Yesterday, I posted the first in a series of Year in review posts, listing the top 10 posts based on page views. Today, I want to list the top stories or topics more generally, and say something about what I think is coming in the new year.
The Election
The midterm election was a huge topic occupying 5 of the top 10 spots for my blog, and many of the top 50 posts as well. I didn’t expect to get so caught up in the election, and specifically the race for PA Governor. However, I believed that whomever won the governor’s seat would also get the State House, and I felt that for LGBT issues, having a Democrat in there would serve those needs better. That prediction turned out to be correct. we lost the Governor’s seat and also lost the State House.
What to look for in 2011
The coming 2012 election will be a major topic in general from now until then, but in terms of Pennsylvania, I don’t see this taking up much space on my blog. For me, it is back to a focus on issues, and issue advocacy. In that regard, 2011 looks like it may be a pretty rough year for LGBT issues in Pennsylvania. Because we lost the House, we have little control over any committee, and doubtful that even if pro-LGBT legislation is introduced, it may never see the light of day. It looks like we may be again battling an anti-gay marriage amendment to the State Constitution, and it actually has a very good chance of passing. Getting a Constitutional Amendment passed is a long and involved task, but, at least at this point, it looks like the stars are perfectly aligned.
Marriage Equality
Marriage Equality was a big topic on my blog on 2010, and I predict that will continue in 2011. On the National scene, there is the Prop 8 case, where we are waiting for a ruling from the three judge panel in the Federal 9th District. The judges have 2 decisions to make: 1) Does a single county, and an anti-gay group have standing to participate in the appeal of Judge Walker’s decision, and if the answer is yes, will Judge Walker’s ruling stand or be overturned. Technically, it looks as if these two groups may not have standing, and if that is the case, Prop 8 is overturned and same-sex couples can again marry in California, and the case is done. But I predict that the appeals panel will decide that the anti-gay group which wrote the Prop 8 ballot initiative will have standing, and the appeals will move forward.
I wrote a number of posts this past year about the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) and they will remain a major topic on my blog. I predict they will be stepping up efforts across the entire country to impeded same-sex marriage in any way they can. Other groups like the American Family Association, as well as their PA chapter were topics and will continue to be.
Marriage Equality s a two-edged sword. On the one hand, it is a no brainer. Equality means full Equality. On the other hand, Marriage Equality is a distraction from other LGBT issues that some would say are far more important. Especially here in Pennsylvania, marriage is a useless battle at the moment. In no state that now has Marriage Equality, was there ever a state that didn’t fist have basic non-discrimination protections. We still have so much foundational work to do before we can really push for same-sex marriage here on the Keystone State.
What to look for in 2011
Connected, and yet not directly related, the subject of Domestic Partnerships (DP’s) and Civil Unions (CU’s) will be a big topic in 2011. For most Marriage Equality activists, these are unacceptable alternatives to full marriage rights that continue to treat gay and lesbian families as second class citizens. I’d agree with that, but I also feel that in some states, these rights provide couples and families with more than they currently have, and that may be a good next step. For those opposed to same-sex marriage, the reasons are either 1) they want to protect the definition of marriage and/or 2) they don’t want lesbian and gays to have any rights. If it is really #1, then even same-sex marriage foes should be able to get behind DP’s ands CU’s, but I think what we will find is that the anti-marriage groups will fight against even these types of protections, because at the core, the issue of Marriage Equality is all about Equality for those seeking these rights, and all about the perpetuation of anti-gay discrimination based on bad theology for the opponents to these rights. It is all about Religion, and that means this is no small battle!
As I wrote earlier, look for much on a PA anti-gay marriage amendment to the PA Constitution to be a major story. if we are to fight this, it will take gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer folks as well as straight allies to come out and speak out more than ever before. On the Federal level, Prop 8 will continue to move through the courts, and activists are interested in dgetting Congress to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). I don’t have much hope for that happening. The anti- gay forces are operating at 110% effort to stop anything that will advance the recognition of same-sex relationships. They will be fighting to keep DOMA intact.
For my part, I want to focus on articulating what Civil Marriage is, why it is important, and how it is different from Religious Marriage. I believe we will have to draw a line and allow churches which want to discriminate, do that. I’ll be writing much about this in the months to come.
Teen Bullying
I think this was one of the most important stories of 2010, and it was everywhere after a string of teen suicides brought much needed light on the plight of many gay youth. Few stories brought me to a complete stand still, though I did find some energy to do some blogging about it. Out of this, or parallel to it (??) Dan Savage started the “It Get’s Better” project, and the response to that has been amazing. I hope it has provided some content on-line that lesbian, gay, bisexual, or trans youth can find and in their pain, not feel so alone. I’m not always a big fan of Dan Savage, but this project was amazing, and he deserves major kudos for it. I am aware of few resources, aside from the Trevor Project, that is as essential as It Gets Better.
