LiveJournalesk

Firstly, anyone reading should know I am the most technologically ignorant person in the world. My computer is about a hundred years old and I think I'm still operating on Windows 98. I only got an MP3 player when I got an iPhone and more often then not I forget my phone plays music. So the basic idea of me having a blog is a huge milestone. I warn you in advance it will likely stay very plain looking as I have no clue how to do fancy blog things.

Alas...

I was furious the other day when Maine was voting (a SECOND time) on whether or not gay marriage should be legal. I was even more furious when it was voted down the second time and the state took away the many civil rights that come with the legality of one's marriage. I posted something quite cranky on Facebook and vowed to write a big LiveJournalesk entry about how I really felt. When I couldn't figure out how to write a LiveJournalesk entry on my Facebook, I decided it was time to start a blog.

So here is my first LiveJournalesk entry on my feelings of GLBT Equality in America and my ideas on what we can do to make things better.

Some months ago the state of Maine voted for the legalization of same sex marriages. It's my understanding that there were no same sex marriages granted in Maine between the time these basic civil rights were made legal to November 3, 2009 when the state had a second vote on the legality of same sex marriages. As you by now know, the November 3, 2009 vote on whether or not the state government should continue forward with what was already voted in favor of or take steps backwards to deny a group of law abiding, tax paying citizens within the state of Maine the right to marry, had the outcome of blatant injustice, inequality and discrimination.

And that's what I feel it comes down to. This is not an issue of religion or ceremony. This is an issue of legality, plain and simple. The GLBT community makes up an enormous portion of the U.S. population and economy. We are taxed equally, tried equally and given equal levels of expectation by our government, yet our citizenships see a huge lack of freedom, justice and equality.

Recently I went to Washington DC for the National Equality March. The message was so loud and so clear and such a breath of fresh air. It was no longer a message of tolerance and acceptance. It was no longer a message of "we're here, we're queer, get used to it." It was a message of overall equality. Equal rights on a Federal level. No more days of asking states to vote individually on whether or not we deserve second or first class citizenships within those particular areas. The time had come to stand up and demand freedom and justice for all.

The issue obviously goes further than marriage equality as well. There are states where people can legally be discriminated against in the workplace just because they are gay. In Florida the GLBT population is still denied the right to adopt children within that state. So here is the urgency for a cease in governmental pussyfooting and a call to action.

I propose the idea of a nation wide boycott of any and all businesses that do not support the GLBT population. This does not mean that if a company isn't GLBT owned and operated that it should be boycotted by the GLBT community. Bank of America (unless I am sadly mistaken) is a perfect example of a HUGE corporation that under no pressure of law grants the partners of it's GLBT employees with the same employment benefits as their heterosexual counterparts. WOW! Companies like this should clearly be rewarded before others. They may not be changing the laws but they are going the extra mile.

Let's start with this... I have some other ideas I feel are more than reasonable but let's see if a good old fashioned boycott will help any. It's not meant to be hostile, it's meant to be a peepshow of the importance and contributions the GLBT population makes to the American economy.

So if you find yourself supporting or working for a company that you KNOW is run by people who will take your money and vote against your freedom, then find another company to work for or to buy what you need from. They know they have to be tolerant but they also must know that tolerance is NOT equality.

If there's a gay gas station (I KNOW THAT THERE IS A LESBIAN GAS STATION ON COLONIAL DRIVE IN ORLANDO FLORIDA, SO DON'T TELL ME THAT'S TOO FAR FETCHED AN IDEA) then buy your gas there. If there's a gay Jewish deli, then get your Kosher foods from there. These are the little things that anyone can do, so keep it in the back of your mind over then next week. See how many conscious decisions you make to directly or indirectly support your community. You will not wake up with the same civil rights as heterosexual people but you will make a statement.

Remember that we are a vast group of law abiding, tax paying citizens. We have a voice that I know can be louder and more colorful than any other group of people. We must use that voice. We cannot stop with tolerance and acceptance, as they are personal and they are not legal.

This is my idea. It will require the help of my friends at the Orlando Youth Alliance (www.orlandoyouthalliance.org). It will require the help of my friend Marcus Mills of the Bronx, NY and of his friends at the GLBT Center in Manhattan. It will require the help of my friends Nay Burton, Patrick Howell, John Sullivan, Jim from Urban Think, Garrett Hoskins, and Logan Donahoo and the Rich Weirdos. It's an idea that you can adopt as your own, organize in your big cities and small towns. You can host a lunch or cocktail party for the neighborhood or city in which you live and create a list of approved businesses to support and known businesses to boycott.

This is my idea. It's raw and unorganized. This blog is not for an entertainment purpose. This idea needs the help of my friends and of their friends and of their friends. This idea needs organization and it needs the support of GLBTQ and heterosexual people who BELIEVE in GLBT equality.

Let's give it a name... Whatever you want. The Defense of Freedom Act, if you will.

This is my idea and now I want yours.