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Join the Impact: Defend Equality on Saturday at a protest near you
Dozens (hundreds?) of peaceful demonstrations have been organized across the country and abroad to take place at the same time tomorrow. It's an unprecedented cumulative show of force against opponents to gay rights, and it needs your voice. At 1:30PM EST tomorrow (10:30AM PST), gays and lesbians, their friends and families, and those with a vested interest in civil rights for all Americans will gather in every state of the nation to protest the passing of Proposition 8 in California (and similar measures in other states) and send a message of equality for all to the world. Check out JointheImpact to locate the nearest protest to you, print out materials, and more. Please participate if you can, and share your stories here afterward.
Image at top: the official poster for the day of protest, by Shepard Fairey (who definitely has a posse) Submitted by on Fri, 2008-11-14 14:18. |
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Wanda Sykes comes out at Las Vegas protest
At the protest in Las Vegas, comedian Wanda Sykes came out to a surprised crowd, admitting that not only is she gay but that she had married her wife in California on October 25; what she said about Prop 8: "I felt like I was attacked, personally attacked--our community was attacked."
NY Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/16/us/16protest.html?hp
Check out my blog: http://radicalsexy.blogspot.com/
More from Wanda
Here's a more complete transcript of Wanda's statement at the Las Vegas rally (she starts by referring to the Obama victory):
"I thought, man we are moving in the right direction. And then at about 11 o’clock I was crushed. We took a huge leap forward and then got dragged 12 feet back. I felt like I was being attacked, personally attacked, our community was attacked. I got married Oct. 25, I don’t really talk about my sexual orientation, I felt like I was living my life, I wasn’t in the closet, but I was just living my life. Everybody who knows me personally, they know I’m gay. And that’s the way people should be able to live our lives, really. We shouldn’t have to be standing out here demanding something we automatically should have as citizens of this country. ... They pissed off the wrong group of people. They have galvanized a community. We are so together now and we all want the same thing and we shouldn’t have to settle for less. Instead of having gay marriage in California, no, we’re gonna have gay marriage across the country. When my wife and I leave California, I want to have my marriage also recognized in Nevada, in Arizona, all the way to New York. ... I’m proud to be a woman, I’m proud to be a black woman and I’m proud to be gay."
"...people shouldn’t have to talk about their sexual orientation, we shouldn’t have to do it, but with the legislation that they passed, I can’t sit by and just watch. I just can’t do it."
Courtesy Vegas Happens Here:
http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/11/wanda-sykes-lv-gay-rally-im-proud-to-be.html
Check out my blog: http://radicalsexy.blogspot.com/
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In a crowd of 2,000 plus people I walked right up to the friends I hoped to meet at the rally. I didn't know they were coming, but we met as if we had arranged the exact time and 2 foot square place to stand at. Later, right after they announced that my state congress woman was unable to make it, I was a little disappointed because I love to hear her speak. She is one of the first openly gay elected office holders in any state congress. I volunteered on her first two campaigns. They announced she wouldn't make it, then two seconds later, there she was, Karen Clark was standing by my side in the crowd! She just showed up and was looking at the podium to see how the rally was progressing. (she may have been to the St. Paul demo and hurried over to Mpls.) Like magic, the day was for me.
I couldn't help but feel that this crowd was a seed. Every person there, and every young person a seed being planted. There was a speech prepared and read by a black youth from the local GLBT youth initiative. He talked about growing up black and gay and creating family through respect. So much courage and hope exuded while he fumbled with his paper and the microphone. One speaker mentioned that Barack Obama's parents could not be legally married in one third of the country when he was born. And I looked around thinking, in this crowd of gay and lesbian parents there were several children and thinking one of them may be president one day. It really does happen.
The event was organized by a local socialist group, not a specifically gay group. The emcee, if you will, was a dynamic, young, black woman who led the crowd in chants between introducing the politicians and advocacy group leaders who spoke. For as white as Minneapolis is, the stage and crowd didn't seem to reflect that. As a matter of fact the speeches and crowd reaction were decidedly against blame and we all wanted to voice that.
John Marty, a state senator, spoke. He sponsored a bill this year that would give full rights to gays to marry in the state of Minnesota. (the bill was conceived by the socialist party leader who organized this rally.) Marty, who is straight, gave this reason to why he was proud to be here and sponsor the bill, in Minnesota, he said, "Love is a family value."
Love is a family value...
Absolutely. This sounds like it was a wonderful rally. To hear all of this gives me hope for your country. One state at a time, bit by bit, everyone will achieve equality everywhere. The best part is all of the children taken to these gartherings by enlightened parents around the country listening to all of this. They are the future lawmakers and governments. Some of those children are gay and will grow up strong, proud and fearless because of the actions of those around them now.
I say we take the warning labels off everything and let nature take it's course.
Wanda Sykes Interview Nov. 15
"They pissed off the wrong group of people"
Wanda Sykes demonstration audio and post rally interview with "The Strip" in Vagas.