V E R G E - kansas city's premiere gay and lesbian magazine

By Michael Henry

Jeremy is a 32-year-old marketing professional. He makes a nice living and loves to shop for his Diesel jeans and tight Puma kicks. He is into cars, fashion and enjoys a good time. So with his full life of activities and friends, why is Jeremy going door to door for the Constitution Defense League? Because being political is 'it' right now.

'It' - is the upcoming election that could decide who will fight for, or deny our rights for the next four years and beyond.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy has called the upcoming November election, "the most important election of our lifetime. I think back to 1960s... and I think that this is a defining moment in our nation's history ó in terms of our relations with the rest of the world and also how we're going to deal with our issues here at home."

Not only are crucial seats in congress up for grabs by friends and foes of gays and lesbians, but these elected officials will appoint and confirm judges, who will decide our fate for years to come. Does our vote matter?

Up until this year's election, apathy toward politics in the gay community seemed to run high, with low voter turnout and little interest in national or local candidates. It's as if there was a warning label: "Getting involved in politics may cause premature aging and a sudden loss of friends." It's almost as if politics was like bad fashion for gay people. Many of us have left the politicking to Four Freedoms Democratic Club, PROMO and the Constitution Defense League. But this year seems to be different.

Some in the LGBT community are getting involved for the first time. They are going to political fundraisers for U.S. Senate hopeful Nancy Farmer and Congressman Dennis Moore and listening to debates between 5th district congressional candidates Jamie Metzl and Primary-winner Emmanuel Cleaver. They give money to and volunteer for the Constitution Defense League, and they believe that their vote counts.

The Constitution Defense League (CDL) mounted an extraordinary effort to defeat the discriminatory Missouri State Constitutional Amendment barring same-sex couples from marriage rights. The campaign has motivated an incredible cross-section of Kansas City Metropolitan lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people, along with straight allies, many of whom are getting involved in politics for the first time. The transformation will have a long-lasting impact on our Kansas City political landscape for years to come.

Hundreds of CDL volunteers have been knocking on doors to identify those who are with us and those who are not. They went walking through the sympathetic neighborhoods of Brookside and Hyde Park, as well as those not so welcoming, such as North Kansas City and Lee's Summit. Their experience has been eye-opening and surprising. What motivates a gay or lesbian person, especially someone new to politics, to knock on a door and come out to a total stranger?

"Many in the LGBT community don't think we can lose what we have gained so far."

The upcoming election has made a difference for CDL volunteer, Nicole Kelley. "I was vocal about some issues at certain times with friends, family and whomever would listen to me, but never was I part of an organized campaign such as the Constitution Defense League." She adds that the stakes are high for lesbians and gays. "Our personal freedom is at stake. They propose to write discriminatory language into the constitution. That is the document that was meant to grant freedom for all citizens, not restrict liberties."

Another CDL volunteer, Greg Cusack, also has a higher level of involvement than ever before. "I grew up in a family that talked about politics, but I never really got involved until the 2000 election. Every vote counted in that election. I thought I did not do enough to get the election to succeed in 2000. So I want to make sure that would never happen again." He is even more energized by the possibility of same-sex marriage rights. "A year ago, we were not talking about this, but it was not possible a year ago. I understand that Massachusetts' decision could set us back, but I don't care, we cannot pass this up. We are in this for the long haul."

Greg and Nicole and countless others are voting with action. What moves an ordinary, fun-loving LGBT person to political action? They say they want to elect fair-minded leaders and decide issues that matter to us.

But does your vote really matter?

Some say that LGBT people are powerless. Stigmatized by everything from the AIDS epidemic to outspoken religious objections and stereotypes of promiscuity and drug use, LGBT people continue to fight a society torn between moral conviction and a new age of liberalism. In many schools and workplaces, discrimination policies still don't include sexual identity. President Bush and many members of congress explicitly express the belief that marriage and all of the legal protections should be restricted to heterosexual relationships and exclude LGBT families forever.

While sitcoms like "Will and Grace" portray gay men as Cher-loving, over-indulgent fashion fairies, they also provide visibility that may provoke some acceptance, although many would compare it to a minstrel show. Such accomplishments in visibility and acceptance are tainted with equally visible setbacks and surprisingly, an increasing opposition to gay rights in public opinion polls. Danielle Harrison, who recently performed in The Laramie Project, points out that today's seemingly more tolerant atmosphere for gays and lesbians has a flipside: "Many in the LGBT community don't think we can lose what we have gained so far."

Some people get involved in politics only when it affects their pocketbook or they lose their job to "overseas outsourcing."

