| I just received a rapturous email from the Stonewall Democrats about Barack Obama's acceptance speech last night. Here is their assessment of what Obama said at one point in the speech: "As you know, last night Senator Barack Obama - in his nomination speech - called upon politicians to discontinue their attempts to scapegoat LGBT Americans for political gain." I'm pretty sure I watched the same speech they did. I don't recall Obama making that statement. I did hear him say this: "I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in the hospital and to live lives free of discrimination." If I am mistaken, please correct me. This is what drives me absolutely crazy about cheerleading - especially when the cheer is more significant than the cause for the excitement. Obama gave us just about the same attention that we received every night from other speakers at the convention. I would argue that his nod in our direction is actually a bit harder to accept than the more general statements made by Kennedy, Clinton and others. Obama still finds it acceptable to say aloud - let alone to his largest audience ever - that he is willing to fight for our right to visit the person we love in the hospital? Is that really the best we can hope for in the next 4 or 8 years? Things must be much worse than I ever thought they were. We still have to fight for politicians to agree that hospital visitation is not too liberal? Believe me - I get it. The differences between Obama and McCain aren't even worth wasting the breath it would take to enumerate. I know Obama is worthy. I know this is an historic election and his long past due nomination is a dream come true and that Obama is worthy of the nomination, the attention and the Presidency. I also know that my citizenship has been marginalized and pissed upon for (at least) the past 8 years. I know that in that period of time two State Supreme Courts have said it is unconstitutional to deny me the right to marry. I know that the previous Democrat elected President signed legislation that trumps my constitutional right to full faith and credit in the country. I know that Obama hasn't signed UAFA. I know that his Party is destroying ENDA. I know the Party is on the brink of sinking hate crimes legislation. And what does he give us in the fabulous meal of red meat that was grinded out last night? A wink and a nod and hospital visitation rights as a substitute for justice. We can get off our addiction to foreign oil, we can chase Bin Laden to his cave, and we can work toward gaining equal pay for women but it's going too far to say: I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to be allowed to earn a living (ENDA) and to live lives free of discrimination. or I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to be protected from hate crimes that occur far too often in our country and to live lives free of discrimination. or I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve federal recognition of the families they have created and to live lives free of discrimination. He should have said nothing. I could have dealt with his silence much better than I am coping with the idea that after 8 years of Bush and the 8 years before that of DOMA and DADT and Abstience Education that the best we can hope for is hospital visitation as an extension of our citizenship. Support and promote his candidacy, Stonewall Democrats, just don't make a claim that Obama said more than what he did. In this instance the Stonewall Democrats are using the LGBT community for political gain which is exactly what they say Obama vowed not to do. |
