Saturday, August 16, 2008

The problem with the Human Rights Campaign

By Diane Silver

The following column was originally entitled "Stuck in the Glamour Trap," but I decided to head this post what I had originally intended to call the column, and then, well, I chickened out.

Here's the beginning of the column. You can read the rest after the jump.
I yearn for the day when being an LGBT American is no more remarkable than being an Irish American. We would still be a definable group with an interesting and sometimes bitter history. We might even continue to hold parades every June. But the days of obsessing about politics would be long gone, because we would finally be equal. Obviously, we’re not there yet. Even more worrisome is the fact that we’re stuck in a trap that threatens to keep us from ever reaching that sweet day.

I call it the glamour trap. (Read more of this Lesbian Notions column at The Dallas Voice.)

2 comments:

Nancy Jane Moore said...

I jumped to the article and agree wholeheartedly. And it's not just the Human Rights Campaign that needs to pay attention to this. Having lived in Washington, D.C., for many years, I know that many public interest lobbyists tend to get caught up in seeing the place as the center of the universe, and forget about working at the grass roots level. There can often be more flexibility in the states -- even the conservative ones.
BTW, Law Professor Sanford Levinson, who contributes to the blog Balkinization frequently expounds on the subject of flaws in our constitution, including the one that gives each state two senators regardless of population. Levinson has a book out called Our Undemocratic Constitution detailing the various problems.
Speaking again as a former DC resident, I note that Wyoming has a smaller population than DC, which has no senators and no vote in the House, either. Unlike the other colonies of the US that lack representation, DC residents pay full federal taxes.

Diane Silver said...

Thanks for the perspective, and for the reminder of DC's 2nd-class status. Our nation's capital deserves better!