Photo: dereckesanches

Passing weak hate crimes legislation previously and now a bill which should overturn the military ban are significant victories for the queer community. The people who kept pushing, over the objections of partisan Democrats and Republicans in the LGBT community who would have preferred that the issues dry up and blow away, deserve a tremendous amount of credit. They have shown us that we can get results if we are persistent in fighting for them. Queer activists proved that you have to fight for yourselves. You can't rely on politicians to fight for you. (That is a lesson a lot of other progressive activists could learn from.) Now, it's time for us to keep our eyes on the prize:

ENDA, the Employment Non Discrimination Act

Employment issues have a broader reach in the queer community than any other set of concerns. If you live in a capitalist society, you need a job to avoid utter misery. Even retired queers have to be careful, since corporations have been raiding pensions for years; federal, state, and local government officials are starting to raid their employee pensions; and Obama and other Republicans have been working to raid and bankrupt Social Security. We must fight all of this, but we also must recognize that very real possibility that retirement will be a luxury for the rich in another 20 years.

In this economic context, queers don't have the luxury of putting employment discrimination on the back burner for other issues, as pressing as they are. We need to fight for anti discrimination legislation like our economic lives depend on it. They do.

Corporate media outlets and bought politicians are much more hostile to ENDA than the general public, which supports it overwhelmingly. Those corrupt interests are working on behalf of corporate interests that don't want any restrictions on corporate behavior. That's why Obama and the corporate media have worked so hard to deflect us away from fighting for ENDA.

The Christian Taliban has tried to keep the national focus on same sex marriage because it is the one issue where the country is closely divided. It also is a problematic issue for queer organizing because most queers have no interest in ever getting married. Most queers are single, as are a narrow majority of heterosexual adults. Even in states where same sex marriage is legal, the vast majority of queer couples don't get married.

We need to make OUR movement about OUR needs and OUR interests.

Even in years where it looks highly unlikely that any queer civil rights legislation will pass, we need to keep pushing. This is a difficult struggle, and it will require a relentless push on our part so we can win during years when we theoretically have the votes required. We can't afford to shut up about this.

That ENDA must be trans inclusive. Pure justice demands it, and so does pure practicality. Failure to include gender identity based discrimination puts a huge exception which corporate lawyers can use to win cases against lesbian, gay, and bisexual victims of employment discrimination. We also need to hold elected officials accountable about putting a lot of other loopholes into ENDA, like Barney Frank and Nancy Pelosi did in 2007. We need a bill with teeth that actually protects us.

Any national queer organization that is a lobbying or political organization needs to be held accountable for what it is doing to pass ENDA. Passing ENDA should be, by far, their first priority.

 

With legislation that should result in finally lifting the military ban, it would be easy to think that Obama is OK, everything is just fine, and that we can relax now, especially if you are queer. However, the Employment Non Discrimination Act (ENDA) is more important, in terms of its substantive impact on queer lives, than all of the rest of the queer civil rights legislation that was pending this past legislative term.

ENDA never even got a vote this session.

If that isn't enough perspective, I Can't Believe It's Not a Democracy pointed me out to this gem on Obama's "accomplishments":

WhatInTheFuckHasObamaDoneSoFar.com

It's sobering, to say the least.

As promised, here's a fab graphic from Zaius Nation on Obama's betrayal on the tax cuts for the rich/tax increases for the poor legislation Obama just signed. (click to embiggen)

Get Equal deserves a lot of credit in its dogged efforts to promote ENDA, the Employment Non Discrimination Act. Passage of employment non discrimination legislation at the federal level is long overdue, to put it mildly.



You can post this fun, pro ENDA video to your blog too. This will make it even easier.
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We need to keep pushing for ENDA until it passes, no matter who is in Congress or the White House.

Here is another pro ENDA video from an individual YouTube member.



 

Dan Choi does a great job expressing the outrage queers are experiencing in the face of Barack Obama's viciously homophobic decision to unnecessarily appeal a court ruling that the military ban is unconstitutional.



Ms. Jarrett obviously thinks that every queer in the country has no basic knowledge of the legal system. She tried to justify the decision to try to keep the military ban in place through this appeal by saying that the administration is "obligated to defend" the policy in court. They defended the case in lower court and lost. Now, there is one basic fact that she is conveniently hoping we don't know.

In court cases, litigants who lose are under no obligation to appeal. Appeals are entirely optional.

I don't know if Valerie Jarrett is a lawyer or not, but I do know that President Obama is a lawyer. He knows he doesn't have to appeal the ruling. This was a conscious, deliberate homophobic act by the President.

It's not just the games that Obama and the Democrats in DC have been playing with the military ban. Those bigots haven't even lifted a finger to pass ENDA, by far the most important queer issue. Even though the Democrats control both houses of congress, neither has even voted on ENDA. The Obama administration has ignored it because they want corporations to be able to fire people for being queer.

