POV: Once You See the Emperor Has No Clothes, Things Can Get Better

by Michelle E. Brown

Originally published on Cherrygrrl.com, February 27, 2011.

As a female, African American, lesbian I could probably tell you stories of discrimination, bigotry and various attempts to stifle my greatness, until times get better.  Some days I have a feeling I’ll be talking for a very long time.

It’s not just the acrimonious tenor of the body politic. Each day I am astounded by folks who should know better, doing something that is so totally screwed up – defying logic and common sense without any regard for social justice.

Like when I heard about the Grammy’s awarding Buju Banton – who is notorious for his lyrics inciting violence against gays – with the Reggae Album of the Year award; or when Justin Bieber – heartthrob of many young girls – made anti-choice statements opposing abortion even in the case of rape; and let’s not forget Republican Congressmen Christopher Lee – who campaigned as a crusader for morality – who sent photos of himself to a woman in the “Women Seeking Men” forum on Craigslist from his cell phone.

I have a feeling I’ll be talking for a very long time about my rights to earn equal pay for equal work, to have dominion over my reproductive rights, to be judged by the content of my character and not the color of my skin, gender or sexual orientation/gender expression and to enjoy all the glorious facets of love including matrimonial bliss with my partner  “until death do us part.”

Like the song goes: “It’s been a long time coming but I know a change is gonna come.”  And it is.

First there was the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act in 2009, expanding the 1969 United States Federal Hate Crime Law to include crimes motivated by a victim’s actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability.

Then came the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in 2010, ending the 17-year policy banning gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military.

Now, in 2011, DOMA’s going down – completing our first equality trifecta.

DOMA, the Defense of Marriage Act, was like the “Emperor Who Had No Clothes.”   Lawmakers have no business meddling in marriage and DOMA was as unconstitutional as Virginia’s anti-miscegenation statute (the Racial Integrity Act of 1924 overturned by Loving vs. Virginia).

But DOMA rode in on the winds of religious self-righteousness and far right conservatism that was so great that, rather than doing the right thing, lawmakers led the morality charge with this act defining marriage for federal purposes as the union of a man and a woman.

It still amazes me that the prospect of me marrying my girlfriend or any other gay couple’s marriage could cause such hysteria – but it did and continues to do so.

While divorce statistics soar and married heterosexuals behaving badly make headlines, gays and lesbians in states, cities, and countries around the world are getting married and getting on with their lives without incident.  But still the specter of DOMA remained part of the law of the land and the Department of Justice was poised to defend it.

Okay, help me with this – we elected a president who can talk about LGBT issues without stammering, opposes DOMA, and appoints an Attorney General who is ready to defend DOMA.  What is wrong with this picture?

Is our government so schizophrenic that it must march blindly forward even when all signs point in another direction? It certainly didn’t require too great a leap to see that DOMA violated both the “Due Process Clause” and the “Equal Protection Clause” of the 14th Amendment just like in Loving v. Virginia. Did Attorney General Holden skip that day in law school or what?

But at long last the call went out that the LGBT community has been long awaiting.

President Obama finally said what we have known all along – “the DOMA Emperor” has no constitutional clothes.  With that the Justice Department said it would cease legal defense of DOMA.

It would be great if we could say this was strike three and homophobia was out of the game once and for all, but we know that is not the case.

For every victory we get for marriage equality there are still those who will put their time, money, and political influence behind stripping us of our rights.

Old ways die hard. Hatred, racism, bigotry, and homophobia still attack us in communities, on the job, even in the schoolyard, which is why we have to keep pushing for a fully-inclusive ENDA (Employment Non-Discrimination Act), anti-bullying legislation, and continued recognition and protections for our families.

But while we are fighting for our rights let’s also remember that LGBTQIA doesn’t spell separate or special. It spells community. It spells neighbor. It spells American.

While we fight for our rights let’s not forget that healthcare, education, women’s reproductive rights, poverty, jobs, and peace are our issues too – so show up and speak up.

Like the song goes: “It’s been a long time coming, but I know a change is gonna come.” It will get better. Until then, I’ll keep talking about it.

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POV: Bachmann-Perry Overdrive – You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet

by Michelle E. Brown

Originally published on Cherrygrrl.com, July 22, 2011.

