Quote:
Originally Posted by Vanessa White
It shows that we care about the cause because we possess genuine care, love and concern for ourselves and others in our plight. Character shows that there is more to us than just our sexual orientation, but that our sexual orientation is an ESSENTIAL part. Character allows us to be peaceful in our activism I think, because character comes from the soul. I believe, as I am discovering right now as I write this! that activism can actually be pursued by just about anyone, but JUSTICE, justice to me is much difference. The change that Martin Luther King Jr. and others were and still are striving for was about justice, and I never really realized until the last few months how deep of a concept justice is. Justice is about looking deeper than giving LGBTQ persons equal rights: it is giving us those equal rights simply because it is THE RIGHT THING TO DO. I think changes can happen without character, but I don't think the changes are as long lasting, or have as deep of meaning as when character is involved.
I can finally identify with justice, because I firmly believe in what it is I am striving for now, for myself and for the community. I don't think that I really knew before this what I was fighting for actually, weird as that sounds. It just felt like I was SUPPOSED to be concerned and SUPPOSED to be fighting for something, because it spoke to my situation.  |
Thank you for this inspiring post. We need believe that what we do is about justice, that we are asking America to simply do the right thing. Period. When I lived in Bloomington, IN and attended the Episcopal Church down there, Mother Linda used to tell us almost every Thursday night, "Justice is about restoring to someone something that was rightfully theirs all along and was wrongfully taken from them."
When we advocate for the Hate Crimes Bill, we are restoring the ability for LGBT people to walk around the streets of America without the fear of violence. This is rightfully ours. When we advocate for ENDA, we are restoring the ability for LGBT people to apply for a job without fear of discrimination on the basis of who they are. This is rightfully ours. When we advocate for same sex marriage, we are restoring the important protections currently available to heterosexual couples. This is rightfully ours. The list can go on and on.
So yes, it is all about justice. Justice is the end, activism is the means.