Saturday, May 30, 2009

Change we can belive in....Oh! your Gay? Sorry!

Change we can believe in. Yes we can. How many times have we heard or even repeated these phrases in the 2008 election rallies? Change is coming to America...just not for LGBTQ rights to marry. Change is coming to America...just not for the LGBTQ soldier. America, You have been SHORTCHANGED! OK OK! I understand that there is a failing economy. So the President went to work on that. I understand that we are at war on two fronts. So the President went to work on that. But to stay silent on issues when they arise? When they hit you square in the face? Another soldier is being ousted from service for her sexuality! The state of California just created second class American Citizens and a new minority in the United States. The minority in a minority. I'm talking about the married LGBTQ. They are now the minority of the LGBTQ of California. And the President remains silent. We have a saying in this community about the HIV crisis. I'm sure you've seen the posters. SILENCE=DEATH. By staying silent this week about the California Supreme Court ruling, was the President hoping the issue would die and just go away? Well, I'm afraid he has awakened a sleeping giant! This issue will not go away. This issue will hit you square in the face everyday. Now...Mr. President. Every time you open a magazine and see an LGBTQ model. Every time you watch television and see an LGBTQ character. Every time you listen to music and hear an LGBTQ singer. Every time you see a sports program and see an LGBTQ athlete. Every time you ride the streets of Washington D.C. and see LGBTQ citizens. I hope you are reminded of your silence. How, sir, can you explain to your two daughters that they live in a country where rights and freedoms are a fundamental part of the American make-up, and yet remain silent? How do you explain the idea of Black in America can finally achieve yet remain silent? How do you teach the 1960's civil rights movement to them yet remain silent? Sir, you've courted our vote. You've sat at our tables of fundraising. Was it all for naught? Was it all a big lie? Just to get what you wanted? I'm talking about the Oval Office here. Here we, as LGBTQ Americans, thought you'd be a different type of leader. A leader that would stand against prejudice. Finally a leader that would stand on the fundamental freedoms of the American Constitution. But, yet, still, ongoing, you remain silent!
You know, I grew up in the 1960's. I remember black/white water fountains. I remember being the only white child on the street and grown black folks crossing just to give me room. I remember my Father telling me stories about how Black Americans could fight and die for America yet had to use the back door. Had to be segregated into their own barracks. I was an 11 year old boy watching Martin Luther King and saying "that's what I aspire to become". Someone that doesn't tolerate hatred towards others. Someone that believes in others freedoms. I believe that I personally would have been a freedom fighter. Had I been old enough. You see, I believe in America. This was, is, and will ever be, the greatest Country in the world. That's because we have the greatest bond. We have the best piece of paper this side of the Magna Carta. It's known as The Constitution. "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that ALL men are created equal and they are endowed with certain enalible rights. the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. and when any form of government shall endanger these rights, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish such government."

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