She believes many LGBT folks don't think their vote means much. "I think some people take a cavalier attitude toward politics because they think that social progress is only a matter of time." They point to the gains in civil rights that African Americans and women have attained in recent decades. They conclude that after enough time passes, those groups and others will enjoy complete economic justice and freedom from discrimination in the U.S.

So why not just go to the bars and leave the politics to the politicos?

The Stonewall Inn was a gay bar, not a hotbed of politics. The "street queens" weren't politicos; they would rather run in pumps than fight! But on June 27, 1969 fight they did, and many in our community have been fighting ever since.

Some people get involved in politics only when it affects their pocketbook or they lose their job to "overseas outsourcing." But with this current backlash, some are predicting that more jobs will be lost simply because we are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered. The LGBT community stands to lose more than jobs if we don't stand up and make our voice heard. Ultimately, the most powerful way to help people understand that their vote counts is through personal contact.

"Personal contact is a more effective method of persuading an LGBT person or anyone to vote than either direct mail or telephone calls and is much cheaper," says Doug Grey, manager of the Constitution Defense League effort. "We have been encouraging everyone to talk to their friends, their neighbors, their coworkers, their families -- everyone about voting!

What was it like to ask perfect strangers in Lee's Summit to vote for equal rights for LGBT people?

Greg Cusack found that, "Nobody ever slammed a door in our face. People in Lee's summit are conservative, so they are often against it on moral grounds." Nicole Kelley said, "Sometimes I come out when necessary to put a face on what a lesbian (professional) woman looks like in the suburbs where she lives.... No big deal....I am a human being just like them and deserve the same rights as any American. I will take the heat if necessary for others to follow...." Cusack adds, "I'm not going to say that it is not scary. When I come upon a house with a Jesus Saves or NRA bumper sticker on the back of a pickup and a big dog, 'That's intimidating.' We have to take risks. When I go up to that door, I believe it is my duty to reach out and help people understand the issues."

The experience of going door-to-door is enormously encouraging according to Greg and Nicole. It's both productive for the campaign, and also personally affirming. In more diverse and urban neighborhoods, 60 to 90 percent of the time, voters are surprised to learn that the basic rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people are under attack. When they do, they say something like: "Of course I'm against discrimination, against anybody." They may like or dislike gay people, but they say discrimination is always wrong.

Every vote counts. Out of the millions of votes cast in the race between George W. Bush and Al Gore in 2000, 527 votes in Florida decided the outcome. With so much at stake in this upcoming election, Cusack believes "voting is an LGBT community duty."

"This is the most important opportunity we have ever had as an LGBT person," suggests Greg Cusack. "Many people in our community don't have time, money or resources to get involved, but they care about the outcome. They will vote."

On a national level, Voter News Service has consistently shown that those who self-identify as lesbians and gay men are at least four percent of Election Day voters. Both HRC and the Pride Agenda maintain that the actual number is much greater, as many gay people are unwilling to disclose their sexual orientation when asked. With 4, 5 or 6 percent of the electorate, LGBT people can affect the election Ö if they vote.

For some, they might just need a spark of inspiration to get involved. "Reading quotes about freedom and justice give me courage and I am inspired," says Greg Cusack. "I read Brave Journeys: Profiles in Gay and Lesbian Courage by David Mixer and Dennis Bailey. It profiles people who have done a lot of activism for AIDS and stuff, and why we should get involved." Nicole Kelley points to the Constitution itself as the inspiration. "'We the people' - means to me we are all equal...As a lesbian, I am committed to fighting the fight to achieve freedom, equality and respect for all of us - in all aspects of our lives."

Other leaders are speaking out, too. Melissa Etheridge is speaking out against the constitutional Amendment in a new online ad by the Human Rights Campaign. "Is that what America is about?" Etheridge rhetorically asks in the ad when pondering same-sex couples being denied marriage rights.

"We must fight this attack on our community from every part of our community," said HRC President Cheryl Jacques. "We thank Melissa for her time and energy in fighting this attempt to write discrimination into our Constitution."

There are some powerful historical statements that have led some to action, like what Rev. Martin Niemoller said in 1945: "First they came for the Communists, and I didn't speak up, because I wasn't a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up, because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up, because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and then there was no one left to speak up."

Martin Luther King Jr. has inspired millions to fight for civil rights. "Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable," he warned. "Even a superficial look at history reveals that no social advance rolls in on the wheels of inevitability. Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals."

Look at these organizations online to find out how you can get involved:
www.HRC.org,
www.FourFreedoms.org,
www.PromoOnline.org.
Become a member, volunteer and VOTE!