Protest Planned for Charlie Crist's Gay Wedding Dec. 12

Protesting a wedding is rude. Just wait for the marriage to implode, and THEN

bring up the beard issue....

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by: NancyP @ Tue Dec 02, 2008 at 21:03:42 PM CST

Prevent it from occuring

Be disrptive enough so that the wedding does not occur.
He is helping to prevent ours.
Time for us to begin to exact a price.

I tell you Chica that no greater abomination exists than women denying their spirit of sisterhood and instead becoming the oppressor. -Rebeca, Universidad Complutense de Madrid

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by: MauraHennessey @ Tue Dec 02, 2008 at 22:30:32 PM CST

[ Parent ]

I voted 'Don't know' ... but

... after reading MauraHennesy comment, I kinda agree.  We've bent over and took their bull for too long.  And even if it is peaceful, those nuts on the right will still make hay out of it.

 No more Mr. Nice Gay.  So be rude.  Be disruptive.  Make that wedding a MOST memorable one.  Yes, we can.

... where Same Gender Love rules.

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by: TaylorSiluwe @ Tue Dec 02, 2008 at 22:38:38 PM CST

Disrput disrupt disrupt

Because they need a taste of what they have done to us.
They will give us freedom and equality only when the price of denying them to us becomes too coumbersome to continue paying.

I tell you Chica that no greater abomination exists than women denying their spirit of sisterhood and instead becoming the oppressor. -Rebeca, Universidad Complutense de Madrid

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by: MauraHennessey @ Tue Dec 02, 2008 at 22:54:37 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Rude, but potentially effective.

If it's done in a dignified fashion.

Disrupting someone's wedding is wrong, and I'm not sure how to show that by disrupting someone's wedding.

Not to mention that when the band plays 'Here Comes the Beard' some innocent woman is ruining her life marrying a gay guy for political reasons--it strikes me as a solemn moment. That's sad.

It just creates a shitty visual to disrupt a wedding, whereas quietly displaying the contrast is good political theater.

Besides, our dispute isn't with Charlie and his beard, it's with the State of Florida. It's not in their personal power to address what we want, so why exaggerate their importance by disrupting their wedding?

But wait, there's more!

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by: PhoenixRising @ Tue Dec 02, 2008 at 23:01:49 PM CST

Well, Crist could have stayed neutral

But he chose to speak out in favor of Amendment 2, which banned not only same-sex marriages but also domestic partnerships.  A fundamentalist group already has plans to sue to stop domestic partner benefits in Hillsborough County.

So, it seems to me that he is a suitable protest candidate.  I wonder about the spectacle of it all, however.  Parts of Florida are still the South, after all.  I can hear my late grandmother now: "Well, those gays are just so rude!"

Oh, and before we shed tears for Carol Rome, the intended beard, let's not assume that she is innocent in this whole affair.  I would be very surprised if she were unaware of the persistent and omnipresent rumors of Charlie's gayness.  Who knows?  Maybe Charlie is bisexual and is really in love with her, although the timing of their engagement (coinciding with his consideration as John McCain's vice-presidential running mate) is suspicious to say the least.

I wish Crist had stayed or spoken out against Amendment 2.  A former Florida Attorney General, Crist has bucked his party before, as in when he promoted the idea that convicted felons who have served their time should not be barred from voting.  He also irritated Florida Republicans when he ordered early voting polls to maintain longer hours in order to accommodate the crush of voters.  I guess convicted felons are more deserving of fairness than gay people.  Maybe it's just that familiarity breeds contempt.

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by: h0ipolloi @ Tue Dec 02, 2008 at 23:54:56 PM CST

News article on the protest - check out the comments!

http://suncoastpinellas.tbo.co...

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by: h0ipolloi @ Wed Dec 03, 2008 at 00:17:32 AM CST

Did I miss Charlie's coming out announcement?!

Or is the gay community organizing this protest based on our collective gaydar?

As far as I'm concerned, Charlie is still just a suspected homo and/or closet case, based on suspicion, anonymous accusations and hearsay.  How can anyone justify protesting this guy's wedding based on that?  After all, coming out is a very personal, ongoing, sometimes lifelong process.  Sadly, many folks NEVER get there and live a lie their entire life.

If Charlie is indeed one of us but is not yet able to admit it, then having a sham wedding and marriage is where he's at with it right now.  A great many of my gay friends originally married an opposite sex partner, only to later realize they could no longer live the lie.  Who are we to judge where he's at in his coming out process, IF that's really what's going on with him?

I guess what I'm saying is, if you're gonna protest the wedding of a bigoted gay hypocrite, you better first be sure he's gay.  In my opinion it's possible he's just one of many bigoted hetero politicians with the legal right to get married.

