ENDA, HRC, and Us. Bye, Bye, HRC.

Let us first make one thing absolutely Queer!

 Queers Without Borders does not support the ENDA bill without our sisters and brothers in the Trans community included and included fully.Everyone and all! Many of us are old enough and those of us who aren’t and have studied our Queer stories know full well that this is not the first time that our Trans sisters and brothers have been thrown overboard, left out, sent away with a promise that we will be back for you. (hope no one has held their breath). The nastiest fight was in NYC with the lesbian darling Jean O’ Leary leading the charge against Trans inclusion in NYC’s civil rights bill. The Connecticut Civil Rights bill for g & l was enacted in 1991, similar talk was talked back then, “this bill will never pass if we include Trannies,” or some have even said “we didn’t know what to call them back then.”(The Metroline from that year did full coverage and the full minutes of the discussion that was held was published.) We heard it over and over, a similar promise was made, give us some time we will include you, it will take awhile, just hold tight. This past week the Employment Non Discrimination Act a bill that has been floating around for years was sliced up by dear democrats Nancy Pelosi and Barney Frank, and the protections for transgender people were removed from the legislation. Oh what enemies of our people are these. (Frank has always been a jerk on trans rights. Way back in 1999 we spoke out against him) Pelosi even stated that she personally supported including trans people in the bill, but stuck by her decision to drop them to give the bill a greater chance of passage. (white women speaks with a forked tongue) Then add to that mix the silence of the Human Rights Campaign and  what do you have? A bill that many in the GLBT community, all across this country does not want. Now Frank and Pelosi have come up with 2 bills, one that deals with sexual orientation and one that deals with gender identity. The outcry from our people forced the Democratic leaders to postpone the vote this week so supporters of the legislation for all could continue their discussions with house members in the interest of passing a broad and inclusive bill. It really gets me when any straight tries to tell us queers what is good for us and what we should have. And on the gay hand hear what Joe Solmonese the head of HRC has to say: “We are now faced with definitive Congressional action to move forward a version of the bill stripping gender identity. Though we support a fully inclusive ENDA, we acknowledge the legislative strategy put forth by Congressman Frank and the Democratic leadership to obtain a clear path towards an inclusive bill in the future. We look forward to working with them to accomplish the goal all of us share, ending workplace discrimination against the entire GLBT community. Since 2004 HRC has has a policy in place that supports only a fully inclusive version of ENDA and the Board of Directors voted to reaffirm that position. Therefore, we are not able to support, nor will we encourage Members of Congress to vote against, the newly introduced sexual orientation only bill. And we’ll continue working with our allies in Congress to support a comprehensive, legislative strategy to achieve passage of a fully inclusive ENDA as quickly as possible.” WHEW!!! Draw your own conclusion on where that guy is coming from. That sort of language is of a person that can’t be trusted. It is real political speak. Its white man speaks with a forked tongue. But this time around HRC finds itself standing alone. Just about every major GLBT organization has said no to this mockery of equality. Many of us have said enough of this serving the wealthy white gay and lesbian elitists. Been saying this for years. (so now let’s get on the road to revolution) We say, stop this selling out of our people!   As Rebecca Juro who posts over at The Bilerico Project has said in a very elegant article “Now we must say HRC you do not represent us so get out of the way. We must send all of our support to The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and Pride at Work. We must alert our congressional people that HRC does not speak for us. We must never give another dime to HRC.” The Human Rights Campaign is not only not a friend or supporter of gender-variant and working class LGBT Americans, but they are, in fact the enemy, representing and exemplifying exactly that which we have united to fight against.”   Many of us realized that years ago and are glad that others are now seeing it. I can only add that those who need protection the most, our trans sisters and brothers are once again left out in the cold. As I spoke years ago when Sylvia Rivera was in town for a visit, “If my trans sisters and brothers can not be granted their full equal rights then I do not want mine.” Same holds true today.

Let’s all say EQUALITY and JUSTICE for ALL and mean it. Let us hope that this is a move away from crumb gathering, baby stepping and singing about the sweet bye and bye.

*See the middle photo on the master head. Those are our people at HRC a few years back*

There are many excellent articles over at The Bilerico Project. Check out Marti Abernathey and Rebecca Juro. www.bilerico.com