“‘Born This Way’, which is the title song, will completely get rid of Gloria Gaynor’s ‘I Will Survive’. This is the new ‘I Will Survive’. That was the gay anthem. This is the new gay anthem. Actually, it’s not a gay anthem – it can apply to anybody.” – Elton John
There was a lot of hype surrounding Lady Gaga’s single “Born This Way.” We’ve been hearing about it for months. I really dislike when people talk about songs before they’re available. It sets up an unrealistic expectation and people only do it to name drop. Okay Perez, we get it, you’re friends with Lady Gaga. Now go bedazzle an alpaca or something, just as long as I don’t have to watch.
I think if Elton John hadn’t come out and said as much, people would be responding differently, so let’s forget he ever talked about Born This Way, forget about all the hype leading up to its release, and get down to it.
Born This Way IS an anthem.
The lyrics, literal and cheesy, are meant to be so. Who here has ever been to a protest? You don’t mince your words, you get right to the point. This isn’t a song about lust or angst, it’s a song about being proud of who you are. Born This Way intentionally escapes the mold to make a point, hiding behind poetic tricks would have detracted from the message.
Of course there are those who say it’s a copy. A copy of Express Yourself, a copy of God Is A DJ; to be honest, I heard a lot of other songs too. Pop imitates pop. Every song sounds like some song before it. What separates a clone from something great is whether it does something new; whether it’s current (or ahead of it’s time), and relevant. Madonna and Pink are well established pop artists with a history of releasing empowering songs about individuality. Gaga channeled the vibes of her contemporaries to add to the story.
There’s one thing we can all agree upon- this song is divisive. For every person who falls in love with it and carries it with them there are going to be ten people who hate it. Gaga may be amongst the biggest stars in the world right now, but she still has a very young career. It takes cahones to release something like this. Leave any doubts that Gaga truly believes and cares about equality behind, this girl is more than a pop star, she’s an activist.
I joined the LGBT boycott of Domino’s pizza last year after learning that founder and former CEO, Tom Monaghan, was a radically conservative social activist. Somethings irked me about the story though; there is a Domino’s right in Boystown(one of the world’s most concentrated gay ghettos) and the pizza itself is delicious and fast- not something I was keen to give up.
- Tom Monaghan left his role as CEO of Domino’s Pizza and is no longer involved with the company. [link]
- Tom Monaghan sold, if not all, nearly all of his shares in Domino’s and no longer reaps any significant financial benefit from the corporation. (Top 10 “other” holders: link] )
- Although the LA Times article previously mentioned stated that Monaghan would remain on Domino’s Board of Directors, he has since resigned that post as well. [link]
- Current Chairman-of-the-Board David Brandon has made financial contributions in excess of $200,000 to the Republican party, candidates, and PACs supporting the Republican party. link]
- Brandon did make a $5,000 contribution to The Ave Maria List PAC in 2002. This contribution was passed on to the likes of Bob Dole and John Thune, amongst others. This is the PAC that Tom Monaghan founded in order to promote Catholic ideals in US government. [link]
- Current CEO of Domino’s, J. Patrick Doyle, has likewise made $13,300 in contributions to the Republican party but there is no evidence of support for other anti-gay groups. [link]
- Neither Brandon or Doyle have made significant political contributions outside the Republican party.
- A Domino’s Pizza PAC has existed and distributed $61,500 to Republican candidates since 2002. No contributions have been reported since the 2006 election cycle, but the PAC collected an additional $10,500 that I was unable to account for and could presumably be used for future contributions. [link]
- Total contributions to Republicans and to conservative causes from Domino’s and its current top-two leaders total at least $274,800.
- Does Domino’s itself stand for equality?
- Is there a better alternative for a national pizza chain? (Thank you Adam for posing this question.)
I understand why young people are killing themselves.
When you are gay, who do you have to turn to?
No matter how supportive my family is and how many close friends I make, I still feel a constant loss and I still harbor incredible amounts of anger. Although I’ve surrounded myself with people who love me, I am still surrounded by the constant din of hateful rhetoric. Whether directed at me, or just mindlessly spouted into the collective, it hurts.