The Obama Administration is just like the Clinton Administration. They say nice things to us occasionally while they stab us in the back and insult our intelligence. I don't blame Choi at all for deciding not to vote for Obama in 2012 after this. I'm voting all Green this year. If the Democrats insist on acting just like the Republicans and treating us like second class citizens, then the queer community has no reason to vote for them or give them a dime.

Like the folks at GetEQUAL say, the GayTM is shut down.

 

In 2006 and 2008, the Democratic politicians plied queers with their usual lies about how much they would support us if they got control of Congress and the White House. It was a crock of shit, to put it mildly. Let's look at what they did.

The only good thing they did of any actual importance was passage of a watered down hate crimes bill. It took the National Equality March and a picket outside of Barack Obama's speech before the HRC to get even that to happen. Why do I say it was watered down? The legislation helps the rare local jurisdictions that want to fight hate crimes (which doesn't even include the NYPD under that vicious bigot Michael Bloomberg), but it does little or nothing to deal with jurisdictions that don't. Heterosexist hate crimes are crimes of intimidation that are intended to impact across state lines, which makes them a federal law enforcement matter. There should be strong federal penalties against them, and there should be a specific unit in the Dept. of Justice to prosecute them. The good thing about the legislation was that it included trans queers.

Sadly, that was the best thing the Democrats did the entire time. The Obama Administration, Nancy Pelosi, and Harry Reid blocked ENDA, the most important queer civil rights legislation from even getting a vote in Congress. Unlike same sex marriage, employment discrimination is an area where the GLBT community has overwhelming public support, which presumably why they didn't want to give this popular legislation even a vote. I can not give the Democrats a good grade on LGBT issues when they wouldn't even allow a vote on the one that is, by far, the most important.

Employment discrimination legislation should have passed during the Carter administration. Yet, we can't even get a vote on it during the Obama administration.

Sadly, President Obama has had a reprehensible record on LGBT issues. He deliberately incited violence against queers, queer teen suicide, and violence against women by involving one of the nation's most notorious bigots, Rick Warren, in the inauguration. Obama had been doing pretty much the same thing by pandering to and glorifying that monster during the 2008 campaign. Obama made things worse by showing up consistently to the National Hate Breakfast, showing his support for heterosexist fundamentalism and violating the Constitution of the United States of America.

It didn't stop there. On the DOMA court challenge, the Obama administration deliberately filed court papers comparing homosexuality and bisexuality to sex with animals and sex with the dead. They didn't need to do that, even if you accept the notion that they were obligated to defend that legislation. It was completely gratuitous.

Yes, the Obama administration will occasionally throw us a tiny bone, but most of the slight good that bone might do us is negated by the condescending and heterosexist attitude they display when they do it.

Then, there is the Clinton Administration's more draconian version of the military ban which is deceptively referred to as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," even though it was deliberately designed to increase witchhunts and discharges against queers. "DADT" has even led to the military sending undercover people to gay bars in DC.

President Obama has repeatedly put queers off and fought to keep the ban in court. When queers kept pressuring the Democrats, Obama's viciously heterosexist enablers, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, came up with weird scam legislation which would maybe, just maybe lift the ban if Robert Gates wants to do it. Unfortunately, Robert Gates is a notoriously bigoted Bush crime family crony who immediately preceded to sabotage the effort by creating a highly biased survey on the views of military families on the subject.

Then, Harry Reid took his typical Mormon homophobic hatred one step further. He made sure that the legislation that included this maybe, maybe lifting of the military ban, also included other controversial provisions in order to provide cover for Scott Brown, Susan Collins, and Olympia Snowe to vote fillibuster against lifting the ban. Reid is so fanatical in his hatred of us, he is willing to hurt Democratic Senate candidates in Massachusetts and Maine by giving the GOP homophobes political cover for hating us and attacking us.

We also shouldn't forget the pattern of heterosexist discrimination in appointments by President Obama. So far, Obama has yet to appoint even one openly queer Cabinet member or Supreme Court Justice, not one. Considering the fact that lesbian, gay, bi, and trans people make up far more than 10% of the population and the Democratic Party is disproportionately queer, this has been a particularly blatant and stinging insult to the TBGL community. Obama's record in this area is just as bad as that of another hateful bigot: Bill Clinton.

Obama also has badly underfunded AIDS, done nothing to promote needle exchange, and has done nothing the promote condom usage and condom education. The Democrats continue to fund "abstinence only" scams that are deliberately designed to promote the spread of HIV.

Even with the hate crimes legislation that did pass, the Obama administration has yet to take seriously the recent wave of heterosexist hate crimes and bullying. If there was a national outbreak of violence, bullying, and suicides among banksters, Obama and congressional Democrats would treat it like a national crisis. Queers just don't rate that kind of attention.

