I've started about 5 blogs since the beginning of all this Prop H8 turmoil and things change before I get a chance to finish my thoughts. Blog updated soon but wanted to get this up ASAP:

The CA Supreme Court will be hearing 3 cases when it reconvenes next year. The three points it will consider for the future of LGBT Marriage Equality are the following:

Is Proposition 8 invalid because it constitutes a revision of, rather than an amendment to, the California Constitution?

Does Proposition 8 violate the separation of powers doctrine under the California Constitution?

If Proposition 8 is not unconstitutional, what is its effect, if any, on the marriages of same-sex couples performed before the adoption of Proposition 8?

Overnight this movement has taken a foothold that I have been waiting for since I was about 20 years old. Where our national LGBT leaders have failed in mobilizing the masses a new generation of political passion has filled the void. It's amazing how much energy and focus has come from the apathy of our passive fundraising non profits.

More to come...

Next steps - Part 1:

As our movement becomes a national conversation--from coverage on CNN, to Keith Olbermann to the local news in just about every city--we need to start thinking more strategic in our street protests and rallies. I truly believe we needed somewhere to put our anger during the first week of our civil rights being stolen from us but we need to be smart about taking to the streets from here on out.

As you know lawsuits have been filed and our Governor, 40+ of our Legislature and Attorney General are behind us. It comes down to this: With Prop 8 passing the 52% of CA basically said the LGBT community is not protected under the equality clause. It comes down to whether the Supreme Court considers this decision a "major change" or not. Since Prop 8 is a 'revision,' not an 'amendment' legal experts say it would require two-thirds approval in the legislature and then a popular vote.

If we continue shutting down cities day in and day out we are going to lose the support of our straight allies and the 48% of people that were WITH us for prop 8. The passion we have is great. But we have to be careful not to squander our support by ill planned or low attended events like the multitude of posts on Facebook/Myspace/etc. It takes strategy, infrastructure and a little set up now that the anger has dissipated a bit.

I am completely on board with street movements--I've been in the face of the riot police here in LA and on the streets since prop 22--but we need to unify, clarify our messaging or we will lose the social battle before the legal battle is even won.

Yours in struggle,

W.

----------------- Original Message -----------------
From: Daniel
Date: Nov 7, 2008 6:05 PM


Hey Wes-

I realize that I did not do too much in my own state of Florida to oppose Amendment 2 (other than blog and word of mouth), but I'm wondering if you have any idea why there was millions of dollars and tons of media and celebrity involved in the fight of prop 8 in California, and almost no attention at all to the same fights in Arizona (prop 102) and Florida (amendment 2). In FL all we needed was 41 percent to say no and it would not have passed. We had 38. A little more money and media would have gone a long way.

Dan

----------------- Original Message -----------------

Hey Dan,

I absolutely agree w/ you on the tragedy of all three states. Also, AR just banned gays from adoption or fostering this election cycle. They even went as far to keep unmarried heterosexuals from being able to do so--just to keep the LGBT community away from these civil rights. While we can look to the future w/ our new president we are definitely looking at steps backward for our community this time around.

There are a couple reasons I think this happened. (1) The LGBT Civil Rights movement is a very young movement and one of the least organized in terms of grassroots infrastructure. We do not have any national action plan put in to place. The few national non-profits we have I feel are ineffective and obsolete in terms of their strategies and structure. Save the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force or Lambda Legal.

I think (2) would be is that California has always been viewed as a beacon of civil rights in this country. They were the first to strike down the laws against interracial marriage and it is known to set the tone for the entire country in terms of social issues. I believe both sides of the argument viewed this state as a foothold battle ground on moving forward.

(3) I think we saw the celebrity influence due to the fact many celebrities either work here or spend a lot of their professional time here and have a vested interest in seeing equal rights in a state they live and/or pay taxes.

Florida and Arizona are not know as strongholds for tolerance whether that be true or not. I think the movement and its limited resources (even w/ the stats possible being on FL's side) believed they needed to pool all resources here in order to win the fight and move forward from there. Unfortunately, it was one of the most misguided and horrific political campaigns I've seen in my lifetime.

I hope that helps.


In struggle,

-W

It's been quite an amazing last couple of days. I have been working in some capacity for LGBT rights (marriage and otherwise) for 10+ years and I have never seen such an amazing rally of our own community's base.

The very first rally that has broken free of the ghettoized confines of West Hollywood in decades was spectacular to be a part of. To shut down Sunset, La Brea, Hollywood and Highland was such an empowering feeling. To be standing there with gay, straight, black, white, the spiritual, the atheists all as one is indescribable. As people poured from restaurants, shops, stores and homes to applaud and support us as we pushed through lines of traffic and police barricades it was the first time I've truly been proud of my community. We've absolutely had shining stars of hope and activism but as a whole I've always been horrified at the apathy gay men and women have about their own civil rights.

As the rallies continue and the street movements reach outside our comfortable "gayborhoods" we are for the first time talking to people other than ourselves. For the first time we are speaking out to groups that didn't think we had a voice or that we knew how to use them. With our LGBT organizations that continue to throw black-tie events to pat each other on the back for the work done INSIDE our community not many OUTSIDE the LGBT civil rights movement would ever know we had a civil rights movement to begin with.

This leads us to the dilemma we are facing today, tomorrow and for the weeks/months ahead. As we continue to march, rally and protest statewide in the void left by the lack of response from Geoff Kors and our horrifically mismanaged No on 8 campaign we need to be demanding ACTION in connection w/ taking to the streets--while the visibility is amazing there can be no response or solution without a request posed w/ our street movement.

We have to organize and create a legitimate request (repeal prop 8, tax churches, etc...) before these rallies begin to bore the rest of Californians and we lose all momentum. Our straight allies are poised to throw us 100% of their support. We MUST tell them what we are demanding by taking to the streets succinctly and articulately.

A rally every day would be fantastic visibility but we must create a clear agenda of where we are going--otherwise once we've worked through our hurt and anger by taking to the streets I fear apathy will take hold of this community once again.

We ARE better than this...please share this video.