Of Steers and Queers

Perry and a group of Boyscouts at the Boyscouts Of America
Annual Report Conference.

Is The Gay Community Ready For Another Texan Presidency?

"It shaped my view of the area and taking a hint from Lot’s wife, I vowed never to look back. I felt really bad for the entire state. I couldn’t quite imagine a life without culture, diversity or pride. It seemed to me that even the livestock almost looks down their noses at people in Texas."

Allen West and Debbie Wasserman Schultz - Together At Last?

If you're looking for any evidence that the Debt Ceiling Vote was truly a compromise for both Democrats and Republicans, you needn't look any further. Both Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) and Allen West (R-FL) have both voted in favor of the legislation.

What's ironic about this pair falling on the same side of our nation's most contentious debate this year is that they've been sparring over this very issue with vigor unmatched by any other dueling legislators.

According to the Schultz camp, West is a "sexist" and waging a "war on women and the elderly". According to Allen West himself, Schultz is "not a lady" and therefore doesn't deserve his respect.

Another unlikely pair of legislators to fall in line with each other for obviously very different reasons would be Alcee Hastings (D-FL) and Michele Bachmann (R-MN). Bachmann, a Tea Party member like West, is the legislator who championed the idea of not raising the debt ceiling in the first place. Both Hastings and Bachmann voted against the debt ceiling compromise bill.

If these two (Allen West and Debbie Wasserman Schultz) can agree on a compromise - there is indeed hope for the rest of us... Or is there?

Recently, the Wilton Manors Business Association (WMBA) was forced to cancel an invitation for Allen West to speak at their event on August 8th. The speaking engagement was first championed by Celeste Ellich, the owner of a real estate agency, who is currently President of the association.

A number of association members were unhappy about West being asked to speak at the engagement and a few threatened to withdraw their membership. Some boycotts were haphazardly started and a petition began circulating.

According to sources close to Ellich, she even claimed to be receiving "death threats" over the situation. This claim of death threats has not been verified by anyone.

So why were the businesses so upset? Evidently, a lot of it has to do with West's anti-gay rhetoric and disrespect for women - particularly Schultz. In fact, a non-partisan organization made up of business owners and community activists in the Fort Lauderdale area has been set up to continue carrying the torch against West's rhetoric at future events.

As a disclaimer, I joined this coalition yesterday.

The following is the organization's only official statement to the press thus far:

A non partisan group of community and business leaders was formed
today, entitled 'The Coalition for Equality and Fairness (CEF)', to create
an organization designed to protect citizenship diversity and stand up to public
officials who are bullying the LGBT community in order to advance their
own political and personal agendas.

The first order of business for the CEF will be to conduct an open and public educational rally next Monday, August 8, at 6 p.m., in Wilton Manors, entitled 'Allen West: In His Own Words'. Our purpose is not to censor anyone; it is rather to censure those who attempt to abuse us.

The Coalition will be issuing a mission statement on Wednesday evening defining and
articulating its purpose and objectives, at which time the venue for the community rally and gathering will also be announced.

To participate in the rally or the initial organizing efforts of the CEF, please send an expression of interest to norm@normkent.com, co-ordinating outreach at the present time.

Rick Santorum Is A Mortal Sinner by Vatican Standards

My hope for gay rights activists going into 2012 is that we can focus our protests and actions on those who richly deserve to be protested and acted against.

Too many activists, it seems, are going off on tangential facebook rants about Barack Obama’s lackluster non-support of gay marriage. This ignores the culpability of Congress in not passing legislation to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which Bill Clinton signed into law not too long ago. DOMA is an unconstitutional law because it dictates standards for marriage to all of the 50 states – a power that the Federal Government cannot have. The United States Constitution says verbatim:

Amendment 10 - The powers not delegated to the United States by the
Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States
respectively, or to the people.

Since marriage is not one of the enumerated powers of the Federal Government, it MUST belong to the States or the People. It is the responsibility of the Congress to admit their mistake and pass a repeal law. When they do this, it will be Obama's responsibility to sign the repeal law as he did with repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT). Many people in Congress are failing us right now because they are disobeying the Constitution every moment that they do not repeal DOMA.

