This Is Important!

Also published on The Bilerico Project

It took almost three months, but the story about the hateful Montana GOP platform plank seeking the criminalization of gays has gone national.

The Associated Press ran a story over the weekend that was picked up by The Boston Globe, The Chicago Sun-Times, NPR, and there was even a story on a Montana NBC affiliate station. And more newspapers, I’m told, will be running the story in the next few days.

Why is this important? I’ll tell you why.

It’s important because this is happening all the time. People in charge are doing things that most of the masses would not approve, crossing their fingers and hoping it will go unnoticed. It’s happening when the Christianist agenda, even when unconstitutional, gets pushed into public policy through the side door. And this time they got caught.

It’s important because most Montana Republicans didn’t even know of the plank’s existence, and many are outraged at the discovery. This is just the kind of sneaky right-wing evangelical behavior that erodes our rights- even if it is happening in rural America.

It’s important because behind the scenes there were tireless individuals who wouldn’t let this go. There were people who realized that this platform plank had an impact on the freedom of all Americans, and they kept the legs under this story. They shared the story on Facebook, they sent it to their friends and local news organizations, they wrote letters and made phone calls. There were even allies in the media, the GOP – maybe unsurprisingly not the Log Cabin Republicans, conservatives and local human rights organizations that knew this was important – not just for gay people, but for everyone.

It’s important because it shows hard work, perseverance and a reasonable sense of moral outrage pays off. There’s a realization that activism still works, that sitting on our collective asses and bitching to each other doesn’t.

And that, my friends, is a victory.

PS, Read this if you think we should rest on our laurels…

Update: Change.org now has a petition for the Montana GOP leadership to take the hate out of their platform.

Sign it. All the cool kids are doing it.

Report The Hate

Jul27 by D Gregory Smith

Okay, I’m gonna ramp things up a bit.

The Southern Poverty Law Center has a history of standing with people and groups against hate, prejudice and bigotry. From their website:

The Southern Poverty Law Center is dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry, and to seeking justice for the most vulnerable members of our society. Using litigation, education and other forms of advocacy, we work toward the day when the ideals of equal justice and equal opportunity will be a reality.

We employ a three-pronged strategy to battle racial and social injustice:

We track the activities of hate groups and domestic terrorists across America, and we launch innovative lawsuits that seek to destroy networks of radical extremists.

We use the courts and other forms of advocacy to win systemic reforms on behalf of victims of bigotry and discrimination.
We provide educators with free resources that teach school children to reject hate, embrace diversity and respect differences.

They also have a portal for reporting hate incidents under their “Hate Map” of the United States- which is quite interesting, by the way. Just click here and then the button that says “Report a Hate Incident”.

I’m encouraging you to report the Montana GOP for their hateful platform plank:

We support the clear will of the people of Montana expressed by legislation to keep homosexual acts illegal.

You can also add any weblinks you think appropriate. I would humbly suggest you add this one.

Maybe we’ll get some appropriate attention to end this draconian bigotry. If not, I still have a few aces up my sleeve….

Where’s The Outcry?

Jul10 by D Gregory Smith

by Jamee Greer

Most of you have probably already heard that the MT GOP platform was reaffirmed on June 19th, and included a plank under the heading of “Crimes” calling for recriminalization of gays and lesbians. (http://www.mtgop.org/platform.aspx)

This reflects how much power the religious right has on the Montana Republican Party today.

MCA 45-5-505, the deviant sexual conduct code, was ruled unconstitutional in 1997 by the MT Supreme Court – and 2003 by the US Supreme Court. The law, which is still on the books despite multiple attempts at removal both before and after the court rulings, calls for up to 10 years in prison and/or $50,000 in fines. (http://data.opi.mt.gov/bills/mca/45/5/45-5-505.htm)

LGBTQ Montanans are our family, friends, neighbors, firefighters, police officers, and small business owners. LGBT Montanans staff our hospitals, teach our children, build our towns, and pay taxes. We cannot be forced back into the dark and discriminatory shadows of this unjust law.

There are real and disastrous consequences associated with supporting recriminalization.

In 1995, the legislature tried to force lifetime registration of gay men and lesbians convicted under the law, that is, lifetime tracking and reporting through the sexual or violent offender registry simply for being gay or lesbian. The law, and its supporter’s rhetoric, is not just archaic and discriminatory, but can encourage violence against members of the LGBTQ community in Montana.

There’s been one press story on this that I know of, and it ran in the Missoula Independent.

(http://missoulanews.bigskypress.com/missoula/lgbt/Content?oid=1273242)

There’s a growing chorus of voices upset by the fact that the MT Democratic Party hasn’t come forward in support of Montana’s gay and lesbian community.

I get the feeling as a gay man – and what the opponents like to call “professional homosexual” – that some in the party think talking about gays and lesbians hurts their chances at winning. When you’re talking about discrimination in the workplace, polling of likely voters suggests otherwise. Most Montanans support non-discrimination protections that give LGBT people equal protection under the law in housing, employment and public accommodations, like hotels and doctor’s offices.

The GOP has taken this to a new level and is calling for criminal status for all gays and lesbians! Both sides of the aisle should be coming alive, speaking out and taking action.

Beat the drums loudly. Talk about this on your blogs. Talk about it with your co-workers, your neighbors, your friends and your families.

I know this list is statewide, are there central committees interested in bringing forward resolutions condemning the platforms? Is there some statewide listserv to get that word out on? Can everyone commit to writing about this – and calling for both Democrats and Republicans – to denounce the platform?

Thanks to all. Let me know if I can be of any help.

Best regards,

Jamee Greer
Montana Human Rights Network
jamee@mhrn.org 406-241-7716