Big Gay Weekend

This is going to be a big weekend in the world of gay rights. Tonight, President Obama will deliver a speech at a dinner and fund raising event for the Human Rights Campaign, the largest gay rights lobbying group and political action community in the nation. On Sunday, the National Equality March will take place, and it is a march that will draw attention to gay rights and the demand for equal protection under the law. The rights gays and lesbians are asking for are simple: the right to go to school or work and be free of harassment, the right to go about our daily life and be protected from hate crimes, the right for equal health care and benefits, the right to donate blood, the right to marry, and the right to serve in the military (this quick and easy list is courtesy of the National Equality March Web site). In a nutshell, we basically want all of the rights guaranteed to straight men and women. Yet, these are rights that have been denied largely because of political posturing or religious preaching.

Although there are a number of rights that gays and lesbians are denied, the two hot-button political issues right now are the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT).

Defense of Marriage Act:
DOMA was passed by congress and, sadly, signed into law by President Clinton in 1996. The law states that the federal government defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman and that states are not required to recognize same-sex marriages even if the marriage might be recognized in another state. Individual stats can pass their own laws that recognize (or ban) same-sex marriages or civil unions, but what the gay and lesbian community is fighting for is federal recognition and federal rights. The arguments for banning same-sex marriages vary. Many people like to use religious standards and argue that because the Bible says homosexuality is immoral and an abomination we should not allow or recognize same-sex marriages. These people take the Bible for its word, stand by it, and have a very literal and inflexible interpretation of it. Yet, this same Bible also states that a woman, who is not a virgin at the time of her marriage, should be stoned by the community. I wonder if there is a man, who stands by the Bible's claims of homosexuality, would also be willing to stone his wife right now if she wasn't a virgin when she married. The Bible also says that if a man sleeps with another man's wife, both he and the woman should be put to death. If this were the case, we wouldn't have many politicians left in Washington right now. The Bible also says that you must detest and not eat any creature from the sea unless it has fins and scales. So shrimp and lobster are out.

People also say that allowing same-sex marriages will destroy the sanctity of, in the words of Miss California, "opposite" marriage. Well, I honestly don't think that gay people running out and getting married brought the divorce rate among straight people to 50 percent. Many of my friends' parents are divorced and, sadly, a few of my friends are getting divorced themselves, but I doubt that any of these divorces were cause by gays and lesbians.

Don't Ask, Don't Tell:
Don't Ask, Don't Tell prohibits any service member—read gay or lesbian service member—from disclosing or discussing his or her sexual orientation. It also prohibits officers from asking about a service member's sexual orientation. Gays and lesbians are essentially forced to stay in the closet and forced to keep quiet. They are prevented from discussing whatever relationship they might be in. However, straight men and women are free to openly discuss their relationships, their boyfriends or girlfriends, or their husbands or wives. There is still a belief that having openly gay men and women in the armed forces would destroy the morale and cohesion of the troop. It would be a distraction and a threat. I'm not sure how other people feel, but if a service member is threatened by homosexuality, how can you feel safe having that person stand by you and defend you in battle? I don't care if you are willing to take a bullet for your country, if you're threatened and afraid of a gay man or woman fighting beside you and willing to take the same bullet, you are a coward. And how would people who favor DADT explain stories of women in the armed forces who are harassed, abused, and raped by men? I doubt they are being raped by the gay soldiers!

In spite of the fact that we are fighting multiple wars, soldiers continue to be discharged from the military for being gay. Many of these men and women are specialists and Arabic translators, and you would think that these are the people we need most right now. Yet, because they are considered a "threat," they are let go. It's astonishing and unbelievable.


Monday, October 12, also happens to be the 11th anniversary of the murder of Matthew Shepard, a young man who was beaten, tortured, and left to die on a fence in Laramie, Wyoming. His attackers later admitted that they targeted him because he was gay. An this sad event and hate crimes in general are other issues that need to be brought up this weekend. This weekend, with President Obama's speech at the HRC dinner and with the March for Equality, gives the gay and lesbian community and opportunity to put their issues back on the table. Unfortunately, many gay rights activists have been highly critical of Obama because he hasn't yet done anything for gay rights and he hasn't acted out on any of his campaign promises. I'd be the first to admit that we need changes and that these basic rights should be extended to the gay and lesbian community, however, I also think that this heated criticism of Obama is premature and counter-productive. Obama has been in office for only ten months, and he walked into a situation where we were facing an economic and financial crisis and several wars. There are just some issues that needed more immediate attention. I think that if the gay and lesbian community really wants to make progress, they need to remain patient and, most importantly, remain supportive of the one person who has the potential to bring about these changes. Obama's campaign was built on hope and the slogan "yes, we can," and we need to remember this as we keep fighting. It might be a struggle and a long road, but it is something that shouldn't be given up.