And who out there is watching out for me? I’m not asking who can I call that will tell me they love me or who can I go hug and share my anger with. I’m asking who, in a position of power, is watching out for me? Our “fierce advocate” Obama? Nope. His administration’s clear ambivalence to our plight and lack of action are evidence that his campaigning was little more than hollow, lifeless, careless promises. In my eyes the biggest policy decisions he has made about LGBT people is to defend the Defense of Marriage Act and Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, the two harshest laws discriminating against us. Fair weather fan, I guess.
What about other elected representatives? Well considering Congress won’t even vote yes to debate something as simple and widely favored as Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, I guess I can’t turn to anyone there.
Perhaps I can count on the media. After all, it is the media’s responsibility to investigate and report. They’re the unwritten part of the system of checks and balances. When all branches of our government go haywire, we can count on reporters to set the record straight. Then, on Coming Out day, Washington Post publishes a vitriolic (and completely false) mess of hate speech. My face is still bruised from that slap.
Unfortunately I can’t turn to the country as a whole. Those are the people I need the government to protect me from.
We can tell clearly from NY Gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino that everyone is willing to reap the benefits of LGBT people, and nobody in the upper echelons is willing to stick their neck out for us. Despite leasing his properties to two gay bars in the past, one run by his son, he campaigned saying “I don’t want them [children] to be brainwashed into thinking that homosexuality is an equally valid and successful option.”
So when every day you are faced with wondering whether mentioning a bar you were at, or a song you were listening to, or the clothes you are wearing, or the name of someone you went on a date with will end in ridicule, or worse, violence, what would you do?
Well I get really angry and write about it. I know I’m preaching to the choir but it makes me feel a little better. Not everyone is that strong though. For some people, when faced with this level of discrimination, and given seemingly no way out, death seems like a better option. It’s not, but I can see where it might look that way.
The good news is there are places for gay people to go and be safe. If I wanted to get rid of this stress and hurt, I could just stop paying attention to the news and shuffle around some of who I follow on Twitter. Escape isn’t that far away and maybe that’s why I can handle it. I also know that within my lifetime the majority of these silly laws will probably be gone, and while gay people may not be seen as equals by all, it will be a heck of a lot easier.
I just wish everyone would see that while I’m different, I’m not different. The difference between gay and straight is no greater than the difference between brown and blond. And I wish that people realized that changing our laws to recognize that fact is no less urgent than ending our war in Iraq or balancing the budget or finding a cure for cancer.
There is an unspoken epidemic in this country. It’s not people being gay. It’s people who are gay who are depressed and angry and who have no remedy but to sit and wait while those in power decide when the appropriate time is to say “now you are equal.”
Lady Gaga asked for our video responses. Here is mine. Call your senator, ask them to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.
Sure, this may not come as a surprise to many of us. As my good friend Cara said – there has been speculation about this for years. There are even the very revealing paparazzi photos of him in his skimpies on the beach with one heck of an attractive man. Perhaps this is a convenient time to come out, when he isn’t at the height of his career, when public acceptance of homosexuality is common and growing, and when it is seemingly trendy for celebs to come out. There’s a lot of sarcasm flying around about the topic, and even some bitterness; why?
It’s been a decade since I was outed to my family, but I still remember all too clearly the burden of keeping mum about being gay. It’s certainly not something that is fun to do. In a way, being mad at someone for remaining in the closet is similar to disliking them for being gay. Society makes it quite a hassle to be gay, it would be easier to just be straight, and similarly being in the closet is a horrible experience, and it would be much more liberating to live life unhidden. People remain closeted for a reason, and it’s important not to lose touch with that fact.
I’m not much of a celebrity follower. I love the art that musicians, actors, writers, and performers create for us to consume. I don’t need to and in many ways don’t want to know who they are dating or what they look like fetching the paper. The exception is when a celebrity comes out. Celebrities have a fantastic power to change the opinions of a large number of people. When someone of that status comes out, their fans and followers notice. Some fans will become former fans, and some formerly ignorant fans will become enlightened. We should commend artists that take the risk and lovingly encourage others to follow.
I ask my friends and readers to respond to this news not with vitriol but with compassion and appreciation.
I thank Ricky Martin for his bravery, and I wish the best for him and his family.
Hello and welcome everybody to Pride weekend 2009. I can’t imagine the reader of my blog who doesn’t already know the term Pride, the schedule of events, or the many ways in which they will intoxicate themselves this weekend, but sadly I predict that many readers have no clue why.
This year, be different. Have just as good a time, but also know how it came to be.
