 Does
anyone remember what Stonewall is all about? No, not the club.
The
riots. For those of you who don't know, the riots occurred in 1969, when law
enforcement officers in New York
decided to raid a gay bar. It was the first time that gays stood together
against harassment and bigotry, and fought back. They banded together, in a
time when being gay was against the law; when being true to yourself set you on
a path to condemnation.
My
question is: What happened to those people that fought to be themselves? The
GLBTQ community of today has a lot to answer for. As a community we argue that
we deserve gay rights, same-sex marriages and that the broader community should
back down from persecution and accept us as we are.
My
issue is this. 'We' as a community do not practise that which we preach. We are
ageist, sexist, racist and we alienate those within our own folds. Walk into a
gay bar and have a look around. Watch the little sub-groups clump together.
Ostracised by other little sub-groups and so on and so forth.
Does
anyone remember that Mardi Gras was a protest march rather than a reason to get
off your face and have sex with randoms? When did we lose sight of the fact
that we deserve equal rights as human beings not just as gays? When did we lose
our history?
We
are merely human, I know this. I just have high standards I guess. I choose to
make a stand and say this. I'm going to keep fighting the good fight. I fight
for my gay brothers. I fight with my lesbian sisters. I fight for our human rights.
Join me?
Next
time you're out in a bar, park or event, don't disregard the human being
walking by. Don't judge them by their subculture, whether bear, bi, butch or
baby. See them as a brother or sister in arms, not as an enemy from within.
When
we can stand united, replete in the knowledge that we are 'as one', then maybe
the day will come when gay rights will no longer be an issue we need to fight
for.
For
now, remember Stonewall. Remember the 78ers and their first Mardi Gras.
Remember that we all have a common cause to fight for and that we are far from
winning the war.
- Erin Phoenix
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