Hi all! I'm here at Netroots Nation at a great pre-convention meetup for LGBT bloggers from across the blogosphere. I've never liveblogged before, but giving it a shot.
Follow us on Twitter at #NN11 and #NN11LGBT.
9:15 am: Mike Rogers kicks off the event. Tears up a few times. Very excited.
9:20 am: Looks like half the room is here for their very first Netroots Nation
9:35 am: Set up rules of engagement. Everything on the record, no presonal attacks, no fake lesbians.
9:38 am: What are the things the gay community isn't talking about that we should be talking about? We talk about marriage a lot - what are our neglected issues?
9:39 am: Amp up pressure on Feds re: healthcare
7:48 AM PT: North Carolina bloggers including Pam Spaulding talking about lack of employment protections and marriage in NC. "Arrogance" from blue state activists - priority has been preserving marriage equality in blue states, we're not doing enough to prevent amendments in red states.
7:53 AM PT: Is our work on DADT leaving trans veterans behind? Are we paying too little attention to minorities within the community? Should mention people of color, trans people, other minorities in every blog post.
7:53 AM PT: Queerty blogger: Examine representations of people of color in queer media.
7:55 AM PT: Focus on queer youth. Make sure that gender identity and expression are protected in safe schools/anti-bullying legislation.
7:58 AM PT: We're not doing enough to catch the opposition in their lies. Make more noise. NOM, FRC lying, posting discredited studies - we're not attacking them hard enough.
8:01 AM PT: Culture as politics - what is modern gay culture? Expand the way we talk to gays, modernize the cultural references to talk to young gays. Young people aren't feeling connected to the community.
8:07 AM PT: LGBT immigration - immigration reforms don't include LGBT partners
ENDA - does the LGBT community know most aren't covered?
LGBT immigration - immigration equality activists not being recognized by state LGBT groups? Need to recognize importance of immigrants, number of queer immigrants in local communities
Immigration - state laws increasing penalty for "harboring undocumented immigrants"
8:08 AM PT: 25-year AIDS survivor points out the assault on AIDS healthcare funding - access to healthcare is critical, we're losing what gains we've made
8:09 AM PT: Issues with Pride celebrations? Apparently SF had some issues last year. Mismanagement? Best practices? How should we celebrate Pride?
8:10 AM PT: Need to make it easier for straight people to get involved.
8:11 AM PT: HIV discrimination, serophobia - discrimination against poz people from within the gay community
8:12 AM PT: Need federal-level trans protections. Also poly issues - legal recognition of multiple relationships?
8:13 AM PT: We've hidden our sexuality from the mainstream world. Too much emphasis about marriage - need to be able to talk about queer sexuality in a "positive, affirming way"
8:14 AM PT: HIV funding - from Clarknt67 - one state can "devastate" countless people by cutting ADAP funding - waiting lists are getting longer, "people will die"
8:16 AM PT: Highlight the difference between religious opposition to gay religious marriage and bigoted opposition to civil marriage equality.
8:18 AM PT: LGBT resource centers disproportionately in predominantly-white areas? Leaving out people of color? Consider language changes - stop referring to "LGBT citizens"
What's going on in Puerto Rico? Want to hear from people actually in Puerto Rico (re: trans people?)
8:18 AM PT: Homeless youth - funding cuts, cutting beds, throwing kids out on the street
8:20 AM PT: From Jerame at Bilerico: "As a movement, we don't speak conservative well." Need to learn to relate better to people in the middle of the country.
8:22 AM PT: Have we ceded the whole discussion of religion to the "right-wing creeps"? Why aren't we bringing in LGBT-friendly representatives of faith communities?
8:24 AM PT: Too much transphobia in the LGB community? "A lot of lesbians and gays don't want to know trans people." Should advocate for transgender rights - most vulnerable part of the community. "If you advocate for transgender rights, you bring L, G, and B with you." (editorial note: haven't noticed this being an issue personally, but hear it from others regularly)
8:25 AM PT: What are we doing about reparative therapy/religious abuse of GLBT kids?
8:26 AM PT: Goal when we leave here is "to have a much bigger homosexual agenda"
8:27 AM PT: 30-minute break for tweeting and blogging, on the condition that we talk to some people we don't know. I hope Clarknt67 counts as someone I don't know. All these other people scare me.
9:04 AM PT: Got to talk to Clarknt67 - my hero! and JoemyGod and some great guys from Bilerico, One Angry Queer, and others. Pam Spaulding's been occupied the whole time :(
9:05 AM PT: Session 1 is "Problemsolving the Movement." We're going to solve all the movement's issues in the next 45 minutes.
9:07 AM PT: My table's first question: "Identify 5 key gaps in the movement." Can I crowdsource this?
9:17 AM PT: Second question: How can we engage more effectively across faith/non-faith lines?
9:22 AM PT: Third question: How can we engage more effectively across generational lines?
9:29 AM PT: Fourth question: How can we engage more effectively across race/ethnicity lines?
9:35 AM PT: Last question: How can we ensure that the LGBT blogosphere is strong and well-funded?