Hostility toward marriage equality is certainly not exclusive to one political party, although unceremonious bigotry against the bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender (BGLT) community is most often found with social conservatives in the Republican party. While the South Bus has encountered fierce opposition against marriage equality from these Republican senators and assemblypersons on The Right to Marry Campaign (as well as relative support), the last couple of days we have met with strident homophobia from some Democrats in racially diverse districts, which is usually fueled by fundamentalist religious influence. The link between the conservative religious influence of many people of color and their opposition to BGLT civil rights has been well-documented, and persists in spite of stalwart advocates like the late Coretta Scott King, Senator John Lewis, and the NAACP. And it is important to mention that hostility toward marriage equality is not exclusive to any one race, socio-economic status, and creed. However, what is still disturbing is the instance of the lack of leadership on the part of the representatives of these communities, especially concerning this issue of marriage equality. That Democratic leaders in communities that have known and still know discrimination and prejudice do not take a stand for marriage equality is baffling, hypocritical, and scandalous. Perhaps it is unfashionable to highlight the rampant homophobia that still exists in these racially diverse, religiously fundamental, and economically depressed areas, but some recent examples from our Campaign deserve a hearing.

For weeks leading up to the Campaign, the co-directors called all of the assemblypersons and senators with whom we wanted to have a conversation. While some offices were disorganized and in others personnel was lacking, which made it difficult to schedule a meeting with the legislator or the chief-of-staff, other offices were clear in their unwillingness to have a conversation with us about marriage equality. Two such representatives in NYC, representing districts where most oppose marriage equality, refused a conference with us.

Senator Huntley, an African American female, dodged our many attempts to schedule a conference. Consequently, we arrived at her office ready to have the discussion anyway. Her third in command decided to meet with us to stave off any controversy that would ensue had she continued to refuse us. We sat down at a conference table in the back of her office. After exchanging the necessary pleasantries, we began to talk about marriage for the BGLT community. Huntley’s representative informed us that the Senator did not support marriage equality, civil unions, or any approximations thereof.

First, Savannah and I contested that equal protection under the law promised under the Fourteenth Amendment compelled the Senator to vote in favor of marriage equality. Second, we tried to make analogies between the civil rights’ struggle for African Americans and the BGLT community’s struggle for marriage rights. Both of these attempts failed, and the reasoning that was given by the Huntley office as to why same-sex couples should not yet have the freedom to marry was utterly appalling. Huntley’s representative spoke of the substantial sacrifice that women and African Americans gave for equality and their freedoms: hundreds of years, deaths of leaders and activists, deaths of bystanders, and the deaths of children. Surely, as Savannah and I remembered these sacrifices, we felt sorrow that freedom had to be secured at such a high cost. And even though women and racial minorities are still fiercely contending for their rights to this very day, this redemptive suffering and death has delivered them countless victories for freedom and equality. Likewise, Soulforce Q is continuing the struggle for civil rights in American by advocating for marriage equality for same-sex couples. This is where Huntley’s representative took a caustic, insulting, hateful, and absurd turn. She claimed that the BGLT community had not suffered enough, and that we could not expect to have marriage rights so soon. We had to put in our dues. She claimed that more time must elapse, and that more BGLT people and their children must suffer and die. I could not believe that I was listening to such inflammatory messages out of this woman’s mouth. That people have to die for their freedom is deplorable, but that we have come to expect that there is a certain threshold of pain, suffering, and death that a certain minority must exceed – as if “earning their stripes” – in order to garner their freedom is downright ghastly. We could not stomach any more of the conversation, and politely excused ourselves.

The next day the South Bus traveled to the Bronx to meet with yet another Senator who refused us a hearing. Senator Reverend Ruben Diaz, an African American minister in the Pentecostal Christian tradition, vehemently denied us any opportunity to sit with him or his staff for a conversation about marriage equality. Therefore, because Soulforce believes in the inherent value of civic engagement and peaceful discourse, we traveled to Diaz’s office to give him an opportunity to rectify his undemocratic approach to this conversation. Upon our arrival we were met by hostility, and were refused a meeting. Upon hearing this, we staged a sit-in on the floor of Diaz’s office (for press coverage see: www.nypress.com/blogx/display_blog.cfm?bid=23356038). By force of police intervention, we were removed from the Diaz’s office, and with police support we protested and passed out literature outside.

Should we expect this attitude from our elected officials? Not only do some refuse to meet with us but are thoroughly dedicated to our persecution. How can women and racial minorities who know the scourge of discrimination and inequality contribute to the barbarism and brutality perpetuated on gays and lesbians? Why do Dr. King’s words that “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere,” not apply? Can we not see that the civil rights advancement of one group, in this case the BGLT community, means the civil rights advancement of all groups? Certainly, African Americans and women have a long way to go in achieving full equality in our society, but do they honestly think that by impeding the civil rights progression of BGLT folk will give way to the acceleration of their own?
As I reflect on these experiences, I believe that what is at work in these racially mixed areas has very little to do with race. Such an attribution of blame would be too reductionistic. Rather, these legislators represent racially diverse districts that are economically disadvantaged and are very religiously conservative. Perhaps, as Soulforce has maintained since it was founded, that oppression of the BGLT community stems largely from conservative/fundamentalist religion than any other one determinant.