Forty years ago a little riot broke out in Greenwich Village in New York. In those days, police raids on gay bars were frequent. They weren’t there to break up fights or to check for drugs. They were there to bust people dancing with members of the same sex and cross-dressers (though somehow men wearing makeup were seemingly not an issue). Normally, patrons would go along with it, a few would be arrested, and the bar would reopen later that evening. On the night of June 28, 1969 things went a little differently, however.
It’s that riot that is now commemorated each year. Although “Stonewall” doesn’t necessarily mark the first time a gay man or drag queen stood up for themselves and it certainly wasn’t the largest or most impressive protest in the history of the gay rights movement, it does hold a special significance in how it inspired people not just in NY but all across the globe to begin standing up for their right to be who they are openly, and to be proud of it.
It’s the tireless work of gays, lesbians, transgender people, straights, and many others that has created the environment we have today. Where gay bars have windows. Where men can not only dress in drag but there are television shows about it. Where women are not required to have on at least three pieces of feminine clothing (Although ladies, I do encourage you to. I’ve been fooled one too many times for pointing out cute boys that turned out, in fact, to be lesbians with better hair and clothing than myself.) Living a queer life today is a far cry from the the way things were forty years ago. But our world is not yet perfect.
Tomorrow, when we all gussy up in our finest summer gear to march among our fellow celebrators of queer culture, don’t forget all the work that has gone into making it possible. And on Monday, when normal life resumes, do something a little different:
Stop discrimination dead in it’s tracks each and every time you see it.
Call your representatives and demand marriage equality; an inclusive, nationwide Employment Non-Discrimination Act; the passage of the Matthew Shepard Act.
Come out. To everyone.
And for god sakes, people, this one is really important:
Come together as a group. I really don’t understand why but we have an environment right now where all the different colors
of the rainbow are in separate corners of the room, backs to each other, with their arms crossed. The next person I see judging another person for dressing differently, talking differently, loving differently, or having a different color skin – I’m going to smack them from here to Perez Hilton (too soon?). We all have one common goal – to be ourselves unashamedly. We all know what it’s like to fail to live up to that dream. We should all be together because then we become the majority.
Now get off the internet you dork and go have a vodka soda (low cal, helps you keep your figure), do your hair, listen to some Lady GaGa, and get the heck out because it’s time to live it up for the weekend!
Further reading:
Wikipedia article on the Stonewall riots
Within the past few hours news has begun breaking that Obama is expected to announce the extension of benefits to the partners of same-sex employees of the federal government. So to be fully clear what this means is gay employees of the federal government will be able to provide things like healthcare to their same-sex partners.
This is clearly a response to the growing pressure from the general public surrounding the President’s handling of gay rights issues thus far. In addition to pressure from the media, several big names including HRC National Field Director Marty Rouse and gay blogger Andy Towle have pulled out of an upcoming gay-centered fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee. So Obama clearly had to do something.
So, while this is certainly a welcome move, it is not enough. Sorry, Mr. Obama, but LGBT rights are not a slot machine and you can’t just pull the arm and hope your nickel gets you out of this mess. Unless the media outlets are wrong and you are announcing something major tomorrow, understand that it isn’t good enough. There is no appeasement any longer. No small gesture to show that you are still our “fierce advocate.” The only action at this point is strong and swift action on all fronts. Tomorrow, come to the table with the following, or come to the table with the knowledge that you are no friend of an equal America:
- An executive order immediately ending Don’t ask, don’t tell and a timeline for legislation to be introduced to permanently repeal the policy including sponsors in both the House and Senate.
- A clear condemnation of the abusive and offensive language used in last week’s brief supporting DOMA along with a timeline for introducing legislation to permanently repeal DOMA, sponsors in both the House and Senate, and the immediate dismissal of all staffers involved in allowing this version of the brief to be issued.
- A date in the next two weeks for the return of the Matthew Shepard Act to Congress for immediate vote and a promise to sign the bill into law no later than the anniversary of the Stonewall riots on June 28.
- A publicly-announced policy shift supporting full same-sex marriage equality.
- The immediate appointment of a top-level adviser on gay-rights issues.
Â
Sources:
AMERICABlog – Obama not to address any of his eight promises tomorrow…
The New Civil Rights Movement – Obama extends benefits to Federal LGBT Employees’ Partners
The Rachel Maddow Show