One such person is former Senator Rick Santorum who frequently cites the Constitution of the USA in other debates. He relies on his Catholic upbringing for his argument against gay marriage, however.

Interestingly though, Santorum’s allegiance to Catholicism might be his downfall in his current run for President of the United States. Why? It is because in the process of campaigning, he has already committed two mortal sins.


In 2008, The Holy See under leadership of Pope Benedict XVI added seven “new sins” to the list of mortal or “deadly” sins to make a total of 14. While such a decision strikes non-Catholics as somewhat arbitrary, the Holy See is not to be disrespected or defied by practicing Catholics and the rules stand. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that “immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into Hell”.


The Vatican made it quite clear that “promoting torture” is a mortal sin because “torture, which uses physical or moral violence to extract confessions, punish the guilty, frighten opponents, or satisfy hatred is contrary to respect for the person and for human dignity.” Thus, in respect to the 5th Commandment, the verbal promotion of torture or cruel experiments by a Catholic media person or politician creates what the church calls “scandal”.

Scandal, in Catholic terms, is about as bad as it gets – it means that you are “wolf in sheeps clothing”. The Bible says of one who creates religious scandal that they’d be better off to tie a stone around their neck and drown themselves than to deal with the Lord himself.

Here is a link to Rick Santorum being disingenuous about and promoting torture: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0511/55140.html

Another mortal Sin that Santorum has flippantly ignored his culpability in is promoting pollution of the environment.

According to Archbishop Gianfranco Girotti of the Holy See, “environmental blight” is a particularly grave sin because it affects so many people globally who cannot defend themselves. The Archbishop cited climate change specifically on this matter.

Here is a link to Rick Santorum shamelessly denying that Climate Change (Global Warming) even exists at all:
http://thinkprogress.org/green/2011/06/24/253389/santorum-theres-no-such-thing-as-global-warming/

Now, obviously, some will argue that the mere promotion of policies which may or may not lead to such sins is a murky area in moral law and that the Santorum should not be held religiously accountable for his words… Its fine for a non-Catholic to hold that opinion but the Catholic leadership totally disagrees.

It goes back to the Holy See’s staunch refusal to support Scandal… Sins which are promoted on a mass scale via media or social networking are considered Scandal and for a Catholic to commit these acts… Well, there’s always the stone-around-the-neck routine…

Catholic Democrats have been denied Communion in the United States on more than one occasion due to their perceived “promotion” of abortion and stem-cell research. Being denied Communion is basically the Catholic Church’s way of saying “Go to hell”. John Kerry, a Presidential candidate like Santorum was one such person in 2004.

Why I "perceive" Rep. John Kline to be a Total D!ck

As we all know, Barney Frank (D-MA) is going to re-introduce ENDA (the Employment Non-Discrimination Act). Initially, the bill was attacked by both liberals and conservatives alike for different reasons.

The first few rounds were met with frustration from transgender advocates and anti-bullying advocates because it only covered "sexual orientation" as its LGBT protection. Therefore, some transgender persons felt vulnerable because employers would likely claim that transgender persons could be discriminated against under the notion that it's not really their "orientation" or their "gender" that is being scrutinized.

Some were also dissatisfied because a person who is only perceived to be gay or straight by their peers should be protected equally as well. You know... some people might get fired just because of their mannerisms.

Barney Frank and other Democrats finally gave in and said 'no more half measures' so now the new ENDA bill specifically protects transgender people and "perceived sexual orientation" as well... In a nutshell, this means that if an employee SEEMS like a gay person to you, that's not an excuse to fire them either.

This is not the first law to protect people on the basis of their "perceived" sexual orientation - the Mathew Shepard Act features the same language.

Now, the biggest problem that conservatives say that they have with measures like ENDA is their fear that Religion will be affected adversely and their morals will be compromised. That's gone now too - because the new bill exempts religious organizations from having to hire LGBT persons if they don't want to.

But this time, the big hurdle that ENDA must cross is Rep. John Paul Kline (R-MN) who said as part of his campaign that "Job creation is his #1 priority".