Queers have done so much to help the Democrats in 2006 and 2008. What did we get in return? I find it difficult to find words to articulate just how badly I have been betrayed by the Democrats as a queer. The best way for me to express it ultimately will be for me to vote party line Green this November. Vicious bigots like Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, and Barack Obama have given me absolutely no other option. They are as heinous as the Palins, Paladinos, and Pauls in the GOP on matters of substance.

Photos: jurvetson

talkradionews

 

The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force has put up two important videos of people talking about how important it is to pass ENDA, the Employment Non Discrimination Act.





I think it is critical that we discuss queer issues in human terms. When we do so, we usually win. When the debate gets deflected to religion or other abstractions, we don't do so well.

 

This PSA does a great job in describing the need for employment anti discrimination laws like ENDA. I particularly like that the issue is described in personal, human terms. We generally win on queer issues when we take this approach and don't let the right change the subject to religion.



 

Photo: dereckesanches

I received this in an email from Pride @ Work today. I think it is great that it includes organizations in Nancy Pelosi's district.

From San Francisco Pride at Work, One Struggle, One Fight, GetEqual, Harvey Milk Democratic Club, Transgender Law Center, National Center for Lesbian Rights, El / La, and National Pride at Work

An Open Letter to the House Speaker on ENDA

We are writing to express how extremely troubled we are that the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) has not yet been scheduled for a vote by the full House of Representatives. We believe a floor vote must be scheduled for ENDA immediately.

It would be devastating for LGBT workers for this Congress to not complete its work on ENDA before the end of this session. ENDA would be historic in the number of LGBT people who would benefit from its passage. During this economic crisis, it is more important than ever to prohibit the often impoverishing effects of workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Most LGBT workers have no protections from workplace discrimination. ENDA would provide legal protection against discrimination nationally. Over and over we have been promised that a vote would be scheduled on ENDA, and these promises have been repeatedly broken. In 29 states, it is still legal to fire someone solely because they are lesbian, gay or bisexual. And in 38 states it is legal to fire someone solely for being transgender. The current version of the bill would outlaw discrimination on both sexual orientation and gender identity.

A 2006 study by the San Francisco Bay Guardian and the Transgender Law Center found that 60 percent of transgender people in San Francisco earn less than $15,300 per year, only 25 percent have a full-time job and nearly 9 percent have no source of income.

Only 4 percent reported making more than $61,200, which is about the median income in the Bay Area. More than half of local transgender people live in poverty, and 96 percent earn less than the median income. Forty percent of those surveyed don't even have a bank account. What this study reveals is that even in a city that is considered a haven for the LGBT community, transgender workers face profound employment challenges and discrimination.

A 2007 meta-analysis from the Williams Institute of 50 studies of workplace discrimination against LGBT people found consistent evidence of bias in the workplace. The analysis found that up to 68 percent of LGBT people reported experiencing employment discrimination, and up to 17 percent said they had been fired or denied employment.

Public opinion polling shows that Americans are overwhelmingly in favor of making sure LGBT Americans get the same employment opportunities as everyone else. In fact, the latest surveys shows that nearly 90% of Americans support workplace fairness for LGBT workers.

As you know, in a few weeks, Congress will finish it's legislative business for the year so that they can return to their districts to run for re-election. Last month at a LGBT Pride event, Congresswoman Jackie Spier announced to the LGBT community that not only would we not get ENDA before the end of the legislative session, that she did not think we would get it for five years because we won't have enough votes in Congress again to ensure passage. It is ironic that Congress plans on leaving town and going home to campaign for their own jobs while leaving thousands of LGBT workers without protections for the next five years. When 90% of Americans support workplace fairness, it is challenging to believe that anyone fears a backlash from the voters. The time to pass ENDA is now. The American people support it, the politicians promised it. No more broken promises. We demand that a vote be scheduled now.

Sincerely,

SF Pride at Work, One Struggle, One Fight, GetEqual, Harvey Milk Democratic Club, Transgender Law Center, National Center for Lesbian Rights, El / La and national Pride at Work

The most bizarre thing about this is that passing ENDA would help the Democrats politically, especially in the midterm elections where parties need to turn out their base. Heterosexism not only is trumping human decency, but it also is trumping sound electoral strategy.

I'm not terribly surprised that a labor organization like Pride @ Work gets it in terms of the importance of ENDA. That's why having a voice from organized labor in the queer community is so critical.

 

As usual, the homophobic Democratic Party leadership in DC is determined to act in an exploitative and abusive fashion against queers. (From the Keen News Service 7/14/10 - Hat Tip: Queerty)

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) is not on the agenda for Senate floor action for the next few weeks, prior to the August 9 recess.

A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the Senate will take up work on as many as nine matters during the next month, but none of those are ENDA.

The nine include the Defense authorization bill, which incorporates language aimed at repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell; and the nomination of Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court. They also include Wall Street reform, energy (including oil spills), and the extension of unemployment benefits.