It’s months before the first primary and the rhetoric coming from declared and potential GOP candidates has already kicked into overdrive.

Despite many fact malfunctions, including her claim that the Founding Fathers had worked “tirelessly” to end slavery when, in fact, they had enshrined it in the Constitution, Michele Bachmann is supposedly one of the front runners. It doesn’t seem to matter that, repeatedly, she can’t get her facts right, Bachmann remains the darling of not just the Tea Party but apparently the press as well, who just can’t get enough of her.

How wrong has she got it? Although her personal financial disclosures show she holds interest in a family farm that received between 1995 and 2010 over a quarter million dollars in federal payments, Bachman declared: “My husband and I have never gotten a penny of money from a family farm.” I guess the income exceeding $32K was paid in bills only, no loose change. And perhaps she was using new math when she said  that the number of new drilling permits under the Obama administration was  one when actually the number is somewhere around 269.

It’s not just on history and economics facts Ms. Bachman appears dazed and confused. On issues of LGBT equality she is downright scary. Even if we can somehow overlook the allegations that her husband’s Christian Counseling Center uses faith-based therapy in an effort to convert gay men into heterosexuals, or chalk up to sibling rivalry the fact that Bachmann’s openly gay stepsister years ago protested at one of Bachmann’s anti-gay rallies, how can we ignore the words and actions of Ms. Bachman herself. At the New Hampshire debate and later when questioned following New York’s historic vote for gay marriage, Bachman commented it was fine if New York did it (that’s what states can do under the 10th amendment) but she remains in favor of the federal government trumping state law by defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman through a constitutional amendment.

Another bright shining GOP star is Texas Governor Rick Perry, another fiscal conservative, perhaps best known for his controversial suggestion that Texas may at some point secede from the union and turning down approximately $555 million in stimulus money for unemployment insurance. Where Bachmann may seem unclear on history and facts, Perry is crystal clear on where he stands on the issues.

Perry is pro-life and opposes government funding for elective abortions. In 2005, he signed a bill that limited late-term abortions and required girls under the age of 18 who procure abortions to notify their parents. In 2011, Perry signed a “Mandatory Ultrasound Bill” which stipulates that, prior to every abortion, the abortion practitioner or a certified sonographer must perform a sonogram before any sedative or anesthesia is administered, give an explanation of the sonogram images of the unborn child, and allow the woman to see the sonogram images of the unborn child and hear the heartbeat along with a verbal explanation of the heartbeat before an abortion can be administered.

And where does he weigh in on LGBT rights including marriage? Perry opposes all legal recognition of same sex marriages. He condemned the United States Supreme Court decision in Lawrence vs. Texas, which struck down a Texas same-sex anti-sodomy law and believed the law to be “appropriate.” While contemplating his presidential run Perry proclaimed Saturday, August 6, as a Day of Prayer and fasting to seek God’s guidance and wisdom in addressing the challenges that face the nation. He invited governors across the country to join him on that day to participate in The Response, a non-denominational, apolitical, Christian prayer meeting hosted by the American Family Association (known for its opposition to same-sex marriage and abortion).

Lest the far-right not be fully represented, Rick Santorum, former US senator and now the President of Angry Fetuses, announced in front of an empty building his candidacy for the GOP nomination.

Now there are some equally flamboyant candidates like the ever entertaining Sarah Palin, Michigan’s misfit Thaddeus McCotter, and that blast from the past Newt Gingrich as well as more, by BPO standards, “conservative” contenders a like Mitt Romney, Tim Pawlenty, and Buddy Roemer.

Sadly, on first glance, this field of contenders does not bode well for an issue-based, civil, presidential debate and campaign next year. More than anything this atmosphere of saber rattling, divisiveness and intolerance has gotten this country into the mess it’s in and keeps us from digging our way out of this hole.

Everyone says they are upholding the constitution and the beliefs of our founding fathers of course subject to their own interpretation. Before the campaign kicks the rhetoric into overdrive let’s put the brakes on the madness and make choices based on the common good through a clear lens not one clouded by hatred, religious zeal and political balderdash.

We get this one shot every four years to set a new path for our country, our society and our future. We can’t just “let it ride” and expect different outcomes. Politics as usual is BROKEN. Let’s hope 2012 will be a time of taking care of business but I’ve got a feeling we ain’t seen nothing yet.