Kline is now painting the new additions as "vague language" which are meant to confuse the matter. He pretends not to know what "perceived sexual orientation" means and claims that exempting all religious organizations from this law is still just too risky for Christians... because, well, you know... it's totally against everyone's religion to have to work with people they don't like.

Here's an excerpt from the Windy City Times:

Kline said back then that ENDA "creates an entirely new protected class that is vaguely defined and often subjective." Specifically, he objected to the language of the bill prohibiting discrimination based on "perceived sexual orientation."

"Attempting to legislate individual perceptions is truly uncharted territory," said Kline, "and it does not take a legal scholar to recognize that such vaguely defined protections will lead to an explosion in litigation and inconsistent judicial decisions."

Kline also said he thought legislators should consider the "consequences" ENDA might have on "religious and family-based organizations."

Gay Newspaper Rolls with Stone

No Apologies from Republican for Hijacked Blog


When a strange silence suddenly falls upon a gay pride parade, you can bet that the Sunshine Republicans are nearby; a group of LGBT Republicans who split off from the Log Cabin Republicans over concerns about political tone and conservative values. The Sunshine Republicans were closely associated with (although not formally in sponsorship of) Florida’s first Transgender Republican candidate for the House of Representatives, Donna Milo, who incidentally did not believe in Gay Marriage… but she intended to go up against Florida's Pro-gay Democratic Rockstar Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

Nick Stone is their Vice President. He operates his own website at http://drawnlines.com/ .

Recently he wrote a blog piece called “Do Words Matter to Debbie Wasserman Schultz”. In this piece, he attempted to counter-attack Mrs. Schultz’s opinion that we all need to cool our heads and tone down the political rhetoric because “words matter”. In the news broadcast that Stone refers to in his rant, Congresswoman Schultz (D-FL) tells CNN’s TJ Holmes that we all need to be conscious of what we say in light of the recent assassination attempt on her good friend Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ).

Never once in the referenced news broadcast did Schultz ever say that the man who shot Giffords was a Republican. Nor did she make any other kind of partisan divide in that speech. Nonetheless, Stone wrote his counter-attack by questioning Schultz’s integrity, her honesty, and her motives. From there he connected all of America’s most beloved Democrats to the worst violence in US History.

"I want to clarify that just about everything you've heard from me or that I've written is just my opinion,” said Stone in an interview on Friday, “and should not reflect on The Sunshine Republicans or be seen as an official statement on any matter."

When he wrote the item for his blog, it was geared mostly toward his fans, friends and fellow Republicans. It was meant to be sort of a morale booster for the sort of Republicans who like to turn up the volume on rhetoric and defy what they refer to as our “PC Culture”.

But when Stone wrote the piece, he didn’t intend for the Florida Agenda to swipe it from his blog and publish it in the context of an editorial in their newspaper…

“I could be wrong but I believe that the author would have addressed things somewhat differently,” said Andy Eddy, a Log Cabin Republican, “if he were under the impression this was an op-ed piece for media consumption and not just blogging among friends and cohorts.” Eddy has met Debbie Wasserman Schultz once before, unlike Stone, and remembers that even though he was introduced to her as “one of those Republicans”, she said something reasonable like “it is most important that we, as Americans, are politically involved regardless of our differences.”


Stone says he never gave permission to the Florida Agenda to re-print his blog post at all and that he thinks the media sometimes uses Republicans to label as crazy and weird for a sort of boost in readership. He says journalists will often pick “the weirdest statement” to highlight. “I didn’t pursue the Agenda about it and they didn’t pursue me about it.”
Now, aside from the already scandalous way that The Florida Agenda (a gay newspaper) selected this particular gay-friendly Democratic Congresswoman to attack in their newspaper, there is the matter of all the other Democrats who were dragged through the mud in Stone’s original blog entry.

For instance, Stone stated boldly that President Carter and his wife Rosalynn had been “close friends” with John Wayne Gacy - a serial killer who preyed on teenage boys. He evidenced this accusation by showing a photo of Rosalynn with Gacy which was taken at a large Democratic event in the Chicago area. Gacy was just one of many people who were photographed with the President’s wife that day.

“Whether or not Gacy and the Carters were ‘besties’ is not the point,” said Stone when pressed for clarification on the matter, “the fact that Democrats and violence have a long and sordid history together was my big point.” But for every statement in the entire piece there should be a separate retraction and apology if it were to appear in a real newspaper.

