As the day for my monthly guest post falls on the 28th, come June of every year, I get to post on the anniversary of the Stonewall Riots – the event that gave rise to the gay pride parades/celebrations. A year ago I wrote about how I was a bit apprehensive going forward. [6-28-17 Cautious Pride] Although doom hasn’t descended on us… yet… I can’t say I feel any less anxiety this year. In fact, after yesterday’s news that Justice Kennedy was retiring, I fear for our rights even more.
On June 26, 2015, Justice Kennedy gave us the Oberfeld v. Hodges opinion which made gay marriage a national right. It was a heady time. People saw a limitless future, one where our rights would grow and not diminish. That hope proved fleeting. I’ve no doubt once Trump gets a new justice on the court, we’ll see another challenge(s) to same sex marriage come through the lower courts. (Among many other challenges to civil rights the conservatives want to roll back.) I can’t say how the future will unfold, but I’d give better than even odds, we see at least some of our rights taken away.
And let’s be clear, Kennedy wasn’t a good friend. His votes this past term prove he was at best a tepid friend. His votes have helped solidify the conservative minority’s grip on this country, all but ensuring we are going to see more of the hate filled agenda going forward.
I’ll confess, this was not the post I had expected to write this year. I wanted to be more upbeat. More hopeful. But I’m not. If there is any good that could come of this, it will be the rest of the United States waking up and realizing how damaging the conservatives/republican’s are and they band together and vote to show them the door. I’ll admit, I don’t hold out much hope of that either. Everyone with three brain cells could’ve seen what a train wreck Trump would be as president and yet so many felt he was the lesser of two evils. That kind of stupidity is very hard to combat. It’s deeply entrenched in far too many minds for it to be easily eradicated. In the meantime, a whole lot of people are going to worry about what the future holds. Myself included.
I’ll end this on a cautiously hopeful note – maybe this is finally the wake up call we need to show the haters the door for good. I want to believe this back slide (for all civil rights, not just LGBTQ ones) will be the impetus for lasting progress in the days ahead. So that is the half full glass I’m seeing. When states passed anti-gay amendments barring same sex marriage in response to Vermont granting civil unions, that was the spark that lit the fire for marriage equality. My sense is, all these hateful moves are going to spark a bonfire of opposition. If not, then we need to strike the matches ourselves. The future is watching, we can’t let the fire burn out under our watch.
Andrew Q. Gordon wrote his first story back when yellow legal pads, ball point pens were common and a Smith Corona correctable typewriter was considered high tech. Adapting with technology, he now takes his MacBook somewhere quiet when he wants to write.
Since devouring The Lord of the Rings as a preteen, he has been a fan of all things fantastical. His imagination has helped him create works of high fantasy, paranormal thrills and touch of the futuristic. He also writes the occasional contemporary story.
He currently lives in the Washington, D.C. area with his husband of twenty-three years. Together they are raising their daughter and three dogs. Andrew tries to squeeze writing time in around his most important jobs, being husband and ‘Papa.’ Along with teaching how to kick a soccer ball or ride a scooter, he has become fluent in cartoon characters and children’s books. To find out more about Andrew, his writing and his family, follow him on his website or on Facebook.
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The Last Grand Master: (Champion of the Gods–Book 1)
The Eye and the Arm: (Champion of the Gods–Book 2)
Kings of Lore and Legend: (Champion of the Gods–Book 3)
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Andrew, thanks for this post. It made me stop and think about what we have to lose. What the people before us fought for and what we fight for and hope to accomplish for the ones who come after us. Its so very sad that we take one step forward and two steps back time and time again. In my opinion, all because of fear! Fear that we’ll take over the world and “turn” every human being into a homosexual. Fear that maybe we will have happy, loving and productive lives. Fear that maybe one day they will no longer be able to say we are bizarre queers with no sexual moral compass. Its so exhausting to just live. To expect the same rights that every other human being has, but somehow because we’re looked upon as “less than,” we somehow don’t deserve. I have worked my entire life, supported our government, paid my taxes and never once took from our great country. Today our government, the people we all voted into power, refuses to see the parallel between Sarah Sanders being asked to leave a privately owned restaurant and a baker refusing to make a cake for a gay couple. All because of beliefs, morality, and yes, I’ll say it again, fear! There is no difference people. All of this makes me never want to leave my house again but we cannot sit back and wait for others to fight our battles. As much as I want to stay put, we must move forward, fight the fight and make this a better world for our children and the ones who come after us. Peace out!
Hey Scotty,
“What the people before us fought for” is what sums up so much of this. I – as I’m sure you did too – had too many friends die when the AIDs epidemic began because we weren’t worth the effort. We didn’t matter. It took decades to get to where we are, nearly 50 years and now we are threatened with going backwards. As you said, I’m not going back. Others fought to get us hear and you’re right, we owe it to those who follow to not go softly into the night.