NGLTF Gets One Right, Condemns Attack on Moscow’s Gay Pride
Sometimes the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) surprises me by doing (or saying) something with which I agree. Indeed, it seems I more regularly hear of positive developments coming from that socialist-inclined group than from its more mainstream liberal counterpart, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC).
In November, citing a column by Dale Carpenter, I noted how NGLTF distinguished itself from the folks leading the campaign against a Texas referendum to amend the state’s constitution to ban gay marriage when it released a series of TV ads, making the positive case for gay marriage. Other groups seemed more interested “in attacking Republicans than in defeating this pernicious proposal.”
Today, NGLTF seems to be alone among gay groups in condemning “state-sanctioned attacks on Moscow Gay Pride participants.” Local police there joined anti-gay protesters in attacking the parade. 100 gays and lesbians were arrested. Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhov said that he believed such parades should be “inadmissible in our country above all for moral considerations. People should not make public their deviations.“
I’m also pleased that in calling on the Administration to condemn the attacks, NGLTF’s Executive Director Matt Foreman refrains from attacking the president himself or making other allegations against that good man and his team.
Kudos to NGLTF for getting this one right. Too bad more gay groups are so focused on attacking the president that they ignore real abuses committed against gays in other lands.
-Dan (AKA GayPatriotWest): GayPatriotWest@aol.com
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You would think Russian leaders would have more important fish to fry in their rotten, dying country than to be leading the charge of ritual gay bashing. When one looks at the state of gay rights in Russia, China and the entire Middle East, it is really quite easy to become despondent. Thankfully, the NGLTF got this one right.
Comment by Scott — May 30, 2006 @ 6:37 pm - May 30, 2006
In the 80′s, just prior to the coup attempt against Gorbachev’s Glasnost, a group of gay and lesbian “activists” visited some leaders of the fledgeling gay rights organization in Russia at that time. They brought with them gifts of copiers, printers, fax machines, computers and a satellite uplink device to keep in contact with the outside world.
During the coup attempt, these gifts were used by the opposition, including Boris Yeltsin, as they rallied the Russian people and the outside world to put a stop to the coup. -Remember, the Parliament building had been surrounded by the military so Yeltsin and the rest did not have access to their usual resources. Flyers telling people when and where to gather were printed using the LGBT group’s copier, fax machines. Outside contact to get the word out about what was happening, after the official media outlets were silenced, was arranged through the satellite uplink.
These were small things, yes, but Boris Yeltsin might never have gotten his opportunity to stand on a tank with a bullhorn if it had not been for LGBT people in Russia and here in the US.
Apparently no good deed goes unpunished.
Comment by Patrick (Gryph) — May 30, 2006 @ 7:02 pm - May 30, 2006
“NGLTF’s Executive Director Matt Foreman refrains from attacking the president himself or making other allegations against that good man and his team.”
We’ll all be awaiting the response of “that good man” with bated breath. Perhaps we’ll all be sending kudos to Bush “for getting this one right.” I won’t hold my breath. AFAIK, he has said nothing regarding the Iranian executions of gay teens nor the vigilante execution of gay men in Iraq. In the latter case and perhaps Russia, Bush should have some influence. Still, if the Bush administration does come out and strongly condemn this abuse, I will be the first to cheer. Will you hold him to account if he does not?
Comment by Ian S — May 30, 2006 @ 9:24 pm - May 30, 2006
When the President hits the Rose Garden in a few days to ask for a Marriage Amendment, will it be okay for them to complain?
Comment by jimmy — May 30, 2006 @ 11:15 pm - May 30, 2006
I agree that gay groups, instead of arguing there are more important things for Congress to be doing, should debate why gay marriage should be legal. Acting like we are trying to sneak it by everyone and not debate why we are right is the wrong tactic. We win when we take the issue head on.
At the same time, when the Congressional leadership (and to a lesser extent, President Bush) push for the amendment, criticism of them is justified.
Comment by Erik — May 30, 2006 @ 11:56 pm - May 30, 2006
#4: “will it be okay for them to complain?”
Not likely, because that would be “attacking the president himself or making other allegations against that good man and his team.”
#5: “We win when we take the issue head on.”
I think we HAVE been arguing the case for making it legal. But the homohaters aren’t listening.
Comment by Ian S — May 31, 2006 @ 12:39 am - May 31, 2006
Ian S, it depends on how they “complain.” It they engage in the histrionics that we are already seeing from Joe Solmonese, I believe it will be counterproductive, but if they take issue with his arguments, then they will be doing the right thing.
Once again, don’t assume I oppose all criticism of the president; I just take issue with the juvenile sort that we tend to get from national gay groups.
Comment by GayPatriotWest — May 31, 2006 @ 5:58 am - May 31, 2006
Dan, good post. I think the GayLeft also got one other thing right this year… downplaying the drama at the Easter Egg Roll at the WH. Rather than make it a in-your-face advocacy event and hazard all the hetero parent families to those tactics… they did it respectfully from what I heard.
That’s another one for the books in getting it right.
Comment by Michigan-Matt — May 31, 2006 @ 10:00 am - May 31, 2006
Of course the NGLTF went ahead and critisized the Russian government for the police action against the gay parade. Russia is a white, christian country, and therefore fair game for the pod people on the left. The police in a Muslim country could move in on a gay parade, tie the marchers together and burn them in the street and the NGLTF crowd would only murmer something about respecting cultural differances. That is if they even were to acknowledge that the thing had happened
Comment by Richard — June 3, 2006 @ 10:10 pm - June 3, 2006
Good site I found … Plan on coming back later.
Comment by Pueraria Mirifica — October 19, 2006 @ 5:41 am - October 19, 2006