As another example of his propagandizing spin, Stone cites the Discovery Channel Hostage situation in which James Jay Lee, who stone describes as an “enviro-terrorist” [sic] and a “left-wing nutjob”, held hostages at the popular science show headquarters. It’s important that we realize this, according to Stone, because “everyone in the media” had supposedly jumped to the false conclusion that “since he had a gun” he must have been a conservative or Tea Party member.
When pressed to come up with a source of who Stone believes originally blamed James Jay Lee of being a “Tea Party Extremist” in the media, he admitted that it was “just a sort of rumor that got started”.

But Stone has dug his own hole even deeper by choosing this particular event to highlight because environmental terrorists are not what Stone thinks they are (check the definition) and Lee was actually what’s properly called an eco-terrorist. On his own website, Lee ranted about “immigration pollution” and “anchor baby filth”. When asked about this particular section of the piece, Stone said plaintively, “I feel that being an enviro-terrorist [sic] is generally a left-wing ideal and everything else is tangential to me.”

As predictable as his spin can become after a glance or two, the dapper young Republican is not without his surprises… He speaks more favorably of MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow than he does of Fox News’s Glenn Beck and he’s not so quick to toss Hillary Clinton into the fray either.

At the end of the day, a lot of Stone’s criticism of Democrats seems reactionary to an either real or perceived hatred that he feels is directed toward him by the majority of left-leaning gays and lesbians who can tolerate just about everything EXCEPT Republicans in their midst. He perceives danger and hostility at what most of us consider as being rather benign events like Gay Pride Parades. For this reason, much of what he says becomes self-fulfilling prophesy for him. Because he thinks negatively about Democrats, some Democrats behave negatively toward him. He really doesn’t seem to think of his writing or opinions as hostile or unwelcoming either - but if you use a term like “teabagger” in his presence, you’ll likely not be forgiven.

It must be this sensitive side of himself that is bothered by Congresswoman Schultz. Some Republicans have referred to as "the DNC's Head Cheerleader" or "The Mean Girls version of Nancy Pelosi" because of her biting wit and clever use of props on the house floor... But even her Republican counterparts in the House are generally humored by her antics. She doesn't use "violent rhetoric" or "tell bald-faced lies" as Stone states in his blog... She's just very partisan... because that's her job.

In the end, Nick Stone is also just a puppy. That is to say he is a young guy with a pleasant demeanor whose bark is worse than his bite. “Debbie Wasserman Schultz is right,” he says, “in the sense that if her party does their part as well, we can make things better […] but it has to be fair and even handed. No, I won’t apologize for what I’ve written.”

An apology for threatening the congresswoman with damnation to “the darkest pits of hell” if she dared to use any rhetoric herself, was in the end, too much for him to manage. But in his defense, he went on to list even more supposed connections between Democrats and violence. I’ll leave it to his fellow Republicans to correct him on those matters if they would be so kind.

Lady GaGa will Not Save You from the Religious Right

In October of 2009, Stephanie Germanotta (better known by her stage name - Lady GaGa) stood at a podium in front of our nation’s capitol and vowed that she would "refuse to accept any homophobic or misogynistic actions in the music industry". For this largely vague and unenforceable promise, she recieved standing ovation and cheering from more than 200,000 people at a rally that was supposed to be focused on repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell and the Defense of Marriage Act. To make matters worse, she broke that little promise a few months later by standing idly by as Adam Lambert was castigated and censored for his performance on the American Music Awards. She went on to do business as usual with Dick Clark Productions and ABC as they cancelled Adam's appearances and edited a "gay kiss" out of his performance, all the while keeping his simulated oral sex and other raunchy bits intact.

This solemn oath on her part was given at the National Equality March. There were, as I figure it (from my perch to the left of the capitol steps), 3 types of people who came together for that event. The first type of people were a small collection of rag-tag activists (such as myself) who were frustrated that gay rights were being put on the back burner once again, despite our efforts to get Obama into office and our constant campaigning for socially liberal candidates and causes. The next, slightly larger, group of people who were in attendance were the garden variety "MoveOn" Democrats who are motivated by their support of astroturf human rights campaigns and other sorts of organizational shuffleboarding. But the largest group of people who attended the National Equality March was Lady GaGa's "little monsters" as she likes to call them.

