Happy Fourth of July from Seattlest
Seattlest Pix: 09Jul04
Seattlest Pix: 09Jul05
Seattle Int'l Beer Festival Ends at 7 p.m.
Since the passage of California's Prop. 8, which reversed a State Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage, a potentially poisonous debate has sprung up over whether the California African-American community, who turned out in record numbers to vote for Obama, bears special responsibility for passing the measure. For perspective, we turned to Chad Goller-Sojourner, a local writer, poet, and performance artist whose work has explored his own struggles growing up black and gay.
A guest post by Chad Goller-Sojourner
I’ve spent the better part of this past week trying to understand new math. It’s the kind of math where a people, who make up 6.7 percent of California’s population, end up responsible for the passage of a statewide proposition. It’s the kind of math that minimizes the fact that all of Proposition 8’s creators and major backers, those that share 100 percent responsibility for the measure’s very existence, share the same common denominator: conservative white men. It’s the kind of math in which cable news political pundits and pollsters insert new vocabulary—"the Obama factor"—and then attempt to provide "insight" into it.
Furthermore, it fails to examine Proposition 8 in its historical context and thereby misses the silver lining, which is: in 2000 Proposition 22, which similarly sought to declare same sex marriage illegal, passed overwhelmingly by a 61.2 to 38.8 percent margin. And, yes Proposition 8 also passed, however there the margin was much smaller (52.2 to 47.8 percent). Two similar propositions placed before the same body in a relatively short time-frame show striking evidence that in the court of public opinion, the winds of change continue to blow in our favor. And, yes, the fact that our rights are being voted on in this court troubles me deeply.
And finally, new math clouds our ability to take comfort in knowing that while legal protections and constitutional rights often come much later than requested, history reveals not only do they come, but the waiting period continues to grow shorter. The road from Stonewall to present is a lot shorter than both the road from the 13th Amendment to the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and the road from the beginning of the Suffrage movement to the passage of the 19th Amendment.
Let’s cut to the heart of the matter. The big elephant in the room of this whole debate is the larger gay white community’s disappointment and anger over polling numbers which CNN associated with black voters. It shocks them to their core: how can blacks, with their long history of slavery, Jim Crow and segregation, vote in favor of discrimination and bigotry?
While I’d love to dive right into exploring the aforementioned, to do so would play into the fallacy so prevalent in today’s gay white community, which is that a relationship exists between them and the larger black community. They fail to grasp that within the larger black community, white gays and lesbians are seen as part of the larger white community. This is partly of their own making as, historically, gay rights organizations have chosen white leaders and spokespeople whom they believe will present well to the white middle/upper class. This plan seems to work well, even among blacks who continue to view the gay community and "gay issues" as white.
So why do white gay community leaders continually choose to bypass the gays and lesbians who are already members of the target community (black gays and lesbians) and go directly to the larger black community? It appears many believe that since being gay often changes their status and affiliation with the larger white community, it also somehow changes the way they are seen in the black community. It does not. Nor does it necessarily, automatically, increase their sense of empathy or understanding regarding the black community. Regardless of what you think you know about homophobia in the black community, the fact remains that the vast majority of black gay and lesbians choose to reside in the black communities. The larger white gay community would be wise to take note of this as they explore the impact of black voters and craft ways to reach out to the larger black community.
Had the "No on Proposition 8" folks understood this, they might have redesigned the interracial marriage comparison campaign they used to reach out to blacks to vote against Proposition 8. Merits aside, the Loving decision of 1967 (that struck down laws banning interracial marriage) is neither well known nor seen as a civil rights milestone in the black community. Shortsighted, perhaps, but given the fact they were dealing with lynching, assassinations, and bombings, the right to marry into the community of their oppression was understandably hard to get behind. That being said, there is still merit in the comparison. It’s just a wonder who thought it best to send white gays to make the argument to the black community? To do so shows a lack of understanding of both the importance of the messenger and what today’s black community actually feels about interracial marriage.