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POV: Our Common Ground – The Race for the Cure

by Michelle E. Brown

Originally published on Cherrygrrl.com, May 15, 2011.

Across the country, every weekend in May, you can find a Komen Walk/Race for the Cure – a cure for breast cancer. Although many in the gay community think of the month of May as a staging period for June’s Pride activities, more and more each year I am seeing rainbow flags mixed in with the pink ribbons walking and running for the cure.

It might not get the amount of publicity some of our other issues like Marriage Equality, Don’t Ask Don’t Tell or ENDA do, but breast cancer is a gay issue too and a cause in which we can find common ground, support and understanding with the community-at- large.

Breast cancer is a life threatening reality for all women. One out of every eight women – that’s 12.6% of all women – will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. And it’s not just women who are hit by this equal opportunity killer.  Men can have breast cancer too. Male breast cancer is a rare condition but it accounts for about 1% of all breast cancers.

About now you might be saying “Yes I Know.” Like me, you probably have purchased “Breast Cancer” stamps for your letters, made a contribution, have a regular mammogram, and at least try to do a self examination once in a while. But if you WERE like me you probably never actually thought of it as a LGBT issue.

My sister, for the past few years, has walked in the “Breast Cancer Three Day.” When she first told me she was going to walk 60 miles over three days I thought she was crazy. But I knew her commitment to things she believed in. We had trained together for a marathon for stroke research following my parents’ death, which kicked our butts. So I knew she was serious and would do it – that’s my big sister.

In supporting her I educated myself about breast cancer and learned a few things. I learned lesbians have a higher incidence of certain risk factors known to be linked to breast cancer. This is in part because many lesbians choose not to have children or delay becoming pregnant.

Some lesbians may not know about risks factors in their family. Cancer just isn’t talked about in most families. There has been a stigma associated with it over the years. I spoke with one woman who, after she was diagnosed, discovered her grandmother had had breast cancer.  If estranged from their family, a lesbian’s access to this information may be impossible.

By far the greatest impact on lesbian health is the tendency for lesbian women to avoid seeking help or not returning for follow-up due to discomfort with the medical system. I’ve had conversations with lesbians who have delayed mammograms – sometimes for economic reasons or lack of medical coverage. This is especially true for groups more frequently found low on the socio/economic ladder. The statistics in the African American and Latino communities are staggering.

My sister isn’t doing the 3-Day in memory of a family member who had succumbed to breast cancer.  To our knowledge there is no history of breast cancer in our family. But she is a woman. She has two beautiful granddaughters, friends, and coworkers. She never asked who was at risk or if the research would help any specific group or only heterosexuals. She started doing it to find a cure for all women. She is my SHERO. And each year when she would start training for the 3-day, I gave her 200% support.

I wasn’t doing the 3-day but I did educate myself and started talking about it in my LGBT community.  I began to see and talk about how healthcare along with other social justice issues are as much a part of LGBT issues as the marriage debate, DADT and ENDA.

I also worked on me. I changed my eating habits, did monthly self-exams and had my mammograms, but was still at risk.

I was concerned when my doctor told me they need to re-do my mammogram. I was annoyed I had to take another day off from work to be squished and squeezed in that machine again. My concern turned to worry when, after this set of x-rays, they called me back in again, then did a set on different equipment and then took an ultrasound before I was taken into a little room to wait to speak with the radiologist.

I was shocked by the news that I would need a core biopsy and devastated when the result of that core biopsy was cancer. I had  done all the right things, donated to Komen Foundation, ate right, exercised , had no family history, but I had cancerous cells in my left breast.

The good news is that, because of advances in technology, my lump was found much earlier than it would have been with older technology.  I have friends and family who were there for me. And I have a big sister who does the Breast Cancer 3-Day each year, walking 60 miles, who never knew back when she started this annual crusade for a cure – she was doing it for me.

So amidst all your PRIDE preparations find a Komen Walk/Run in your area, take your rainbow flags, and walk or run in pride for a cure so that another sister, mother, friend, and possibly a lesbian, just like me, can be a survivor.

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POV: I Know You’re Not Twisting King’s Words This Month

by Michelle E. Brown

Originally published on Cherrygrrl.com, February 7, 2011.

At last, February!  The holidays are over. I’ve lost those five pounds that had found their way to my thighs. I’ve stopped writing 2010 on my checks and I’ve started the countdown to Valentine’s Day.

The groundhog has come out and although I don’t know if he saw his shadow or not I know winter will eventually end.   But the most important thing of all is that February is Black History Month.

I first became aware of Black History Month in the late 1960’s when the civil rights movement was at its peak. Not just me, but my neighbors, my parents, and relatives were all celebrating being Black and proud. Even the nuns at my predominantly white Catholic school had to admit that we, my African American community, had a history. Our accomplishments were an integral part of the American experience and transcended the dark shadow of slavery.

Black History Month, however, did not begin with the civil rights movement. It originated in 1926 as Negro History Week, founded by Carter G. Woodson. Contrary to popular belief, February wasn’t selected for Black History Month because it was the shortest month of the year, again giving Black’s the short end of the stick. February was selected in deference to Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, who were both born in that month.

Black History Month helped me become a proud African American. Knowing where I had been opened endless doors for where I could go, what I could accomplish and who I could be. As I became aware that I was a lesbian I looked into my Black History and again found myself.

So, you see, there has never been a question in my mind that the civil rights/human rights movement was inclusive of everyone – my Black family as well as my gay family.

Gay African Americans were active in the church, active in the community, neighbors, relatives and sitting around the Thanksgiving table. We were community.

Needless-to-say the recent wave of homophobia flowing through the African American community, especially in Black churches, has been disturbing. How can we honor African Americans  while denying the influence, leadership and greatness of those within our community who happen to gay?

This homophobic derangement has found a home in the doctrine of conservatives both black and white, who use any reference of the gay civil rights movement to the Black civil rights movement and Rev. Martin L. King’s philosophy of equality for all as fodder for hate speak and divisiveness between Blacks and the gay community at the expense of African American gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people.

In a recent interview, Gary Glenn, head of the American Family Association of Michigan, in an interview claimed that Martin Luther King Jr. “having been a conservative, southern, with a small ‘s’, southern Baptist pastor in the 50’s and 60’s,” would have had a view from a biblical standpoint on the question of homosexual behavior and it would’ve been unquestionable that he would have opposed it.

No one can speak for Dr. King, especially a narrow-minded bigot like Glenn. I could not find any specific reference in Dr. King’s speeches and writings directly referring to homosexuality but I did find the following quote that might answer the question.

Dr. King said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

At times of challenge and controversy King stood with the likes of Andrew Young, Julian Bond, Jesse Jackson, and Bayard Rustin. Men of honor, committed to fighting for equality for all Americans.

Andrew  Young a politician, diplomat and pastor.  President of the National Council of Churches USA, member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), a lifelong United Church of Christ member, has said the denomination’s affirmation of the full civil and religious equality of same-gender marriage would be a continuation of its historic witness for justice and equality.

Julian Bond, a social activist and leader in the Civil Rights Movement, politician, professor and writer,  co- founder of  (SNCC) , president of the Southern Poverty Law Center and past chairman of the NAACP said before the New Jersey Senate and on several other occasions that “Gay Rights are Civil Rights.”

Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr., another civil rights activist, Baptist minister,  candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination,  said, “Marriage is based on love and commitment – not on sexual orientation. I support the right for any person to marry the person of their choosing.”

And Bayard Rustin, a civil rights activist, was the prime architect of the civil rights movement. He organized the Freedom Rides and organized the 1963 March on Washington. He counseled Martin Luther King, Jr. on the techniques of nonviolent resistance and was an openly gay man.

When not with these men Dr. King sought the counsel of his wife Coretta Scott King who with her daughter Yolanda, his first born, carried on his work.  Both were proponents for civil rights for the LGBT community.

No one can predict what Martin Luther King Jr. would have said had he not been shot on that Memphis balcony in 1968.

During Black History Month I believe Dr. King would want me to remember the struggle, the beauty, the perseverance of the African American community and all its members, gay and straight.

A Southern Baptist minister, even with a small “s,” contrary to Glenn’s opinion, would understand the real message hidden within the pages of the bible, forgotten by many who preach hate in the name God. The message is simple –  “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Martin Luther King Jr. photo credit: “[Rev. Martin Luther King, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing right, speaking at a rally in Crawfordville, Georgia].” United Press International telephoto,1965 Oct 11. Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress.