Who are these "little monsters" and what do they mean to a political movement?

Statistically speaking, they are gay boys between the ages of 16 and 25 who have a lot of expendable income in the form of allowance money from their parents. Their hobbies include Lady GaGa, Lady GaGa and Lady GaGa. They range from slightly materialistic to downright vapid and their political prowess is best expressed in their capacity to choose Fox's next American Idol via their iPhones.

Do you think I'm being harsh? Talk to them.

Now, don't get me wrong. I don't hate this diva or her fans. But at the end of the day, she's a distraction from what's really important. Therefore, I would suggest that gay men leave her to be a distraction for the right-wingers as opposed to themselves. Take that $50 you would spend on her show and instead, spend it on condoms and a nice wallet to hold your new voters registration card. Instead of downloading her latest MP3, download a podcast of NPR's Teri Gross interviewing Jeff Sharlet about the Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power. Educate yourself. Motivate yourself... and as Madonna once said, "Express yourself".

As a product of Reagan/Clinton era politics, I saw Madonna Rock The Vote but then subsequently, I saw her become a parody of herself. This always happens to pop stars who venture into politics and GaGa will be no exception. This we know because she has already done everything she can to mimic Madonna's shtick.

There is an important distinction to be made also between Madonna and GaGa... Madonna's loyal and dedicated gay following was largely an accidental byproduct of what she aimed for. It was Madonna's honesty and fierce advocacy of her personal beliefs that inspired gay men to draw to her like moths to the flame. But with GaGa, it's manufactured. There are marketing techniques in place to re-create the Madonna effect but she has not walked through the fire or done anything that landed her in jail or caused international controversy.

GaGa has got Madonna's bag down to a science but we already have a Madonna (and a Sean Penn) and these celebrities, as much as they care, have yet to pass any legislation in our favor. We just have too many cheerleaders and not enough linebackers in the gay community.

If we are going to achieve long-lasting and meaningful equality in American society, we're going to need more than a good poker face. We need to know, for starters, the three branches of American government and the differences between them. We need to know how to stage a successful protest and how to determine what we should get all up in arms about and what we shouldn't. Furthermore, we need to know who our enemies are before we go to battle. A serious overhaul in our psychology is in order. For instance, in Florida, why do we stand around clapping for silly little half-measures like anti-bullying legislation when we are the only state in the USA that outlaws gay adoptions and civil unions?

Our Gay Agenda as per YouTube:
The Proposition 8 trial - 1,986 views
Lady GaGa's Bad Romance Video - 134,209,139 views
(Is she really Sixty Eight Thousand Times more important than our civil rights?)

I'm aware that these gay kids get their feelings hurt so easily when you attack their idols, but that's exactly the point. Your feelings should be hurt by what the religious right is doing to our country and to you personally. Lady GaGa can defend herself... but she doesn't even know who you are. She'll never really have your back because she's too busy doing commercials for Wal-Mart and re-making "Truth or Dare".

Now, before you start flaming me in the comments section, I want you to consider this question:

Who would you rather idolize? Someone who wears Halloween costumes and sings about not being able to find her keys when she's drunk? Or a gay black socialist who organized 500,000 people in one of the most important civil rights movements in American history and stayed devoted to his life partner until the day he died?

Coming Out Part 1: Transgender F2M in College

Coming out of the closet is a process that is getting less and less press these days even though homophobia seems to be on the rise. I decided to start doing little bios occasionally on folks who are out of the closet at work and school. In this way, I can really use social networking for its ultimate purpose and hopefully, give my gay brethren a few words of encouragement along the way. The first person (and so far, the only one) to respond to my request for their perspectives on coming out of the closet is someone that I met and instantly admired as a girl but who is now a guy and I still admire him very much. Mason understood right away what my motivation was in wanting to bring the coming out process back into our consciousness. “I’ve definitely heard stories of people being very obviously fired for their identity and having no recourse. Sad as it is, sometimes it just isn’t possible to be out safely,” he warns.

Mason Strand was once a soft-spoken Midwestern girl, who went through a large part of his outwardly transformative process in NYC and has recently settled back in Chicago-land. But he has always been a student of the arts for as long as I’ve known him. The most difficult part in accepting my friend’s transgender status has been remembering to say “he” instead of “she” because, ultimately, in my mind, Mason hasn’t really “changed” but rather just expressed more outwardly who he really feels like on the inside. But also, until Mason, who has been a family friend for quite some time, came out as transgender, I had no frame of reference for this sort of thing. Being gay does not automatically give someone an innate perspective on all matters relating to sexuality.

Mason describes it this way:

“I experience and think of my entire queer identity as political, and I think a big part of that is not letting people get by with the “gay (or trans) people are just like us” thing. Some LGBTQ people are like straight people, but some aren’t, and shouldn’t have to be. Even though I’m male and date women, I’m nothing like you’re typical straight dude, and in fact don’t identify as straight, because no part of my sexuality fits into the ideas of what “straight” is. By being out, I queer even what people’s idea of a man is.”

Seeing his identity as being political is something that I can certainly relate to as an activist of sorts. I suppose if we’re being honest, gays and lesbians seem to have a choice in whether or not to pursue the politics of our culture but we really don’t. Politics in America eventually comes knocking for all of us, because, as the feminist mantra goes – the personal is political.

Let’s, for the sake of clarity though, offer the rest of Mason’s thoughts on coming out in Q & A format:

FS: What made you decide to come out at school?

Mason: I feel like saying you’re “out” is something of a contradiction or a misnomer, because you can never really be completely out – you’re continually having to come out to people, because you’re continually meeting new people. And so you’re making these decisions every day: who do I tell? Have I known this person long enough? Will this affect our ability to work together?

The fact that I work on a campus makes it so that I am out in certain circles, while other people have no idea. It isn’t that I’m hiding it at all – I started and continue to run a group on campus for transgender students that has a pretty visible presence – it’s just that with some people that I see infrequently it simply hasn’t come up. It’s also a little different for me because, as an ftm I’m often perceived as a gay man. So even if I’m not out as trans, I feel that I’m often perceived as queer one way or another, and that makes me glad. I think that straight people feeling the presence of LGBTQ people is important because it helps them remember that we aren’t just the people they make jokes about, or the funny sidekicks on TV. We’re real, whole people, who are infinitely varied and complex. This is a big part of why I want to be out.

Additionally, I feel like it’s important for me to be out at work and at school (which are the same place for me) because I’m interested in working in and for the LGBTQ community, and I think that necessitates a willingness to be upfront about your identity. I can’t run a group for trans kids on campus, or advocate for our rights if I’m not willing to tell people that I’m transgender.

FS: Has your “coming out” experience been overall, a good one or a bad one?

Mason: Overall my experience of being out has been very good. I’ve actually not had any negative reactions, and have experienced nothing but support and acceptance. I know that this makes me very privileged and fortunate, and the fact that I work at a big liberal university in a large city has a lot to do with this. But, that said, the most uncomfortable I’ve ever been in my life was when I was stealth (passing as male without disclosing my transgender identity) in a workplace. I was miserable and paranoid about being “found out.” Some people are perfectly happy being stealth all the time, but it makes me feel really icky (to use a technical term).

FS: What sort of work or school are you involved in and what special talents or appeal can GLBT persons offer to your line of work or education?

Mason: I work in the Center for Interreligious Engagement at the University I attend, where I’m also getting a Master’s degree in Women’s and Gender Studies (my BA was in Film). I think that LGBTQ people are so incredibly valuable in a University environment because, for a lot of people, it’s the first time they’re really able to be out, and the first thing they’re looking for is a supportive community. My university happens to have a really high LGBTQ population, both in the staff and faculty and in the student body. This makes the campus a really great environment, because everywhere you go, you’re bumping into “family.” Even the Center I work at, which you would think would be conservative, is run by an awesome, progressive gay man, and does remarkable, thoughtful programming. I think that any person who has been marginalized tends to understand the world in a very different way, and has the potential to have a great, deep compassion for others who have encountered oppression. So that is something that I think LGBTQ people can be really great at, though I think it’s important to realize how interconnected all oppression is.

Additionally, I think that, on a Campus, whether you’re a student or an employee, there is a lot that you can do for LGBTQ students. Your presence and your work can inspire people to further explore their identity, and to feel empowered. It’s also great in that, if there’s something you don’t like at the school – a policy or the way something is run - you can work to change it. I think of it as practice for engaging the government once you get out of school (although you can, of course, do that while in school as well).

FS: If you could offer advice for anyone else who is thinking of coming out of the closet, what would that entail?

Mason: My honest advice for someone on coming out is to start small, especially if you are nervous about it at all. Tell a few people that you can trust, and work up from there. That way, if you ever do encounter any problems, you’ll know you have someone to back you up. I would also advise knowing what your rights are in the workplace, like whether there are anti-discrimination laws for lesbians and gays, or for trans people (because sometimes it only covers the LGB and not the T). These are different for every state, and I’ve definitely heard stories of people being very obviously fired for their identity and having no recourse. Sad as it is, sometimes it just isn’t possible to be out safely. But, if it’s possible, and you want to do it, I would advise people to be out in school and work, simply because it is so freeing, and everyone deserves to get to be their full selves in all parts of their life.

Their FULL selves… in ALL parts of their life… There’s a novel idea. I wonder if anyone in America can be themselves 24 hours a day anymore. We all wear so many hats and it seems as though the entire nation might be stricken with multiple personality disorder. Can a Christian teacher really be a Christian at a University? Maybe if they work at a religious school… Can a gay male athlete be himself while vying for placement on a college team? Can an HIV positive woman really be frank with her co-workers while she is covered by the company insurance? Can a Republican candidate admit to thinking that Equality is a worthy endeavor? I’d like to think that eventually the answer to all these questions will be “yes we can”. But for now, we just don’t know, do we?

One thing that certainly helps to ease the mind is knowing that people like Mason are out there, every day and in every state and every metropolitan area – being themselves to the best of their ability.

10 Steps to Make Your Protest or Demonstration a Good One

In Brief: In this post, I describe some simple best practices when organizing a political demonstration, and help the reader to spot potential problems that may occur within their current structure.

To read my forward about why this list is so important and what's wrong with political advocacy today, click here.

1. Learn as much as you can about YOUR side of the issue. Too many people get all worked up about what other people are saying and doing. They don’t take the time to understand the facts and feelings put forth by their own side of the debate. For instance, in a gay rights rally, you will rarely find an advocate that knows how many soldiers have been discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”.




2. Ignore the media. I know that might come as a shock to a lot of people because they believe in that old adage that “the media controls the message” but it’s simply not true. The media is lawless and crazy in America and they control THEIR message… which is often in stark contrast with what you may believe as a concerned citizen. The media will be impressed with your actions if they are interesting and well-planned but they cannot be counted on to side with you or even be compassionate toward your point of view. What’s MOST important is communicating to the people passing by in cars and those whom you can talk face-to-face with. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. You can be more effective in changing one person’s mind through careful dialogue than you can by instigating thousands to react without reason.




3. Keep It Simple Stupid (K.I.S.S.). There are certain events (like the National Equality March in DC back in October ‘08) where it is very effective to bring a number of similar issues together under one big banner. But most activism that a person can take part in will be on a much smaller scale with less funding and support. You need to pick just one small issue and tackle that. Narrow your message down to just one goal and go from there. For instance, if your idea is to “empower the religious community” then you are going to have problems because everyone has a different religion and they don’t want each other to be more empowered… But if you wanted to plan a demonstration called “Baptists for Repealing Amendment 2” then that could be far more effective.




4. Be nice to police officers and security. This needs very little explanation. These folks have a job to do and they don’t make the rules. You can’t let your fear of authority taint your view of the men and women who have been assigned to keep you safe. Sure, there is always that egotistical jerk that is just aching to use his or her taser but usually you are dealing with a regular Joe who just wants to make sure nobody blows anything up.




5. Leave your vanity at home. All too often a demonstration goes sour because some idiot wants to play king or queen for a day and turns your activities into a lime light for themselves. I have not yet found a way to get rid of these people but I know better than to become one of them.




