Pictured #1 New Paltz Mayor Jason West. #2 Robin Tyler, #3 NOW Illinois President Bonnie Grabenhoffer, and #3 Rev. Pat Bumgardner.Photos by Tracy Baim
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton missed the fundraiser for Barack Obama downtown May 7, and then uptown, Patricia Ireland had a family emergency and could not make the Battle Over Equal Marriage forum at Preston Bradley Center that same night.
The marriage event was sponsored by DontAmend.com, and the group's national chair, Robin Tyler, was MC for the evening. She used many of her old jokes from comedy routines gone by, but also commented about the new battle for the marriage of gays and lesbians to the few dozen people at the event. She emphasized her own personal battle to achieve marriage in California, filing a lawsuit (along with Rev. Troy Perry), despite being told by gay civil-rights groups to wait for the right time.
'Wait. They said it to Alice Paul, the Suffragette ... . They said it to Martin Luther King ... . Well, you know what, I'm not waiting any more. I don't give a damn if it's a presidential election year,' Tyler said. 'Justice delayed is justice denied. ... The time has come to get on the streets, and stay on the streets, and get in the court system.'
Tyler and others encouraged Chicagoans to file marriage lawsuits and attend the noon rally at City Hall Monday, May 17, coinciding with rallies across the country to mark the start of marriage in Massachusetts.
Jason West, Green Party Mayor of New Paltz, NY, who married same-sex couples, also spoke passionately about being on the right side of history. He gave background on how he came to be part of the historic moves by a few elected officials to marry gays and lesbians. He is still in the midst of the court case stemming from his actions earlier this year.
NOW Illinois President Bonnie Grabenhoffer filled in quite well for the missing Patricia Ireland. And a fourth speaker was Rev. Pat Bumgardner, a fiery Metropolitan Community Church pastor from New York, who has married gay and lesbian couples in that state, risking arrest.
Grabenhoffer said she fought to have NOW nationally change its endorsement policies for candidates—NOW's PAC will now not endorse any candidates who oppose marriages for gay and lesbian couples.
'Some candidates who we previously supported ... they're not going to get endorsed this time. ... Their elections are no longer more important than our civil rights,' Grabenhoffer said. She said she believes NOW is the only organization to have such a strong policy. The Human Rights Campaign has not publicly changed its policy on backing candidates even if they don't support marriage for gays and lesbians.
[The Human Rights Campaign has never had a question—until this year—that would result in an automatic denial of endorsement from their PAC. The question this year that disqualifies them is if they do not oppose the constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. However, spokeswoman J. Smith said HRC will not automatically disqualify a candidate if they are not affirmatively in support of marriage for gays and lesbians.]
'We're in the middle of a revolution,' Grabenhoffer said. 'We're seeing courageous public officials standing up, saying discrimination is unfair, and they're doing something about it. But we still have a long way to go. Many public officials and candidates are with us ... but now they just can't seem to see the injustice by not supporting marriage equality. ... As if they couldn't learn from history that separate but equal is not good enough.'
She listed out many excuses politicians give, they say 'They have to follow the law,' and not this year because of the election, or because of the war, the economy, the economic impact on social security, etc. 'They have to examine the economic impact of justice? Enough is enough,' Grabenhoffer said.
Rev. Bumgardner, a slight woman with a delicate voice but commanding presence, was eloquent and passionate with her words, delivered with the cadence of a well-practiced preacher.
'People say this is not a religious issue,' Bumgardner said, but then noted how the arguments against this issue are based in religion. 'What is Biblical marriage ... . It's important to clear up the misconception that the Bible in particular is against gay marriage,' Bumgardner said, noting that marriage was so sacred for the author of the anti-gay marriage bill that 'apparently once was not enough for him.'
She pointed to several Bible marriages based on slavery or rape, and also to excerpts showing same-sex love between men and between women.
'Maybe if love between two men was held as sacred as it is in the Bible, then stripping our enemies and posing them in sexually suggestive postures would no longer constitute the most humiliating and shameful thing you could do to them,' she said, referring to the Iraq prison scandals.
'Who speaks for God ... whether we're talking Boston or Baghdad. ... The word of God can best be summarized in that simple cry, ''Let my people go,'' she said. 'Maybe you're thinking that 'I believe in the separation of church and state.' But the truth is that people do not leave their beliefs, their faith, most particularly, they do not leave their values outside the curtain when they're casting ballots, or outside the doors of City Hall or the state Senate and Congressional chambers. We are here tonight because of what we believe in ... . Americans are not in opposition because they think separate is equal ... . They are in opposition because somewhere in the recesses of their minds and hearts and spirit, they believe marriage is something holy, sacred, a sacrament. And sacraments are reserved for the worthy, a status that queer people have yet to achieve.'
Bumgardner also encouraged more people to come out to families, friends, and political leaders.
Jason West followed Scott Summers, the Green Party's Illinois senate candidate, to the stage. Summers backs same-sex marriage.
The youthful West spoke in a low, resonating voice about what he grew up to believe in, freedom and equality, but how he grew to understand the disparities in the U.S.
He linked past movements against slavery, singing 'John Brown's Body' for the crowd. He talked of other generations fighting for farmers, poor workers, and women's rights.
A lot of the legal arguments are based on 'equal protection' under the law, West said. 'What I realized is that if we are going to depend on ... the constitution of this country, we have to realize that our politicians ... are systematically tearing that constitution to pieces.' He pointed out how few people in congress opposed the Patriot Act.
West explained why he is a Green Party candidate, and pointed out how many anti-gay votes have been made by Democrats who say they support gays and lesbians.
He also gave a short history of his actions in New Paltz, and the resulting court case. He is under a restraining order, and oral arguments begin May 17—the same day as marriages start in Massachusetts. He is also facing 24 criminal charges of marrying people knowing they did not have a license.
'Feb. 27 was the best day of my life,' West said. 'I wish you could have been there.'
Generationproject@riseup.net is a group that started out of West's actions—where he can funnel funds donated to his efforts.
The evening was sponsored by Illinois Green Party, DontAmend.com, and Chicago Anti-Bashing Network.
