I think we need to remember (prop 8)

[gaspee]

I think when we look to Washington for leadership on this issue, that our new President elect kicked off his campaign with a tour of southern African American Evangelical churches featuring headliners whose main claim to fame is that they prayed away the gay!

So for all you shrill people who said that Obama's use of McClurkin to kick off his campaign would have consequences, sit down and shut up! you don't know what you're talking about, you haters! :sarcasm:

One of the reasons I was not an Obama supporter during the primary wars was his use of hate-mongers to kick off his campaign through black churches in the south. We all said why we thought it was the wrong message to send. The yes on 8 people thought is was exactly the right message to send and used Obama's quotes on their hate fliers.

All I'm saying is we shouldn't look to Washington. The only way any of those cowards are going to actually stand up for us as citizens is if public opinion goes our way.

I think we need to be visible. I think we need to take our rights, not wait to be given them. I wish gay people would leave California, Arizona, Florida, Arkansas in a mass exodus and head to New England, where we are entitled to the same rights as the rest of the citizenry. Why pay taxes in a place where you are not a full citizen. Why should your money go to your oppression. Gay owned businesses should hire gay before straight, etc.

Providence, the capitol city of RI has an out gay mayor and in two years, RI might very well have an out gay governor. Marriage equality is a fact of life in much of New England. New York isn't going to be far behind. I'm not sure, but I think marriage equality is a reality in New Jersey.

I'm stuck on the marriage equality issue because it's an issue that cuts right to the bone. Are we full citizens or are we not. I think we've gotten our answer in a lot of places.

We tried to be quiet and non threatening. We tried to say, we're just like you. Well look where that got us. Act-up got better results. It might be time to get in some faces. The no on 8 strategy was to be non-threatening. As if that would ever work.

I think we need to take this setback and keep it as a rallying cry. When we are ready to forget about our rights as citizens, we need to look around us and remind ourselves that we have to fight for the right to be treated as human beings and full members of society.

We can't be complacent. We can't think that people don't really hate us and won't really vote to make us second class citizens. They've proven they will. And there's no denying that. They are going to take this victory and try to go further. They've demonized us without limit. They've painted us as the enemy of society. And they won. Think about that. It is literally their religion to hate us. And for those who say they don't hate us? Wishing us everlasting damnation is pretty indicative of hate, IMO. What more do you need?

[Not Me]

1. Why MA or CT...you still have no federally recognition

Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal are on my radar.
I live in FL, and it is 'game over' here. Because of the 60% required to repeal this stupid amendment, it will be decades before we can garner up enough support to overturn this.
I own a home in Orlando, and have a rental property (condo) in Toronto. It maybe the other way around real soon.

[gaspee]

2. Canada is an option for some

I'm too old to qualify and I don't have the couple hundred grand in the bank that qualifies you for Canadian citizenship if you don't have enough "points."

There are a lot of places in the world where the general atmosphere is better for us. Of course, there are a lot worse places also. The one thing the worse places have in common with us is religious fundamentalism.

Emigration is not a realistic option for a lot of us. For those of us that is is a realistic option, I think it's a good idea.

[RetiredTrotskyite]

4. Have You Taken Their Test?

I took it and was suprised to see that I passed...and I am in my fifties.

I'm sure as hell trying for it because I am sick to death of this country and its bullshit. Any "rights" we have can always be voted away. I'm frankly sick and tired of this shit.

[bluedawg12]

3. You are so right and the big danger here is

that they reached their skeletal hand right into the Democratic party and cynically showed us that while we could win some wars for equality, " don't you freaking gays think you can win the cultural wars against us."

What hurt the most is that people believed the hate ads and then just pushed one little button affecting other lives as we were not human beings and actually took rights away. Somehow I expected better and we sure the hell deserved better.