Activism: From The Books To The Phones

TNG regular BlueSeqPerl brings us this post.

I want to share my personal path with political activism from the books to the march to the phones. I will explain how political activism has impacted me and required me to explore unknown territories. Also, these experiences showed me the inherent good in the American people.

The Books
I came out when I was a junior in high school. Since I did not know of any other gays, I read about the gays and more specifically the gay rights movement including:

• Drag queens riot at the Stonewall Inn police raid in 1969.
• The election of out Harvey Milk as city supervisor in 1978. His influence in politics and the Briggs Initiative, a California proposed amendment to fire gay teachers. He gave his hope speech, which is below:

"And the young gay people in the Altoona, Pennsylvanias and the Richmond, Minnesotas who are coming out and hear Anita Bryant in television and her story. The only thing they have to look forward to is hope. And you have to give them hope. Hope for a better world, hope for a better tomorrow, hope for a better place to come to if the pressures at home are too great. Hope that all will be all right. Without hope, not only gays, but the blacks, the seniors, the handicapped, the us'es, the us'es will give up. And if you help elect to the central committee and other offices, more gay people, that gives a green light to all who feel disenfranchised, a green light to move forward. It means hope to a nation that has given up, because if a gay person makes it, the doors are open to everyone."

The Briggs Initiative failed to pass. Unfortunately, Harvey Milk was assassinated within less than a year of being in office.

By doing this personal research project, I learned how these civil rights pioneers shaped our country as we see it today. I feel very fortunate to enjoy the privileges these men and women fought for before me. It allowed me to feel like part of a group as I was trying to figure out my identity like any other teenager.

The March
Fast forward to the present, I continue to read articles and books on how the gay civil rights movement has made progress and suffered struggles in the past 39 years. I have read both sides of the argument to keep a somewhat balanced viewpoint.

In November 2008, the American people elected its first biracial president, a monumental victory in America’s history, while at the same time stripping certain Americans of their rights for the simple fact of who they love. In 4 states including supposed liberal California, anti-gay measures passed. California passed Proposition 8, which eliminated marriage between two people of the same sex. A right that had been granted to Californians only months beforehand.

I among many other Americans found the results of November 5th to be bittersweet.

In reaction to Proposition 8’s passage, Americans in cities across the country marched in protest. My boyfriend and I participated in the march in Washington. To quote, Sylvia Rivera, a trans woman at the Stonewall riots: “I’m not missing this, it’s the revolution.” I was glad to see people of all shapes and sizes come and support the march. To be honest, I was nervous. I have seen how peaceful marches can escalate into violent riots very quickly. I was pleasantly surprised by people’s benevolent behavior in the crowd and the curious confused expressions of tourists and locals as this massive crowd proceeded to the White House. While it rained the entire time, the vibrant and passionate collective warmed the chilled individual. I was proud to be part of that statement.

The Phones
Fast forward to the last weeks of February, a proposed Charter Amendment is up for a vote in Gainesville, FL that would strip sexual orientation and gender identity from the city’s anti-discrimination ordinance. If passed, it would be legal to terminate, deny housing, or refuse restaurant service to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals.

In DC, HRC organizers asked people to volunteer for a phone bank to call voters to vote no on this amendment. Now, I have to say that I have a deep loathing for telemarketers. But after marching in November, I had a spark lit under my bum, so I volunteered. I would also like to say that this experience threw me out of my element. I prefer people to come to me with their questions, a customer service model. This task required me to be aggressive by calling voters and persuading them to prevent discrimination in their hometown. I cannot sell something to save my soul, but I gave this a shot. I was pleasantly surprised by how responsive people were to my calls. After 2 hours of calls, I felt I had mastered this new skill of persuading people to vote against discrimination, and felt I contributed to the civil rights cause.

Over the past 10 years, I have transformed from pupil to activist in our country’s civil rights movement. These experiences showed me how to leave my comfort zone and how responsive people when given the opportunity to rise up against opposition. I would ask each of you to rise to the challenge and be part of this cause. As you mull over my request, I want to end with a quote from Martin Luther King Jr.:

"An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity."