An Open Letter to President Obama and the DNC...

An Open Letter To President Obama and the Democratic National Committee

Dear Mr. President and the DNC,

On November 3 voters in Maine and Washington went to the polls to vote on equal rights for all in different forms. Fortunately for the people of Washington, justice prevailed (sort of) and the voters granted the same rights to homosexual couples in their state (though under a different name). However, the State of Washington is where those rights stop. Unfortunately for the people of Maine, hate prevailed, highly funded by the Catholic Church and other religious institutions.

As an American, I feel that in recent years we have severely let down and undermined our country by continually allowing the denial of equal rights for homosexuals in our country. As a democratic voter, I feel completely betrayed by President Obama and the DNC, and as a homosexual, I feel as though my second-class citizen status will continue to exist as long as you continue to sit on the sideline.

Thomas Jefferson once said, “all, too, will bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the majority is in all cases to prevail, that will, to be rightful, must be reasonable; that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal laws must protect, and to violate would be oppression.” Unfortunately, we have not upheld this belief. The issues of gay and lesbian members of our country have been under the microscope of our society for years. In recent years, these same issues have been included on voting ballots across the country. As quoted by Jefferson before, we must protect minority’s rights from the majority’s vote. Why are we not doing this now? No others civil rights issue has been put on the voting ballot, nor have any of the past civil rights issues been popular. However, the government of that time knew the right thing to do and although it wasn’t popular, put in effect initiatives to uphold our valued constitution and treat all persons equally under the law.

President Obama and the DNC have not only thrown the GLBT movement under the bus, but have completely broken all promises and trust with voters of the GLBT block. President Obama promised time after time that he would fight hard for the rights of gays and lesbians, even going so far as to label himself as a “fierce advocate.” Also, the DNC has taken the “gay vote” for granted, while not offering anything in return. After the votes in Maine and Washington, reports started rolling out that the DNC did absolutely nothing to help get out the vote on these issues in either state. In fact, the DNC actually worked to get Maine supporters to help out in New Jersey, while leaving their own state to get high-jacked by hate. In addition, a high-ranking member of the DNC, Andy Tobias, actually blamed “gay voters” and those who spoke out against the way the DNC handled the Maine vote for helping the Republican’s gain votes; “as these comments show, you are being quite effective in turning people against support of the Democrats.”

As a democratic voter, I ask of the DNC and President Obama to tell me when GLBT issues will become important to them? When will mine, and other democratic voters, votes, opinions, and most importantly to you, money, be used in the manner you promise? Some say we’re being impatient, that there are more important things like war, healthcare, and the economy to deal with. However, I’d argue that the rights of American citizens are the most important and fundamental piece of what it means to be an American. In addition, defending equal rights for all have become a “fierce urgency of now” matter. Not only have the votes in Maine and Washington happened since President Obama has taken office and the DNC has complete control of our government, but also several issues involving Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell have came about and several issues with the Defense of Marriage Act.

Unfortunately for America, homosexuals, and democrats, President Obama and the DNC have continued to support the oppression of gay and lesbians in American. These are the same people that were promised their rights would be fought for sternly, however, that has been nothing but a political gain seeking lie. Until you deicide to stand up for the constitution, for your word, and for the rights of all Americans, gays and lesbians will continue to be second-class citizens. These second-class citizens work in our companies, spend money in our stores, pay taxes as all other American’s, support their friends and families in hard times, and donate money to your political campaigns hoping for change.

I call on the DNC and President Obama to see the “fierce urgency of now” to grant equal rights to all citizens, gay or straight, and up hold your word and most importantly, the constitution. It is the job of our government to protect the citizens of our country and it is the job of our government to ensure that the oppressed groups in our society are protected from the hegemonic center.

More importantly, I call on politically active members of the GLBT to continually put pressure on your members of congress, the President, and the DNC. In addition, I ask for you to stop donating money to any of these groups until they uphold their word and stop taking our money and votes for granted. This is not a give and give relationship, this should be a give and get relationship. Until we make it known to elected officials that we will no longer support them until they stand up for justice and equal rights, then we will see no results. I also ask you to put your support behind organizations that are actively fighting for our rights and to pull all support from organizations like the Human Rights Campaign who continue to sell us out and pander to the elected officials. Organizations like the HRC who ask us to wait till 2017 for results do not understand the urgency in which our rights should be granted.

Finally, I’d like to thank all those who voted for equal rights across the country and who continue to understand and support the importance of equal rights. Our straight allies are extremely important to our cause and we need to ensure that we continually let them know how much we respect their support. It’s absolutely vital that we as a minority being oppressed by the hegemonic center to stand together, educate acquaintances, and ourselves and stay politically active. If we show no care for our rights, then neither will anyone else. We must stand strong together and let the DNC and President Obama and other elected officials know we are no longer a vote to be taken for granted. We expect results and without them, we will not offer our support.