Section One
Friday,
March 18, 2005
Volume 33,
Issue 11
Sat, Nov 07, 2009
IN THE SGN
SECTION ONE
Front Page
MORE/ALL
SECTION ONE
STORIES
SECTION TW0
Arts & Entertainment
Lesbian Notions by Paula Martinac |
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| Beltway Boogie | ||
| Our two most prominent national LGBT organizations recently announced changes that, on the surface, may seem like business as usual. But, in fact, these shifts could have a big impact on the course of our movement.
First, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force created a new Department of Public Policy & Governmental Affairs, which will lobby members of Congress and government agencies for LGBT rights. The public statement about the new addition was a quiet one that only the Gay media took note of. Then, several days later, the Human Rights Campaign drew both mainstream- and Gay-press attention for the much-anticipated announcement of its new executive director. HRCs new head will be Joe Solmonese, a Gay man who was formerly the executive director of EMILYs List, a group that helps pro-choice Democratic women get elected to office. What struck me about these two announcements was that they suggested policy modifications for the two groups, which - especially in recent years - have often been at odds politically and ideologically, not to mention stylistically. NGLTF, representing the more progressive wing of our movement, has for many years occupied a back seat in Washington Gay politics, working more at the state and local levels on anti-Gay initiatives and leaving federal lobbying to HRC. As a result, weve had basically one vision of the LGBT movement on the Beltway - and its a vision that many of us have found too centrist. Indeed, there was a lot of talk after Cheryl Jacques left the top post at HRC that she was forced out for making the organization too stridently Democratic, while under her predecessor, Elizabeth Birch, the group had worn a more pragmatic, bipartisan face. Now NGLTF has taken steps to have a much louder voice in Washington. The group has assembled a Capitol Hill lobbying team that includes, among others, Eleanor Acheson, a former Clinton administration official, and, intriguingly, Amber Hollibaugh, a leftist activist who has long been involved in AIDS organizing and Gay senior issues. (Shes also a forthright speaker on queer sexuality; her essay collection, My Dangerous Desires: A Queer Girl Dreaming Her Way Home, probably wouldnt go over very well with many Republican - and Democratic - lawmakers.) At the same time, HRC seems to be ripping a page from NGLTFs playbook and reassessing the importance of local LGBT organizing. After all, as our largest and best-funded organization, HRC took most of the blame when 11 anti-Gay state amendments passed in a single day. During his first week on the job, then, Solmonese says he will set off on a cross-country tour to talk to Gay and straight leaders and officials. Ive spent very little time in the last 10 years in Washington, Solmonese has stated. His job at EMILYs List was to go out across the country in the effort to help women get elected. From what Ive read about him, Solmonese seems to suit his new employer to a T. Hes someone who pleases Republicans and Democrats alike, as evidenced by the glowing bipartisan praise hes already picked up. But also, during the 2004 election, he made a difficult, some would say pragmatic move - EMILYs List funded a Democratic pro-choice woman who was also in favor of passing the rabidly anti-Gay Federal Marriage Amendment. While Solmonese argues he was just upholding his organizations mission, the move raised the ire of many of us who believe political and social movements should stick together, not sell each other out. It will be interesting to see how the sometime-rival NGLTF and HRC adjust to each others turf. In quintessential NGLTF style, executive director Matt Foreman has already put forth his belief that there is plenty of room for multiple voices on Capitol Hill. In contrast, Solmonese told The Advocate that weve got to come together and make sure we share a common vision. You can probably tell that Im a bigger fan of NGLTF than of HRC. Personally, I dont think any social movement can have a common vision, unless its a false one thats only the vision of the most vocal and powerful among us. But actually, Im optimistic about both these changes in our two top groups. NGLTF has a lot to offer in the realm of federal lobbying, most notably a view of the LGBT community as bound up with other social-justice movements in an effort to bring about positive change for many different kinds of people. Indeed, the groups penchant for coalition-building has always been its strong suit. And HRC takes into Americas heartland its reputation for holding the middle course - which will appeal to straight community and religious leaders who dont really understand what this Gay rights stuff is about but who may be swayed by the stories of and faces individuals. And Solmonese avers that increasing our presence and visibility across America will be a top priority of my tenure - a valuable goal to bring to the Gay-activism table. Paula Martinac is a Lambda Literary Award-winning author of eight books and editor in chief of Q Syndicate. She can be reached care of this publication or at LesbianNotions@qsyndicate.com. |
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