Let's look at two of the volcanoes that queers are being sacrificed on. The Wall St. "reform" is so incredibly weak that it primarily serves to show how much influence bankers and brokesters have over Congress and the White House. The energy bill was originally supposed to be a global warming bill, but efforts to limit CO2 have largely been replaced by massive government subsidies of the polluting corporations that were supposed to be clamped down on.

Even the repeal of Bill Clinton's draconian version of the military ban isn't all that great either. It puts the repeal off until after the November elections and puts it in the hands of ultra homophobic Bush regime holdover, Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Even worse, Gates is rigging the whole thing against ending the military ban by running a survey of military personnel that is intentionally biased against repeal and which could be used to discharge queer troops if they answer it honestly.

There is no excuse for this. ENDA already should have passed in 2009. Legislation against employment discrimination should have passed when Democrats at the White House and Congress in 1993-04 and 1977-80. ENDA is the most important and least controversial LGBT civil rights bill in existence, and vicious bigots like Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and Barack Obama keep screwing with it.

The Democrats keep hounding me with phone calls and junk mail asking me for money. Those bigoted asswipes are not getting a penny from me, much less a vote. I am so sick of being treated as less than human by the same people who demand I support them out of some unthinking loyalty that only goes in one direction.

This year is the year I'm going all Green.

Any and all efforts that might have gone to helping Democrats should go to pressuring the party to change its position and pass ENDA. Why should we passively go along with this viciously bigoted betrayal? We are human beings and should insist on being treated as such.

Contact the White House!

Contact Speaker Pelosi!

You can also sign Change.org's petition for ENDA. Change.org is definitely in Obama's pocket, but it is good for people to visibly support ENDA there too.

Photo: afagen

 

The Employment Non Discrimination Act (ENDA) is by far the most important queer issue in Congress today. It would have the largest effect on the lives of the broadest segment of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. ENDA also has broader support in the general public than most queer issues.

Yet, the Democrats have refused to even vote on it in this Congress. Well, it may be even worse than we thought, according to Jackie Speier. (Bay Area Reporter 7/1/10)

Addressing the crowd of gay and straight political and community leaders at Sunday's Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club Pride breakfast, Speier said, "Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi is doing all she can to ensure a majority for next year so we can pass ENDA."

Asked later in a brief interview if that meant the House would not vote on ENDA this year, Speier told the B.A.R. , "The rest of the year is in question."

"There's no question 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' will be history this year," she said. "ENDA, we will have that law for sure within the next five years."

The Democrats are holding ENDA hostage until after the next election (and the next, and the next). Yet, if they don't do much better on queer issues, many queers will stay home this year and some others will vote Green. Homophobic policy turns out to be incredibly bad political strategy. Remember what happened in 1994 after Bill Clinton and the Democrats went out of their way to be homophobic?

Equality California's Executive Director Geoff Kors pointed out:

"I'm worried LGBT people won't vote in the midterms" if Pelosi's promise is not kept, he said. "That would be disastrous for LGBT rights but it's understandable. People felt they did work, gave money, and lobbied members only to see once again being pushed to the back of the line."

The general strategy among Democrats has been to provide the minimal level of support for queers to keep us quiet. ENDA also has specific obstacles that other queer issues do not. Laws against employment discrimination regulate the behavior of corporations, and the Democrats are incredibly financially dependent on corporations, their owners, and their executives. Democrats have been studiously avoiding doing anything that even slightly offends these big money donors. That's why they have done precious little to stop Global Warming and Wall St. corruption. It's also why they passed a wealthcare bill for corporations instead of an actual healthcare reform bill.

Also, don't forget that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is a vicious homophobe who gay baited her way into Congress in 1986. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid belongs to the notorously racist, misogynist, and heterosexist hate group: the Mormon Church.

We are getting screwed over big time and have every right to be furious.

Photo: afagen

 

It is becoming obvious that the Democrats just aren't listening to the queer community and its supporters on the Employment Non Discrimination Act. It's time to remind them that it is their responsibility to pass this legislation ASAP.

The folks working on passing an Inclusive ENDA have put together an
Action Alert in order to keep pushing this critical issue. They also have info on where politicians stand on ENDA.

Lisa Keen, writing for Bay Windows, discusses the urgency of the situation.

Vote had been predicted to happen in April.

Supporters of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) say they have the votes to pass the bill, they are just waiting for the Democratic leadership to call the bill to the floor. But the leadership has grown quiet -- no more regular expressions of optimism and predictions for when Congress will take up the bill, and the waiting game is wearing on nerves.

"The community and the movement have done everything we’ve been asked to do," said Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, this week. NCTE is one of the key groups lobbying for the bill this session, taking the lead on the additional language that seeks to prohibit discrimination based on gender identity, as well as sexual orientation.