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by: Naperville Mom @ Wed Dec 03, 2008 at 00:54:23 AM CST

i don't think it's about him being a closet case...

...it's about his vocal support for Amendment 2.

I don't know how I ultimately feel about protesting Crist's wedding, but it's really irrelevant whether he's closeted, bi, straight, asexual, whatever. What sucks is that he encouraged Florida voters to take away our rights, when he could have made other choices.

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by: elizabethws @ Wed Dec 03, 2008 at 07:37:34 AM CST

[ Parent ]

Celebration

In an interview with the online magazine GaySoFla.com, Impact-Florida spokeswoman Lorna Bracewell said the event will be peaceful and respectful. "Our objective will be to celebrate the governor's fundamental right to marry."

This event is not to protest the Gayvenor's marriage because he is/may be gay/bisexual. It will give us free media to show the discrimination of Amendment 2 and let non-LGBTIQQA know that we will not let our fight for marriage equality stop.  

You can lead a fool to knowledge, but you can't make him think.  

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by: Dianne @ Wed Dec 03, 2008 at 08:02:48 AM CST

[ Parent ]

Rude?

We don't dare stand up for our rights because it would be "rude"?  You're friggin' kidding, right?  I don't know about the rest of you, but I am PISSED.  If it were up to me we would picketing EVERY damn wedding.  Maybe you all haven't noticed, but this standing around with our hat in our hand politely waiting for equality isn't exactly working.

Those demonstrations right after the passage of Prop 8 worked.  8% of those who voted for that hateful proposition said after the demonstrations that they had changed their minds.  Fine.  Let's start targeting random weddings to demonstrate at.  Let every couple add the question "Are masses of angry gays going to show up?" to their checklists of wedding day things to prepare for.

I have heard for years the sentiment, when I observed that I boycott, and will continue to boycott straight weddings until I have the right to marry, that I shouldn't do so because it wouldn't be polite to disrespect my friends'/relatives special day.  Well, fuck their special day.  Until we have marriage equality theirs is not a "special day".  Rather it is nothing but an act of heterosexual privilege.

 

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by: Paul In SF @ Wed Dec 03, 2008 at 02:25:12 AM CST

Of course it's a good idea. Why is this a question?

And of course it's about the fact that he's a closet case as well as beign against gay marriage

HE'S TWO MINTS IN ONE!!!!

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by: David Ehrenstein @ Wed Dec 03, 2008 at 08:34:03 AM CST

if ANYONE HAS ANY OBJECTION as to why these two people should not be joined????

Oh no the real deal would be to have someone stand up and object at the very appropriate moment that everyone knows is written into every wedding ceremony. It is written in because marriage it self is between the two people standing in public to say " I am marrying you and you are marrying me". it is not the officiant. and therefore if someone has an objection as to why they should not be married they have the right to speak up or forever hold their piece!!! The perfect moment for the protest to be loud!!! The piss in the pants moment, the moment where the people wold be able to say I object to this man because he objects to us being married by supporting prop 2! the moment the gay lovers whould rise up and say I object because I "did" him or he "did" me and you know...!! LOL
James | December 3, 2008 8:13 AM

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by: jacjr56 @ Wed Dec 03, 2008 at 08:44:30 AM CST

Now THIS idea I like...

I'm not sure I go for the protest idea...How would YOU feel if the gay marriage opponents get pissed at this and start protesting every marrige/union/partnership ceremony in states where gays can legally form a union?

Now, flooding the church with flowers and cards from gay folk and organizations, public announcements of congrats, etc, phrasing our public congratulations to underscore the irony factor, that sounds worthwhile.

When my kids-5&9-don't get their way and throw a tantrum, I refuse them. Period. Until they can calm down and ask nicely and reasonably. I will often cave because of their logic, or at least compromise. People were jolted by the prop 8 protests because in a lot of minds out there, we don't exist in any numbers. Seeing a sea of people denied rights probably jolted a few out of complacent ignorance, and they listened to our arguements. The people we have left to convince are thinking with their guts, not logic or empathy. Targeting a wedding is not going to win more than we lose. Here's an idea. Start cruining engagement and wedding announcements and send these folks cards congrtulating them and hoping to someday be as lucky as they are to be able to legally marry the one they love. The only folks who will be offended are the hardcore homophobes, the simply ignorant will be given a pause, and remember later when it matters that we don't have the same rights they do, and a huge number still think all we need do is make a will and a POA.  

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by: wildclover @ Wed Dec 03, 2008 at 22:17:01 PM CST

[ Parent ]