Had they found an interracial gay or lesbian couple (of which there are many) to serve as their spokespeople, they may have had better luck. Or at the very least, the black member of such a couple might have suggested they run with the Rosa Parks (back of the bus) or Brown v. Board of Education (separate is not equal) comparisons. Because, at the end of the day, anyone who has ever spent any time in the black town square, (aka barbershops and beauty salons), knows that the responses and opinions to a comment like, "Did you know so-and-so is gay?" pales in comparison to a comment like, "I heard so and so is messing with a white girl."
On November 4, 2008, California gays, lesbians, and their allies lost a battle. Based on the final numbers, as well as the continued incoming crop of young voters, if organizers on both sides ran a very similar campaign in 2012, we’d win. That being said, I think we can do better. We should see this as a call for a new movement, not a parade, not a rally, not another "We are just like you so it would be unfair to take our rights away" campaign. But a movement that embraces those among us who are nothing like them; a movement that encompasses, that believes enough in itself that there is no need to link its worth on a false resemblance between two communities with two very distinct and different cultures. This is the type of new math needed for a renewed civil rights movement.
Chad is Seattle-based writer and performer whose one-man show, Sitting in Circles With Rich White Girls, was produced by the BrownBox Theatre at the Rainier Valley Cultural Center. He was profiled by Seattlest in July.
Photo of the Nov. 15 Seattle March for Equality by Seattlest Flickr group contributor Miss Crankypants.
add to digg
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
email this
add to facebook
add to del.icio.us
As a person who identifies as a queer person of color, I want to say "THANK YOU!"
Finally, someone who 'gets it.' Can this please be sent to all the gay newspapers? (And the Stranger / Dan Savage.)
Hi Chad-
I find the entire premise of your post insulting. You lay blame for the defeat of Prop 8 on the organization and execution of the "No on Prop 8" political organization. You particularly lay blame to the "white conservative men" who backed the initiative from the beginning. This is insulting, because for all of your assumptions to be true, you indicate that the voter's will was not realized in the election returns. You make the results of the election, in particular the record high turnout in the African-American community, irrelevant. Your insinuation is that these record new voters were 'duped' or did not understand what they were voting on.
Your assumption that a better campaign would have made a difference assumes that voters are not sophisticated enough to understand the issue. The issue is quite simple, more simple then many of the complicated ballot initiatives we see each year. The simple fact is that the will of the African-American community DID have a major effect
on the passing of this proposition.
Regardless of your own feelings, by denying this simple fact you resort to old 'victim' policies of the past (see:Jackson, Sharpton, etc), and fail to embrace the major sea-change the Obama election has brought to this country.
Stop pointing fingers at some 'boogie-man' who led to this issue's failure- whites men, religious organizations, etc. Quit playing victim and deal in the facts, engage your community in a real dialogue and you'll have a much better chance at their understanding the issues from your perspective-- and hopefully some day voting in your favor. It worked for Obama, it just might work for you.
Victimization politics don't work, they demean those they are targeted at. Hope, transparency, and responsibility do work and stick to that.
I couldn't resist from responding to the 2nd comment.
"Victimization politics don't work, they demean those they are targeted at. Hope, transparency, and responsibility do work and stick to that."
The mainstream gay community is the one victimizing itself and pointing blame on the African-American community. And as a result it's demeaning said community. That applies to just about all your victimization/pointing blame/cooperation comments.
"The simple fact is that the will of the African-American community DID have a major effect
on the passing of this proposition."
As stated, African-Americans only make up 6.7% of voting Californians. What about the Asian-American? The Latino community? Both of which are larger. The White community? I'm pretty sure that they were the biggest group who voted yes on 8. Nope nope... let's just blame the Black community.
And I'm nto sure where you read that Black voters were duped into voting for Prop 8. The only person making that assumption is you.
