Prop. 8 boycott the only way to motivate
26th November 2008
I have asked that members and supporters of the GLBT community come together in a nonviolent way to express our outrage over the passage of Proposition 8.
This issue was decided on the basis of a fear campaign crafted by its supporters who blatantly lied to the public about the affect Proposition 8 would have if defeated. The line-up of contributors reads like a “who's who” of right-wing conservatives with a long history of doing and saying anything to defeat equal rights.
The truth did not prevail.
And how despicably they behaved! The poor child who was featured in their hate- and fear-based commercials may be forever harmed by her use as a pawn in their hate campaign. The gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community is not the villain here. We didn't parade puppy-eyed children in front of the camera to do our bidding. We told the truth using adults who were capable of forming their own opinions.
No one has addressed the consequences of the passage of Proposition 8 and initiatives like it on the thousands of GLBT families across the country. How do you explain to your child that your GLBT family is somehow less than other families? How exactly does one explain discrimination?
The real issue here is a constitutional one: Are all citizens guaranteed the same rights under our Constitution?
And secondly: Should religious organizations be allowed to fund political campaigns while maintaining their tax-exempt status?
The question becomes how do we educate a public so susceptible to lies and deceit? Certainly not with violence and certainly not by “giving them the benefit of the doubt” as some have suggested. We need to reach them in a way that has the most impact — economically.
My goal is to inspire the GLBT community to support the businesses that support them, and not just here in the Coachella Valley, but across the nation. With our significant buying power, we need to be informed before we spend. I can only imagine how many GLBT dollars “accidentally” funded the Yes on Proposition 8 campaign.
I have asked that the GLBT community and supporters to only frequent businesses they know to be GLBT supportive during the dates Nov. 26-30. Black Friday — Nov. 28 — is the largest shopping day of the year. I favor supporting a business like Macy's that participates in the GLBT community rather than a similar business that does not.
To know if a business is GLBT-supportive, simply visit your local business organizations — in Palm Springs, the Desert Business Association, www.dbaps.org, or the Desert Gay Tourism Guild, www.dgtg.org. Nationally, contact the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce or the International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA), www.iglta.org. You can find a list of member businesses on these sites.
Spend some time identifying the businesses that have historically supported our community and then reward them with your business.
Reward those that have stood with us during this sad and difficult time, especially in our current economy.
The supporters of Proposition 8 may claim a victory, but as I see it, our humanity was beaten and bloodied that day.
Source: My Desert