Clarke D. Newman, OD, FAAO
Special Contributor
I read with great disappointment the “Voices” opinion written by Rabbi Denise Eger in the Jan. 24 edition of Dallas Voice. First, let me welcome Rabbi Eger to Texas, and more importantly, to the LGBTQIA+ community of Texas. It is great that we have had such a distinguished community advocate move to Texas. I am sure that, in the long run, your presence here will be felt in many positive ways.
With that said, I am very disappointed to read such a wholly uninformed opinion published in the Dallas Voice. Ordinarily, I would not “woodshed” a fellow member of the community in public, but since you chose to air this completely inaccurate characterization of Equality Texas in public, my comments must be made in the same forum in the hope of undoing the damage you have so clearly done to this very valuable organization.
If we are lucky, we can use this unfortunate moment as a teaching moment, not only to educate Rabbi Eger, but the community at large.
The first thing I want to say is not to Rabbi Eger, but to the members of the LGBTQIA+ community of Texas: All of the very things Rabbi Eger accuses EQTX of not doing, EQTX is doing. Period.
I am neither on the great staff nor on the hard-working board of Equality Texas. I have been serving on the Dallas Steering Committee of Equality Texas for seven years, and I am a past chair of that committee.
Equality Texas is one of 48 member organizations of the Equality Federation, which works collaboratively on critical non-partisan issues — from advancing workplace fairness and family recognition to defeating anti-transgender bills and HIV criminalization laws — that affect how LGBTQ+ people experience the world from cradle to grave.
Equality Texas has a similar remit. EQTX works to secure full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer Texans through political action, education, community organizing and collaboration.
The Equality Texas Foundation, a non-profit organization affiliated with EQTX, works to secure full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer Texans through education, community organizing and collaboration.
As a doctor of optometry and a member of the community, I have worked my entire adult life in Texas, at different times, for two permanent minorities. The great profession of optometry faces two very formidable foes: The Texas Medical Association, which is almost as big in membership and budget as our national organization, and, the only group that gives the TMA heartburn, the insurance industry.
I can tell you what it feels like to punch way above your weight class. So I know a quality organization in Austin when I see one. EQTX is one of those groups.
EQTX is faced with several challenges. First, Texas is very large.
Texas is 7 perceny of the area of the entire U.S., almost twice as big as California and the same size as all of New England, New York, Pennsylvania and Virgina combined. EQTX does not shrink from that challenge, but the limitations of distance make recruitment very challenging. When half way between Dallas and Rabbi Eger’s treasured L.A. is El Paso, Texas, one can see what is going on here.
That being said, EQTX does everything it can with the resources that it has in staff, volunteers and treasure to fight the battles in Austin, in school boards and in city councils around this state.
Lobbying in California is nothing like what it is here. First, elected Texas officials come from predominantly conservative, rural communities due to very gerrymandered districts. Minority voices are scattered into conservative majority districts (“fracturing”) or “packed” into a minority number of districts.
The Republican Party is one vote away from a supermajority in the Texas Senate and not far from one in the Texas House.
With few exceptions, the Republican Party in Texas is completely hostile to the needs of the community. When the entirety of state-wide elected officials is also hostile to the community and uses us as red meat for their voters, we are really up against it.
Rabbi Eger speaks of not putting drag queens up front, but “everyday LGBTQ folks,” as the face of Texas. EQTX does that. She says we “should meet with them even when they oppose us.” To the extent that they will meet with us, EQTX does that.
Rabbi Eger also speaks of doing things “incrementally.” That works when one is on offense, but one cannot be incremental when playing defense.
She states that most of the anti-LGBTQ bills never moved. Well, that is a feature of EQTX and not a bug. Combined with other like-minded organizations and corporate organizations, EQTX opposes all bills that threaten the community. In politics — especially in Texas — a bill unopposed is a bill that will move.
Then and only then can you fight the bills that really threaten the community. We have no business defeating any of these bills, considering the stacked deck against us, except through had work in grass roots lobbying, working the offices in Austin and engaging the press when possible.
Working the granular details of advocacy is not glamorous. It is hard work and not sexy. So, the press is never there for that. EQTX does that, and gets little credit for it.
Rabbi, I don’t know who is feeding you information, but they have done you a serious disservice.
Does the community face an existential crisis? Absolutely. Does EQTX strain under this assault and the realities of dealing with a state the size of Texas with limited resources? Absolutely.
Could we use a lot more members of the community giving their time and their treasure to the cause? Of course! Could we use experienced people like yourself to get into the game instead of booing from the bleachers? You would be very welcomed in our collective fight!
Finally, to the whole community, we need you. Period. Go to EqualityTexas.org and get involved. Follow the EQTX Bill Tracker and stay up to date on all of the bills filed in Austin.
Sign up for the Equality Leadership Program or the Equality Project. Become a donor. Give something, even if it is $5 a month. We can do none of the things we are doing, or could be doing, without funding.
Join EQTX today; we need everyone, as LBJ used to say, “inside the tent pissing out, instead of outside pissing in.”