A few interesting twists have also come out surrounding this. The anti-gay forces have really jumped on this issue. They want to be able to bully gay youth. Without that ability, they believe that youth will grow up believing that being gay is OK. How sick is that?So, aside from all the pain they cause and bullying in general causes, at least it has allowed their hate and bigotry to be more clearly seen for what it is.
I’ve thought a lot about this, as I have pondered making my own video for It Gets Better. I wasn’t bullied as a kid. In fact, I was either really well accepted, or at least tolerated through out my schooling. Though in the early 70’s, it was easy to come off as a hippy, and I think that was what many kids and teachers thought of me. Still even without the bullying, I attempted suicide when I was 14. I didn’t even know what being gay was, but I knew I was different from other boys, and I felt isolated and very alone. I think for the longest time, the adult LGBT community has stayed far away from youth issues, generally speaking, because we get accused of trying to recruit. But things are different today. LGBTQ youth see TV/movie and other media  characters who are accepted and embraced, yet on a day to day basis face bullying, discrimination, and isolation. I believe this causes an even greater level of alienation that youth of my generation experienced, because it prompts today’s youth to think that they are the problem. If they were like these TV characters, it might be different. But today’s youth are OK, just the way they are. They are simply coming of age in the midst of the roughest culture war that has perhaps ever happened. It can be brutal and scary out there, and our LGBTQ youth need everyone to care, and have no toleration for bullying.
What to look for in 2011
This will continue to be a top issue as we move through the next few years. It is my hope that our elected officials will see past the rhetoric and recognize this as not being about party politics and see the moral and just thing to do is protect all youth, including LGBTQ youth from bullying.
Non-discrimination
One of the biggest and most damaging casualties of the last few years has been the lack of movement on the Employment Non-Discrmination Act (ENDA) at the Federal level, and HB 300 at the PA State level. One of the short comings of DOMA is that it only applies to the workplace and employment, and various versions of it, have either included or excluded Trans protections. but this legislation is critical if the LGBT Rights movement is to get very far. We have seen in multiple examples this past year where lesbians and gays were fired, simply for being lesbian or gay, such as the recent case of a college coach who was fired when the school learned that her partner was pregnant and going to have a baby. Non-discrimination protections in employment, housing and public accommodations allow gay, lesbian, bisexual , transgender, and those who are perceived as LGBT to live openly, with dignity, and without fear. The anti-gay forces want people to live in fear.It keeps them from truly thriving and being happy, content and fully realized human beings. It is a form of torture. I believe passing Trans inclusive protections is the single most important thing we should all be working towards.
At the state level, HB 300 got farther than it ever had before, yet it was stopped before it could get a full vote because of the ridiculous number of attachments added to the bill in the State House. The bill wasn’t introduced in the Senate, where it had probably no chance, as the Senate was under Republican control, but even in the House, the hindrance to passage, was not the Republicans, but rather, the conservative Democrats. At the Federal level, the story is a bit different. Nancy Pelosi, who is a strong friend to the LGBT community, didn’t allow ENDA to come up for a vote. Some activists thought there were enough votes to pass, while others didn’t, but we will never know. but it is clear that a calculated decision was made to move forward on Dont’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT), and ENDA was set aside. With the House under GOP control it is unlikely that anything will happen with ENDA for the next 2 years.
What to look for in 2011
While I don’t think we will see any movement on these types of bills at the State of Federal level, I do think we will see some municipalities in PA adopt non-discrimination protections. It will also be a time where the LGBTQ community can make major progress at educating legislators as to why these protections are important.
The Hate Agenda
I wrote a number of posts throughout the past year, but especially in the last few months, about what I call, the Hate Agenda. I’m not alone. The Souther Poverty Law Center recently named 3 additional anti-gay groups to their list of Hate Groups, because of the level of lies and misinformation the groups use to target and harm the LGBT community. Their agenda is clear: stop any and all acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queers as a way to impede any progress towards equality, and use whatever lies, misinformation and hate speech needed to accomplish the task.
What to look for in 2011
I think 2011 will be another year of major battles with the Hate Agenda. They have barely begun to fight, and we need to be up to the task. How do you battle the Hate Agenda? With truth, and the stories of real lives and real people. Coming out, and being out is one of the best tools in this battle. In the end, lies will only win over the truth if the lies go unchallenged.
I’m going to pause this for now. More to come, as I continue my year-end wrap up.