"We’ve worked and worked and gotten sufficient votes to make sure gender identity stays in the bill," said Keisling, "but the bill is not being prioritized."

I don't know how the Democrats expect that queers will turn out at the polls in November for them if they keep screwing with us. In 1994, low turnout from a queer community utterly betrayed by Bill Clinton and a Democratic Congress played a role in Democratic defeats. The Democratic Party has enough problems. You'd think they would avoid alienating one of their core constituencies and pass legislation that has overwhelming public support. It makes absolutely no sense.

Please Take Action Now!

 

The 4/30/10 Edition of The Hill, a publication that targets Congress and their employees, has an Op Ed piece that makes a strong case for the passage of ENDA, the Employment Non Discrimination Act. It is written by Rea Carey, Executive Director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Action Fund. Here's a passage that I find particularly persuasive.

Last week, I heard from James in Florida, who several years earlier, had just gotten a raise for his great work as an account manager when he was seen leaving a gay bar by a coworker. His employer asked him if he was gay and he said he yes, wanting to be honest. He was fired and it took him years to find a comparable job; even with his college degree, he could only find a job as a food server.

Congress heard last fall from Vandy Beth Glenn, who landed her dream job as a copy editor with the Georgia Legislature in 2005. After four years in the U.S. Navy and reaching the rank of lieutenant, this was her chance to use her journalism degree from the University of Georgia. She was a reliable and valued employee for more than two years until the day she announced she was going to transition from male to female. She too was fired and escorted from her workplace.

This happens every day in this country, and it will continue to happen until Congress passes the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

I've long thought that it was important to argue for queer issues in human terms, where we easily win. I encourage you to read the entire commentary.

The NGLTF is encouraging people to contact Congress.

We are closer than ever to getting workplace discrimination protections for all LGBT people passed in the House. Text “ENDA” to 69866 to be connected to your representative or call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at 202.224.3121. Your phone calls will make a huge difference. Even if you think your representative is supportive or if you've called before, it's still important to call now!

The militant fundamentalists at the "American Family Association" are having their flock send emails to Congress to oppose ENDA. It is important to keep them from imposing their religious beliefs on LGBT Americans. The teabaggers are trying to stop ENDA too.

On our side, PFLAG also has an Action Alert for people who support LGBT equality to email their representatives. Please fill it out.

ENDA is the most important queer issue in terms of the number of people affected and the influence over peoples' lives. ENDA is so critical that six protesters were arrested at Nancy Pelosi's office last month, trying to get action on the bill.

Also, if you live in Alaska, please take part in Bent Alaska's Action Alert for ENDA.

Photo: afagen

 

We've heard similar rhetoric before, but ...

(From The Advocate 4/13/10 - Hat Tip AKA William)

House majority leader Steny Hoyer said Tuesday that the body will likely take up the Employment Non-Discrimination Act this year. According to Congressional Quarterly, Hoyer said the legislation, which would institute a federal ban on job discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, is less controversial now than it has been in the past. The bill, H.R. 3017, currently has 198 cosponsors.

From CQ: “Hoyer said most lawmakers already are on the record on the issue because the House passed similar legislation in 2007 to bar employment discrimination based on sexual preference. ‘So it’s not like this is a new issue for the members,’ said Hoyer, D-Md."

The comments are significant as Congress returns to work this week and political observers look for signals from Democratic leadership regarding what type of legislation the Democratic caucus is willing to engage.

I'm a bit concerned that he didn't also mention gender identity. We need to remind our representatives that including trans people and closing this legal loophole is rather important.

In any case, this isn't a call for relaxation. It's a call to action. There isn't going to be a House vote unless we push for it.

Contact Your Representative!

 

Photo: Talk Radio News*

Now that extreme right presidential candidate Ron Paul is won the straw poll at the fascist CPAC convention, it's time for people to consider who is really is and what he really stands for. His cultish supporters have engaged in a campaign of disinformation on liberal and progressive websites for some time now. Back in 2007, I investigated Paul's actual views and agenda and reported the results. This information looks to be even more relevant now than it was then.

Ron Paul has a swarm of zealots on the Internet, spewing pro-Paul propaganda in all sorts of liberal and progressive forums. The Paul worshipers will accurately point out his opposition to the Iraq War and the Unpatriotic Act, but they conveniently omit the vast majority of Paul's views, which are hateful and wacky right-wing. The deception is starting to offend a lot of liberals, and I'm one of them. After all, if Paul could get a 75% rating in 2005 from the “Family Research Council,” a Christian Right hate-group, that should give you some idea of where Paul really stands.

Here are some other ratings of interest:

* Secular Coalition for America: 20% (2004)

* Americans for the Arts Action Fund: 0% (2000, 01, 02, 03, 04)

* Leadership Conference on Civil Rights: 38% (2005)

* Human Rights Campaign: 25% (2003-04), 0% in previous years

* John Birch Society: 100% (2004-2006 in quarterly ratings, except for 88% in Spring 04)

* National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws: 14% (2004), 30% (2005)

* Campaign for America's Future: 0% (2005-06, energy issues)

* Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America: F (2006)


Bigotry Against Atheists

It should be noted that each of the following three positions contradict Paul's claims that he is a libertarian and that he supports individual freedom.