Nevertheless, there are always counter-examples that thwart stereotypes and broad brushstrokes of mischaracterization of any one ‘type’ of social grouping. For instance, among the many reassurances I had of democracy on the Right to Marry Campaign came on our last meeting – Assemblyman Adam Clayton Powell, IV. Powell, from a Puerto Rican family who represents a Latino/a community was in full support of marriage equality. He informed me that he feels as if the issue is a matter of conscience; and must support equal rights for BGLT people. I was heartened by the fact that Powell and others in his community can make a distinction between religious views and civil rights in a democracy. In fact, Powell takes such a strong stance on the issue not in spite of religion but because of his Christian faith.

I concluded that while race, religion, socio-economic status, and other known and unknown characteristics may tend to lead a certain demographic to vote for or against marriage equality, America must see that extending rights and privileges to this particular minority group can only strengthen democracy, prosper community, strengthen marriage, and protect children.

To read the article click the following link:

www.gaycitynews.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18630308&BRD=2729&PAG=461&dept_id=568857&rfi=6

To view the newspaper article click the following link:

http://www.nypress.com/blogx/display_blog.cfm?bid=23356038

Representative Rob Walker voted against the Marriage Equality Bill. This
decision came after much internal struggle and a lack of will to vote
against his constituents. We met with a very nice representative who, after
some poignant conversation, felt comfortable enough to reveal a personal
story and ask for advice. It was then that I believe this staff member
began to really understand the importance of this bill and the substantial
social capital invested in the word marriage. Our government should be
responsive to the people, but in no case should the allocation of rights
and protections be left to majority rule. Mr. Walker’s staff member
listened to our stories, understood our argument, and promised to relay
our points to the Representative. I believe she will, and have a strong
suspicion that Mr. Walker might vote differently if given the chance.

The New York Right to Marry campaign is coming to a close. The Northern Route said goodbye to Utica, New York this morning and arrived in New York City not too long ago. Tomorrow brings a day of tying up lose ends, following up with the folks we met along the way, debriefing our experiences, and planning for the future. I’m excited to meet up with the 24 other young adults if only for a day.

As my van traveled through the North Country, we documented our progress and the stories of some of those we met along the way. Some of the Right to Marry participants already shared their thoughts on why marriage is important (here and here) and soon we’ll have the stories of New York citizens and couples to share with you too.

For now, here’s a look at our time up north:

Another round of interviews with Right to Marry participants talking about why they would like to see marriage equality in New York. Fellow rider Matt Hill Comer and I have been working on a video to document our travels in the North Country which will be coming soon.

On Monday, we resumed our journey and drove down to Gouverneur to meet with the Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava in her district office. Dan Spink, our wonderful host from Canton, led the way to the meeting. Scozzafava is one of only four Republican legislators who have recently voted for marriage equality in New York. We wanted to thank the Assemblywoman for her courageous stance and support. Due to scheduling conflicts, we met with her staff.

On the way to the meeting, as we watched miles and miles of fields and pastures roll by, I wondered how someone could make an informed decision about what’s right in such a remote locale where conversations about LGBT equality seldom happen. We’ve been visiting with gay and lesbian people all along our trip. Not surprisingly, it is in rural areas like the North Country where marriage inequality hits the hardest and its dire consequences become most self-evident. When you live in welcoming and affirming communities (which tend to be urban and politically more liberal), the brunt of legal discrimination is couched in sympathetic rhetoric and a sense of progress. In places with hostile faith environments and without supportive networks, however, it could be life-saving for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender families to fall back on the letter of the law. Unfortunately, the marriage laws work against them. One can argue that politicians representing areas such as Northern New York should be at the forefront of the movement for marriage equality since it would immediately and fully protect some of their most vulnerable constituents.

During our PFLAG/PRISM picnic in Canton we met a former classmate of the Assemblywoman Scozzafava who met with her prior to the vote to explain the significance of this bill and what it would mean for him to be granted the legal protections and responsibilities of marriage. He also helped clarify the inequity between civil unions and marriage. It turns out that conversation among old friends helped determine the Assemblywoman’s position on this issue. It only further goes to prove the importance of being out and proud in one’s community no matter how challenging it might be. It is easy to pass laws against “those people” but it is nearly impossible to discriminate against people you know, your neighbors and friends.

We looked forward to participating in another county fair later in the day, but since it had rained for several days and over the weekend, the fair was not yet open. So we took a moment to write thank you notes for our supporters who have donated to the Right to Marry campaign thus far. All financial contributions make our educational journey possible. So look for some North Country love coming your way! And if you have not yet had a chance to donate to this important effort, please, do so on our website. Tonight we go on to our next destination, Watertown, or H2O-town as we’ve come to call it amongst ourselves.

