As I stated in “Marriage Equality Through A Netroots Nation Looking Glass,” I was at Netroots Nation, a progressive conference, this past weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada. My partner, David Badash, and I took part in quite a few panels/caucuses/and discussions about the LGBT movement and where it should/could be heading.
After listening to the panelists for the forum, “Organizing the Equality Movement in the Obama Era,” which was hosted by Rick Jacobs from the Courage Campaign, and included Pam Spaulding of Pam’s House Blend, Evan Wolfson, founder of Freedom to Marry, Arshad Hasan, the training director for Democracy for America, and Thomas A. Saenz, the President for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Equality Fund (MALDEF), I don’t know what I should be feeling.
The view of this panel seems to be as diverse as the number of issues that we must fight for every day. I understand that is what it means to organize equality. It is about every issue, not just marriage, not just immigration, ENDA, or DADT. It is all about equality on each and every issue.
Spaulding talked more generally about rights but ran over DADT quickly, while Wolfson hit on marriage and its importance to the movement in general. Hasan basically talked about the LGBT and progressive movements and how they are NOT in line with one another, and Saenz brought on his view of immigration.
The lack of focus and the huge number of issues that we must fight for is making our movement and our fight seem less important within our own community. How can we focus on all these issues? How can we come together and fight as a united front and not as a divided group? The thing here really is that the percentage of people that are fighting for our rights in the first place is smaller then the majority, so splitting up that small percentage into even smaller ones by not sharing common goals or a shared focus makes our movement obsolete. I believe that all these fights need to be fought, but honestly we can’t fight all of them all the time.
We need to start supporting the people that support us. Reward those fighting for equality by backing them with money, support, and votes. We also need to let those who do not support us know that we are watching and we will fight back. We need a strong ally in the White House. We need allies in Congress, local governments, and in our neighborhoods.
If you look back and see what we have gained during the presidency of George W. Bush and the year and a half we’ve dealt with our proclaimed ally and defender Barack H. Obama, you will notice… not much. Throughout Obama’s campaign it was “I promise ‘this’,” and “We will fight for ‘that’,” but really we’ve seen very little significant action. So how is this any better? I understand that there are things that are better. Small things are beginning to change, but I don’t see any advocacy from the man in charge. (He can talk but fails to deliver.)
Now on the upside, I am encouraged that we are finally getting together to talk. Bringing the minds together to ask questions and to share ideas. However, I feel we don’t do this enough. That we don’t build relationships within our ‘family.’
So really, how have things changed?
In 2006 America voted to CHANGE the house, and in 2008 America again voted to CHANGE, this time it was the presidency and the way the country was to be run. To CHANGE the ‘issues’ that we focus on, or at least the way we look at them.
But where is that change?
Granted, Obama has done quite a few little things for us as progressives and as LGBT. He signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. He’s signed a couple executive orders when he entered office. One was for the withdraw of troops in Iraq, another to close down the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, he also reduced the security given to presidential records. Nominating Sonya Sotomayor to the Supreme Court.
So I’m not saying he hasn’t done anything, I’m just saying it hasn’t been what he promised…for example: when will Guantanamo Bay actually close? When will our troops be out of Iraq? I also know he didn’t promise marriage for the LGBT community, but overall I thought his election would have meant a bigger ally in the White House.
We need to hold all in Congress, the White House, and local Government accountable to their constituents and their promises.