Opposes Restoring the Pledge of Allegience to the Version Without “Under God”
http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2002/pr062702.htm

Co-Sponsored Constitutional Amendment Pushing Coerced Prayer in the Public Schools
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d105:HJ00078:@@@L&summ2=m&


Voted to Allow Bigoted Alabama Judge to Post “Ten Commandments” in Courtroom
http://www.congress.org/congressorg/issues/votes/?votenum=257&chamber=H&congress=1091

Homophobia

Here are a couple of examples of Ron Paul's views, aside from his opposition to ENDA.

Opposes Hate Crimes Laws
http://www.house.gov/paul/tst/tst2007/tst050707.htm

Supports “Don't Ask, Don't Tell”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_positions_of_Ron_Paul

Voted for Amendment Attempting to Block DC Government from Allowing Same-sex Partners to Adopt
http://www.congress.org/congressorg/issues/votes/?votenum=346&chamber=H&congress=1061

Other Right-Wing Extremism,
from his congressional web site:

Opposing Federal Funding for Stem Cell Research:
http://www.house.gov/paul/congrec/congrec2005/cr052405.htm

Anti-UN:
http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2006/pr061506.htm

Pro-Tax Cuts, Nearly All of Which Go to the Rich:
http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2006/pr042606.htm

Favors Cutting Gas Taxes:
http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2005/pr090705.htm

Against Corporate Accountability:
http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2005/pr041405.htm

http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2004/pr091604.htm

Glorifying Ronald Reagan:
http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2004/pr061004.htm

Supporting Corporate Efforts to Ship US Jobs to China
http://www.house.gov/paul/congrec/congrec2005/cr072605.htm

Attacking Gun Control and DC Self Rule
http://www.house.gov/paul/congrec/congrec2004/cr100404.htm

Anti-Union
http://www.house.gov/paul/tst/tst98/tst072798.htm

I should also note that I just checked, and it definitely turns out that Paul has been lying when he says he's a libertarian. He is anti choice. No genuine libertarian would support government involvement in the most personal decision possible.

Ron Paul is correct about the Iraq War. His concerns for civil liberties would be more reassuring if he wasn't determined to limit civil liberties to wealthy, heterosexual, white, Christian men. Otherwise, he is a hateful rightist monster scarcely different than David Duke.

* Note on the Photo: I saw Ron Paul and his cultish followers on Wall St. last year. He looked incredibly lost, confused, and feeble. I couldn't get a clear cell phone pic of him because I kept getting blocked by Paulintologists. This picture shows him less out of it than the day I saw him on Wall St., but the photo I'm running from Talk Radio News was taken in January of 2008. He may have declined mentally since then.

 

The Indiana Daily Student ran an excellent commentary last month by Zach Ammerman supporting ENDA, the Employment Non Discrimination Act. The author opens with a way of discussing the issue in human terms.

In 29 states (including Indiana), it is completely legal to fire someone or deny them employment entirely because they are gay or transgendered.

Your employer could literally say, “You are a great employee, but I am firing you anyway because I don’t like gay people,” and the employee could do absolutely nothing to fight the unfair termination of his or her employment.

There is simply no reason or excuse for the Employee Non-Discrimination Act not to be passed at the national level.

Opponents of ENDA usually focus on Bible thumping. Some misguided supporters of ENDA try to thump back, which isn't such a smart strategy. Religious beliefs are the main reasons people are homophobic, so debating on the basis of religion has the unintended effect of helping ENDA opponents.

Arguing ENDA in human terms is much more powerful. There really are no humane, people based arguments that work against ENDA. We should lead from our strengths.

Ammerman makes two other excellent points.

Polls have consistently shown that a majority of Americans support these protections, and a large number of local and state initiatives to protect gays from workplace discrimination have passed at the ballot box. Congressional politicians have nothing to fear but the unrestrained bigotry of religious leaders like Pat Robertson.

While our country is caught in the middle of one of the worst unemployment crises in nearly a century, every job lost unnecessarily to bigotry is one job too many. If President Obama and leaders in Congress truly care about decreasing unemployment and keeping their campaign promises to pass ENDA, they should pass ENDA now.

If you live in a state or city with employment discrimination protections, you may think you are safe. However, there's a catch. If your employer relocates to a place without such legislation in effect, you've lost your protections. Also, if you get laid off, you may have to accept a job somewhere other than where you live. The latter is an especially important consideration in this economy.

