October event lacks focus, is disorganized and distracts from key fights we must win.
The ill-conceived and poorly planned National Equality March is coming
to Washington, D.C. Many have criticized the “event” for a variety of
reasons, and national gay rights organizations have either reluctantly
endorsed the march or remained on the sidelines.
Some have said they are not “actively supporting” the march, while others have said, in effect, “let ‘em march.” As a former Air Force officer, I know the saying “lead, follow or get out of the way.” But I also know when it is time to state the obvious, question the judgment of others, and say, “Enough is enough.” And this is one of those times. This “march” should be called what it is — a fool’s errand.
In the past few months, I have watched the event organizers proceed in total disarray, lacking key planning skills and unable to develop an effective grassroots organization.
You only need to look at the march web site to see they have no clear idea of what it is they hope to accomplish, what it takes to successfully build a grassroots movement or how to plan and implement an event.
The site includes this: “Rally for a weekend of dignity and join us at the National Equality March. We hope to galvanize our movement and knit together a nation that cries for full access, equality & justice for all … We will come together and work together to create the dynamics for a historic moment in fabric of America’s history.”
This is what I call a “Miss America” answer: Could I have whirled peas with that?
As I write this, every event except the “rally” (their words) on the west lawn of an empty U.S. Capitol building (Congress will be out of town) is “to be announced,” excluding an informal gathering at Arlington National Cemetery and a walk/run around the war memorials on the National Mall.
For this Washingtonian, it looks like an ordinary weekend in the District of Columbia.
The fact is that the limited resources utilized in a vain attempt to pull off this march could be used to affect real, positive change for millions of LGBT Americans. Our community is in the midst of waging several battles on the national front, as well as fighting hand-to-hand combat in many states — from Maine to California.
Additionally, cuts in AIDS and other health and welfare services in some states are jeopardizing the lives and homes of many people with AIDS, including many that led the modern gay rights movement. And the organizers of the National Equality March want people to spend valuable time and resources traveling to D.C. to hold a rally and yell at an empty U.S. Capitol building?
Also, to step out of the LGBT box for a moment, there’s a major health care reform fight going on, as well as wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Add those to realistic worries of swine flu hitting in October, along with a few other things we don’t know are coming down the tracks, and you have an ill-advised and unhelpful “march” that does nothing to combat the very real life-and-death issues facing our community.
The so-called and self-appointed organizers of the National Equality March should stop this train wreck, turn it around and instead focus their (and our) limited resources on the fights that we can — and must — win.
Since it is unlikely they will heed my call, however, I have a few challenges for the organizers: Make a pledge to the LGBT community that this isn’t simply a “touch-and-go” operation. Stop being divas and start working in the trenches. Agree to spend 10 days each month in Washington, D.C., lobbying the Obama administration and the U.S. Congress until the Matthew Shepard hate crimes bill is passed, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act is enacted and “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” is repealed.
Additionally, ensure everyone coming to “your event” attends at least one training session that teaches them how to effectively lobby their representatives, learn how to effectively utilize local and regional media, develop skills to create a public relations campaign for effective change and how to use emerging social media to effect positive change in their own communities.
Otherwise it’s not a National Equality March, and it does nothing to further our community’s concerns. It’s simply a fool’s errand — one we can ill afford.
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Editor's Note: This op-ed was originally published in The Washington Blade.
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