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POV: Our 2 Word Story – Pride? Pride!

by Michelle E. Brown

Originally published on Cherrygrrl.com, June 8, 2011.

Michelle E. Brown is a community organizer, an authentic speaker, a dynamic leader, and a true voice for the African-American LGBT community.

Want to scare a town or community, challenged with facing their own homophobia with a proposed human rights ordinance or granting a permit for a Pride Parade/Festival? Just roll the film!!

It’s always introduced by some god-fearing city father, who may/may not start with the warning, “You might want to take the children out of the room about now.” The lights dim and there it is: “The Big Gay Parade.” I personally believe it was shot one summer in P-town and just gets recycled from year to year.

It zooms in on the most flamboyant members of our community riding on floats, on the back of convertibles and otherwise strutting their stuff (in leather or chains of course). The clip usually only lasts a couple of minutes but if you’ve had no or little conscious exposure to the gay community – what an eye opening two minutes it is.

With bible firmly clasped in one hand, the speaker points at the still shot with a condemning finger at the gay couple kissing then turning to the audience says: “Is that what you want your children to be exposed to? Is that what you want in our town?’’ Flash the photos of Sodom and Gomorrah with Lot’s wife in the foreground transformed to a pillar of salt for simply looking at this wickedness. Fade to black.

Of course it’s just a snapshot of LGBT Pride. It doesn’t show the solidarity of our organizations to care for one another; our resolve to gain recognition and equal rights for our families; the commitment of same sex couples to celebrate their unions with or without society’s approval; or the full range of diversity within our community. It doesn’t show the queer young people being themselves despite the threat of attack and bullying. What it does do is take a celebratory moment in our community and try to paint it as shady and nefarious. It’s as inaccurate a picture of the LGBT community as it would be to show a clip from the Shriner’s Parade showing only fez wearing motorcyclists and twenty clowns piling in/out of a car.

Pride celebrations are nothing new. For many communities, whose assimilation into American society was difficult at best, pride parades and celebrations have been an inexorable rite of passage in the pursuit of the American dream of full equality for all.

Initially a way of preserving their unique culture while celebrating their Americanization, these celebrations eventually became an integral part of American culture.

Just think about it. Early in the history of Irish Americans, they faced discrimination, work places regularly displayed signs saying “No Irish Need Apply.” They were beaten, lived in terrible conditions and were routinely denied access to all the rights and protections afforded other Americans. Yet they persevered and today it’s almost seen as un-American to not participate in the wearing of the green on St. Patrick ’s Day.

The same is true for many other immigrant communities –Italian, Asian, Latino, Arabic.  Even African Americans, who often (and still) had to compete with immigrants for the same crumbs and experienced many of the same and greater discrimination, have seen their customs and traditions co-opted by the greater society.

The primary difference is that unlike other groups whose differences may be a language, social norms, skin color or ethnicity, we, the LGBT community, are continually defined by our sexuality – who and how we love. We don’t have to assimilate by learning the language, losing an accent, dressing/acting within the norms or passing a citizenship test to take our rightful place in society. What we are being asked to do for “tolerance,” if not acceptance and guaranteed equalities, is to stop being ourselves, is to give up being ourselves, and that will never happen.

Like these other communities, we are much more than that Kodak moment to highlight our differences. Recent progress in our struggle for equality gives hope that our day too will come, when wearing something rainbow colored in June will be as natural as wearing green on March 17th.

Wikipedia, the people’s encyclopedia (LOL!!!!), defines LGBT pride or gay pride as the concept that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people should be proud of their sexual orientation and gender identity.  A concept… really????

Pride is so much more than a concept. It is that heartfelt feeling of patriotism, of being American, of being part of that dream of democracy that calls to individuals around the world seeking justice and equality.

There is an initiative that believes that you will have a word which summarizes how you came to faith. The result is a two word story. We have faith that we too will achieve the American dream of full equality under the law, of respect for who we are based on the content of our character not our sexual orientation or gender expression.

Our story is still evolving, still being written, still ourselves. Our 2WordStory – Pride? PRIDE!

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