The queer community needs to keep focusing on ENDA. The corporate media don't want to talk about it because ENDA regulates the behavior of corporations, but it is the most important piece of LGBT legislation in terms of the numbers of queers affected and the level of impact employment on peoples' lives.

Carolyn Beeler also has a commentary on the NPR website which argues that if the military ban can be lifted, then ENDA should be passed too.

Out And Equal: Move 'Don't Ask' Beyond The Military

 

Photo: stevebott

The Obama did something for trans equality, though in a low key way. They now say that discrimination based on gender identity is forbidden on a federal jobs site. A more formal announcement would have made more people aware of this change, including job applicants and people involved in hiring, but this is a good step. Here's the text of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force's press release on the subject.

The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force welcomes the Obama administration's inclusion of language on the federal jobs Web site that explicitly bans employment discrimination based on gender identity. While calling the action a step in the right direction, the Task Force urges Congress to pass the federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

Statement by Rea Carey, Executive Director
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force

"We are pleased by the administration's decision to modernize the federal jobs Web site by explicitly banning employment discrimination based on gender identity. This is an action the Task Force and other groups have been advocating for with the Office of Personnel Management, and it is certainly a welcome step toward eliminating workplace discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals in federal employment.

"However, it is unacceptable that in 60 percent of the country, it is still legal to fire someone for reasons that are unrelated to their performance, skills and talents. So, while we are pleased by the change to the federal jobs site, the Task Force will continue pressing Congress to pass a fully inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) early this year. We need to pass ENDA and afford essential employment protections under federal law so that employers across the nation will understand that discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation will not be tolerated whether it is in the private or public sector."

This push is quite important, given that the Labor Law Center is reporting that the both House and Senate have tabled ENDA for now.

ENDA should have passed last year. Really, legislation banning employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity should have passed during 1993 or 1994 when the Democrats had control of both houses of Congress and the White House.

Sometimes, it really seems like the congressional Democrats are deliberately trying to get queer voters to go Green or stay home in 2010.

Some phone banking is going on in California to contact constituents of key politicians to get those voters to call offices for ENDA. In early December, PFLAG and a number of LGBT organizations expressed their outrage at delays in passing ENDA.

People need to keep pushing, and Democrats better start listening if they know what's good for them in 2010.

 

The Democrats performance on queer issues in 2009 wasn't that great. The one really good thing they did was to finally pass hate crimes legislation that included sexual orientation, gender, and disability. The rest was not so good. No other LGBT civil rights issue has even reached Obama's desk.

President Obama's record, aside from signing the hate crimes statute, was not too great either. His involvement of Rick Warren in the inauguration was viciously homphobic and misogynist and showed a lack of interest in dealing with the threat of Christian religious extremism to this country. Aside from minor things here and there, Obama tended to avoid the subject of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans whenever he thought he could get away with it.

Casting a huge shadow over all of this is ENDA, the Employment Non Discrimination Act. ENDA is, by far, the most important queer civil rights issue, and it is long overdue. We've been trying to get Congress to pass legislation banning employment discrimination against us literally for decades. We should have gotten that from the Democrats when they had the White House and both houses of Congress in 1993 and 1994.

The 2009 National Equality March and restiveness in the blogs got the Democrats to take action on hate crimes, but all we've gotten on ENDA is talk. I'm getting sick and tired of this crap. Here's text from a 12/3/09 email Sen. Schumer's office sent me in response to my email last year trying to get action taken.

Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon introduced ENDA in August and I proudly joined him as an original cosponsor. The legislation has attracted broad bipartisan support in both chambers of Congress, and I am hopeful that it will be brought to the Senate Floor for a vote by the end of the year. Senator Tom Harkin, the new Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, has expressed his intention to hold a hearing on ENDA in the near future, which would be an important step towards passing this much-needed bill.

It's 2010, and it hasn't even passed the House yet, which is supposedly easier. The Senate has held hearings on ENDA, but they still haven't voted on it.

What really worries me is that the Democrats will try to use the fact that 2010 is an election year to put off our basic rights as human beings even longer. If they don't stop screwing with us, we will lose interest in the Democrats in 2010 they same way we did in 1994. Remember what happened to the Democrats in 1994?

 

Photo: dereckesanches

United ENDA is a coalition of hundreds of lgbt organizations who support a fully inclusive Employment Non Discrimination Act (ENDA). ENDA is under consideration by both the House and Senate, and we really need to contact the people who are supposed to be representing us in DC to let them know we want it to pass ASAP. From United ENDA's Action Alert:

This Thursday, November 5, a Senate Committee will hold a hearing on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (S. 1584). Key witnesses will testify about how vital this legislation is for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workers and their families. But we know that the most important voices to these Senators are the voices of people who live back home.

We have made it easy to call or send an email. Senators and Representatives and their staffs tell us that calls and emails make all the difference!

So CALL the U.S. Capitol switchboard at: (202) 224-3121. Give your zip code and ask to be connected to your Senators, and then your Representative.

