Once upon a time; long, long ago; in a very different country, there were a bunch of rabble-rousing GLBT activists who gathered on friday afternoons and took on the establishment, and helped change things.
Back then, marriage equality was still a twinkle in Deval Patrick's eye, and DADT was the Democratic Party's lasting contribution to GLBT equality.
Then a guy named Scott came along and took up the battle against DADT and dragged the country forward on the 'gays in the military' issue. Seems like ages ago those rabble-rousers were chaining themselves to fences and getting arrested for dragging the Democrats kicking and screaming into the pro-equality camp. Scott wrote an amazing series of diaries, keeping the DK community appraised on the ongoing battle he and the ex-service members were waging on various fronts to bring down that wall of injustice that kept gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military. In your face, confrontation won the day.
The battle against DOMA was fought on many fronts, with many opponents throwing up roadblocks and obstacles at every level of government. We gained a foothold in Massachusetts when Governor Patrick Deval gave his unwavering support to marriage equality from even before he took office. We gained the support of the majority of legislators in Massachusetts by introducing ourselves to them on a personal level and letting them know we aren't much different than they are. That one-on-one, personal approach, and some brilliant, behind the scenes political maneuvering is what won the day. GLBT activists from across the nation and world took note on how that battle was won, and applied those lessons in other states which were leaning towards a pro-equality stance. After it became apparent that no political price would be paid for supporting equality, states and eventually the White House sided with us, and the rest will soon be history.
Next up, ENDA?
From its outset, the friday WGLB series was directed towards telling our stories and teaching our straight allies who we were and what our community was made of. We had a great run of fun, informative, educational, motivating and heart-rending diaries; contributed by dozens of folks; activists and allies alike. It was always our intention to teach the progressives here who would listen what it meant to be gay and that our day-to-day lives, our loves and fears, our concerns and our heartbreaks, and our families aren't much different than theirs. And that is what proved to be the winning strategy nationwide in gaining allies in our battle for marriage equality. I'd like to thank everyone who contributed to the friday WGLB series with both diaries and comments over the years. You all made a difference, and I'm sure we wouldn't now be at the cusp of equality nationwide without your support.
I'm not sure how many of those original rabble-rousers, (if any) still inhabit this place. This is your chance to chime in, catch up, fill us in on what's new in your lives... apparently many still hold fond memories of our friday gatherings! Brings a smile to my face and a tear to my eyes... Hugs!