Onwards, Alexey Bulokhov

Yesterday we had a meeting with Senator Andrea Stuart-Cousins at 10am. We had arrived relatively early with our wedding cake and civil union cupcake in hand, and were informed by the secretary that Senator Stuart-Cousins would be running late on account of the rainy weather. We knew from our research about the Senator that she was for civil unions but had yet to rally her support behind the Marriage Equality Bill. We were joined, to our surprise, by two of the Senators constituents, a gay couple who knew Senator Stuart-Cousins position on gay rights very well.

When the Senator arrived, we handed her our literature and placed the cake and cupcake on her desk. The cake, we told her, was a wedding cake complete with a husband/wife figurine on top. It represented the 1342 rights guaranteed under marriage in New York State. The cupcake had two groom figurines on top, and represented a civil union, the size difference representing the inequity in the distribution of rights between a married couple and a couple with a civil union. Senator Stuart-Cousins was very amused by this visual and told us that she had decided earlier in the month to co-sponsor the Marriage Equality Bill. This was news to us. We had done our homework on Stuart-Cousins, and this had never come up. Boy, was that a happy surprise.

The Senator was incredibly supportive, and an absolute joy to talk to. She was very receptive to our points-of-view and loved to hear about all the things that we have been doing so far. We have had many surprises on this trip, and finding an unexpected ally when we thought we had to fight was one of the best. I look forward to many more such surprises.

By Kalil Cohen

The North Van spent today in Watertown New York, a town of about 30,000 people located next to one of our countries largest military bases, Fort Drum. This morning we split up into two groups to meet with two legislators from the area. Four of us and Diane, a local lesbian woman from Watertown, met with Senator Wright’s staff. We met with two staff members in a cordial and fairly extensive meeting. Senator Wright has clearly stated that he is against marriage equality, along with other LGBT legislation. Though his staffers could not articulate exactly why this is, they cited a conservative constituency and Christian values as major concerns for the Senator. To counter these arguments we cited the great numbers of Watertown residents (over 400 so far) who have signed a marriage equality petition being circulated by our hosts, Diane and her partner Joanne as well as many of their friends and colleagues. Diane also gave him a copy of a book written by her Pastor Ron from the United Church of Christ regarding same-sex relationships and Christianity. We also left the Senator with our list of 10 questions to consider what his reality would be like if his wife were to be considered as only a roommate, as many of our relationships are currently seen by the state of New York. The meeting felt fairly productive as his staffers genuinely wanted to hear our views and arguments for why marriage equality is important, and took notes while we were there which they will hopefully share with the Senator. Four other members of our van met with the Chief of Staff of Assemblyman Aubertine, who voted no when the bill passed the house. This meeting sounded slightly less productive as the staff member seemed more closed off the the important points in support of marriage equality that were made.
Following our morning meetings we went to make signs reading ‘Bring Freedom Home, Support Marriage Equality’ which we held up in the main square in downtown Watertown. This sign was a play on a lot of militaristic language that sounds familiar to all Americans these days, but especially to people living so close to a military base. The goal of the action was for our signs to be seen on the webcam that is streaming from that spot. Unfortunately they were unreadable on the internet because of the low resolution image of the square, however they were seen by the passing cars and pedestrians during the action. As we were leaving, we encountered two people. One was a woman vehemently opposed to LGBT rights, who was carrying her bible when she passed by and cornered two of our members to proselytize why we should have no rights at all. She did not seem entirely with it, however, so although we were hoping to draw the connections of our shared oppressions, it was not a possible conversation at that time. The other person was a member of Emmanuel Congregational Church, an open and affirming UCC church in town where we held a community forum later in the evening. He is a lawyer and has his office in the town arcade, and offered to let us put our marriage equality signs up in his office window, which we quickly agreed to. These two individuals had starkly opposed reactions to our presence and highlighted the extremes of viewpoints on the issue of marriage equality, and the importance of our presence here.
After our action at the town square and lunch, we went door knocking around town. We only had about an hour, with mixed results. Most people were not home, some were busy, but a few were interested and wanted literature and more information about getting involved. Next we headed to Emmanuel Congregational Church for a potluck with 10 or so church members and just spent time hanging out with them, including our wonderful hosts Joanne and her partner Diane, and Mary and her partner Linda. During the lull between dinner and the community forum, we had those present write personal letters to their representatives about why this issue is so important to them, because Senator Wright’s staff had indicated at our meeting in the morning that this is the most powerful and effective way to affect his standpoint on an issue. After dinner we had an amazing meeting with 20+ community members. First we shared our experiences with Soulforce Q and the Right to Marry campaign, and showed our newly completed documentary of our trip thus far. Then we talked about our meeting with their representatives, our shoe campaign regarding Senator Bruno, and opened the floor for discussion. The discussion that followed was powerful and inspiring. The people at the meeting had collectively gotten over 400 signatures in support of marriage equality, and were eager to hear more and get more involved. During the forum there were a lot of articulate and moving stories, one woman in particular causing most of us to tear up with her words. After the forum we got a few more interviews to add to our documentary, and everyone in the room felt more inspired and energized to keep working on this issue. I felt so grateful to our hosts and their loving faith community for their support and encouragement which helped reignite my own faith and hope for the future of our cause.

The following link will take you to the South Bus’ article in The Journal News:

www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070724/NEWS01/707240379/1019/NEWS03