Use this message: My name is _____ and I am a proud resident of (your city, state). I am calling in support of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (H.R. 3017/S. 1584), to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people from job discrimination. Please take action to pass ENDA now. I can be reached at _______ (give your phone number). Thank you.

Notes:

1) Since the Action Alert was put out, the Senate Hearings were delayed. That's all the more reason to push harder.

2) Whenever you get a phone script or default text in an email alert, you should always replace that with your own words and views. It's much more effective. The canned stuff is for people who get tongue tied or writer's block.

3) The Action Alert also has an email form.

4) The House and Senate bill numbers are H.R. 3017 and S. 1584 respectively.

5) Here's what I put in the email form, if you want another option of what to start from other than the default text that is there.

Please support an inclusive ENDA (H.R. 3017 / S. 1584) - the bill that protects lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans from losing our jobs simply because of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Also, please make sure that the final version of ENDA includes protections on the basis of disparate impact, which eliminates a huge loophole for corporate lawyers.

The Democrats should have passed employment discrimination protections at least as early as 1993. This is long, long overdue.

Please Take Action Now!

You can also join United ENDA's Facebook group.

 

The House and Senate have passed legislation extending federal hate crimes protection to gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability. This victory on the second most important piece of lgbt civil rights legislation is very important. From the Advocate 10/22/09:

The Senate voted 68 to 29 Thursday to pass a Defense Department funding bill that includes a measure extending hate-crimes protections to people targeted on the basis of their gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability.

The National Defense Authorization Act now goes to President Barack Obama’s desk for his signature.

We can not relax and assuming that President Obama will do the right thing. He has broken a wide range of promises on numerous issues including Iraq, illegal wiretapping, and restoring the rule of law. We need to keep up the pressure in order to try to make sure Obama signs the legislation.

Please Contact the White House!

The Mad Professah Lectures makes an excellent point about the legislation:

Today's 68-29 vote on the final version of the Department of Defense spending bill means that the federal hate crimes bill will become the first piece of federal legislation that includes gender identity and the first major piece of civil rights legislation on the LGBT agenda to be enacted.

The legislation had overwhelming Democratic support and heavy Republican opposition. People in the queer community might be interested in knowing that Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell voted against the legislation.

Russ Feingold, a Democrat, voted against it on the grounds that it was attached to legislation funding the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Some Republicans voted for it, including Ensign, McCain, Cornyn, Hutchison, Lugar, Bond, Voinovich, Snowe, and Collins. In some cases, it was difficult to know if they really supported extending hate crimes protections or if they didn't want to vote against the Defense Appropriations bill it was attached to.

Even with this victory, we must keep our eyes on the most important queer civil rights bill in Congress, ENDA. Kevin Cathcart of Lambda Legal made an excellent point in its 10/22/09 Press Release:

"Now that the Hate Crimes Act has passed adding protections for all members of our community against violence motivated by hate, Congress must also pass an inclusive ENDA to protect us against discrimination on the job. The majority of Americans support workplace protections for lesbians, gay men, bisexuals and transgender people and there is no reason for further delay," Cathcart added.

Just as the HRC did when they invited homophobes like Bill Clinton and Nancy Pelosi to be their keynote speakers, history repeated itself when the Champagne Fund (Human Rights Campaign) rewarded Barack Obama for empty rhetoric and heterosexist substance at this weekend's annual dinner.

Fortunately, there were self respecting queers protesting outside the dinner. From the Washington Blade 10/11/09:

Tuxedo clad guests walking to the Washington Convention Center to see President Obama's speech Saturday before the Human Rights Campaign's annual dinner were greeted by a line of about 75 LGBT activists who criticized the president for not moving fast enough on LGBT rights legislation.

The protesters unfurled a 25 foot long banner bearing the words, "A Chicago Welcome for Obama: Keep your 0#% promises! Repeal DOMA, Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

Protest organizer Andy Thayer, a member of the Chicago-based Gay Liberation Network, said he and members of the Dallas-based Queer Liberaction called the protest to raise objections to what they believe has been the president's record so far of "all talk and no action."

The quote from the protest flier says it so well:

"For too many years the LGBT movement has been the plaything of the Democratic Party," said a statement handed out by the protesters. "Courted for money and votes when they needed us, abused and disrespected once they're in power."

The Democratic Party is supportive of queers at the local level in some states and cities, but the national party continues to exploit and abuse queers. Just because the Republicans are even worse is no excuse for how execrable the congressional and White House Democrats have been to us.

I know that Obama threw some platitudes at the self loathing queers at the HRC dinner who put pageantry over activism. I don't care. Empty speeches are mostly offensive and irritating at this point.

Employment discrimination legislation should have been passed in the late 70s, yet the Democratic Congress still hasn't put the legislation on Obama's desk to sign or veto. It's 2009. This is unacceptable.