6. Be tolerant of diversity but do not worship it. What I mean by this is that it’s ok if you and your peers all feel the same way about something and have a similar ideology. For instance, at a gay pride parade, you will see drag queens, circuit boys, political activists, religious leaders and sexual fetishes all displayed in the middle of the street. This is fine for a celebratory kind of environment but it does not send a clear message to anyone and does little to advance your philosophy on the national stage.




7. Bring at least one member of your family or a close friend with you. Do whatever it takes to convince them to participate. It will be a momentous experience that they can be proud of for the rest of their lives. I don’t know how I could function without the knowledge that I have been part of a movement of people who fought for what was right. I pity anyone who has never held a picket sign or a megaphone.




8. Figure out whether you’re participating in a protest or a demonstration or a rally. There is a major difference between protests and demonstrations. The term “protest” should only be used if you are specifically standing AGAINST the actions of a person, group, business or government entity. In that case, your motivation is to get them to stop their evil ways and you have more freedom to be angry and outrageous (as long as you’re abiding by the laws). In a protest, it is perfectly ok to use strong language and show that you mean business. But a rally or a demonstration is quite different because, in this case, the point is to advance your own cause. You will want to be pleasant and attractive. You will want to convince people to join you and identify with you. In the case of a rally FOR a cause, you will need the help of politicians and upstanding citizens who have reputations to uphold. The tone changes drastically when your motivation is to attract rather than to shock or scare. Both kinds of activism are valid and useful, but you have to know the difference. In my opinion, this is what failed with “the tea party movement”. They failed to decide whether their aim was to scare people or attract them. They weren’t clear in whether they were against Obama or rather FOR one of the many politicians who were involved. The combination of pandering and protesting did not mix very well in people’s perception of the movement.




9. Decide on your role and stick to that. In every engagement, you will need a person or committee (depending on your size) to handle one of the following tasks: Designing pamphlets and signs, a media contact or liaison (the person who most understands the issues), a visible speaker/leader, a host to provide beverages and moral support, sign holders, pre-event promotion, a transportation/RSVP coordinator and a couple of people who are willing to chip in for the costs involved.




10. Don’t let other organizers dilute your message and don’t do that to other people’s demonstrations either. Time and time again, someone will attempt to rally around an issue but it will get away from them and become something foreign and meaningless because of some type-A, egomaniacal opportunist who sees their cause as another chance to step in front of a camera for their own organization or self-promotion. You have to encourage supporters to get behind the issue because it’s important. Remind everyone of exactly what your mission is and thank them often for their participation. If you think that signs promoting another idea or concept are going to disrupt your message, don’t be afraid to tell someone nicely that you would rather they leave those particular signs at home. But you MUST have clearly legible signs with simple, catchy phrases or else it’s your fault if other people’s messages detract from your own. A protest sign should have no more than 8 words on it and be printed boldly enough that it can be read by a passenger in a car at least 40 feet away. And well designed literature like pamphlets, postcards and brochures are an EXCELLENT way to get your message out there without having to be a perfect spokesperson for your cause.

If there were to be an 11th rule here, it would be to expect steps 1-10 to fall apart before your very eyes no matter what you do. I have seen countless protests, rallies and demonstrations over the years and every single one of them has had its own unique flavor and set of challenges. The important thing is that you accomplish your mission or goal to some degree. If your goal is a realistic one, you have better chances. You must have a satisfactory outcome in mind when engaging in any political action. If your only motivation is to be a rabble-rouser, then you are what I call an "aww", a cute little acronym which I've coined to mean "angry with the world". Nothing can really be done for these people except to simply sigh in sympathy for them... "aww"...

Barring that, you must try to hold on to your dignity and sanity in the process. Political activism starts from a place of personal strife, trials and tribulations. From this anxiety is born a movement. But just because you put in the blood, sweat and tears does not mean that God, society or your local government is going to give a hoot. After the engagement is over, you will have to go back home and live with yourself. You must practice some acceptance of your friends, co-conspirators and even your opposition, because without them, you are reduced to being that crazy person who yells at traffic for no apparent reason.