Sorry, I dunno how I let this one slip past. Again, I'm quoting the 2nd commenter:
"Regardless of your own feelings, by denying this simple fact you resort to old 'victim' policies of the past (see:Jackson, Sharpton, etc), and fail to embrace the major sea-change the Obama election has brought to this country."
Realize what you're saying: You're telling a Black man that he should just be happy that Obama won. Not cool.
Realize what you're ignoring: the mainstream gay community is doing the *very* thing that you accuse this author of. Mainstream gays were the ones who cared more about Prop 8 than Obama's victory.
@mib: 1) the way I read it, Chad is precisely talking about engaging the black community in a real dialogue and how best to do that. 2) Better campaigns absolutely do make differences; I would think the Obama win is more than enough proof of that. 3) And it is one thing to say that it's unexpected and painful to have a majority of black voters oppose what's been framed as a civil rights issue, and another thing to say this had a "major effect" in comparison to other voting groups. The latter is not true.
Barrack-
I think you need to read my post again without your pre-conceived notions of who I am and what my personal feelings are.
The whole point of my comments are DEFENDING the black-community, and more specifically defending the will of their votes, and accusing the gay community of playing the victimization game that for so long has impinged on the civil rights advancements around race. The gay community can learn a thing or two from these efforts.
As you said in your post: "The mainstream gay community is the one victimizing itself and pointing blame on the African-American community. And as a result it's demeaning said community."
I couldn't agree more.
My whole point is, if you want to make an advancement on this issue, the gay community needs to be honest with themselves. The African-American vote DID effect the outcome of this prop, and all empirical evidence supports this. Now go do something about it and quit making excuses that it was all the work of campaigns, whites, LDS, etc.
Enormous numbers of black folks are NOT COMING OUT to their families, due to fear of banishment from intolerant religiosity. It has been happening for centuries. It's time to break that killing cycle: COME OUT, no matter the cost. Yes, the family may reject you at first (mine sure did), but the sooner you do it, the sooner you'll develop a new, better relationship with your family (at least some of them), built on honesty.
As long as gay folks give in to belligerent intolerance based on religion, the longer we will all be held down, just like the "confirmed bachelors" and "maiden aunts" of so many previous generations.
My operating theory is that Prop 8 was supported so thoroughly by the black community due to the deeply-entrenched, self-righteous attitude promoted by religion. My own family was among the very worst, and yet now, (33 years after I came out), I'm a respected, loved and full member of my family. Change happened because _I_ caused the change.
I want to talk to somebody who gladly voted yes on Proposition 8, and ask them "Is there somebody in your family that you love who is gay?" If they were to say "No", I want to say "Then I feel sorry for you, because there are people in your family who don't trust you enough to be truthful with you."
Some of my best friends, here in Washington State and elsewhere, voted against the guaranteed Obama presidency by voting *for* initiatives and candidates in direct opposition for what Obama represented. That's a factor in the passage of Prop8.
Liberals against liberals means democracy; if there is a crack in there that non-liberals make their voice heard... well, that's just the process.
That said, I really think that Prop8 should have been suffered potential defeat by the Supreme Court (with Federal appeal), and not by voter initiative. I'd love to witness a Constitutional Amendment Amendment (re-Amendment?).
err, by that, i mean that i believe that this should be a federal issue, and not a piecemeal state issue. let's hope that it happens within the next four years...
Just wanted to thank you, Chad for this great commentary. I don't like our rights being decided by vote either, but I believe the prop will be struck down by the courts after a long ugly and expensive battle, as usual.
To get to the heart of your commentary, while I agree the minority vote probably did have some impact in terms of margins, and here I mean ALL ethnic minorities combined, I do not believe they passed the initiative. Your comment on the organization being based on the white Mormon and Catholic leadership is right on the money. As white people, we need to own that and not be pointing fingers at everyone else. I wholeheartedly agree that black activists need to organize in the black community. Why would the black community listen to me? Why should they? There are enough minds to change in my own community to keep me busy for a long time. So good on you, Chad, and thanks again.