chased all of the Photo #1 types away with your complete and total lunacy.

Honey, I didn't have time to read your speech but if you wanna bullet-point it I'll give it the once over.

While we disagree, yours is at least a tempered, sensible and erudite reply and interesting dissection of issues and ideas; not the hysterical and shrill cacophony of the others.

If you want people to take you seriously on an issue, you should probably leave your chain mail armor, potions, and sword at home. Or whatever costume you wear. I'd be more likely to give you candy than support your cause/issue.