In case you aren’t plugged in to the social networks, a candlelight vigil is planned tonight in honor of Chad Gibson, the young man who was hospitalized following the police raid of the Rainbow Lounge in Fort Worth this past weekend. The vigil will be from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. outside the Rainbow Lounge, at 651 S. Jennings. For more info, go here.
Why isn’t this “vigil” being held at the Hospital?
Does the Rainbow Lounge have Chad Gibson Drink Specials? 2 for 1 if you bring a candle?
Commercializing rage and hatred is good for business?
The connection is: what most gays perceive as ‘normal’ gay activities is da bars…it all centers around the bars. Get out of your safe space and go to the hospital. Peaceful, organized demonstration goes a long way. Don’t forget the news hounds are watching and it’d be better served to do the vigil at the hospital or some other local rather than a bar. The public will connect gays with bars all the time rather than thinking we are a responsible group of people. Think about how we’d be perceived on television news when you make your decision.
I agree with Nick and Mark. I think the Vigil should be held at the Hospital. It will show support for Chad and his family, support that they can all see with their own eyes instead of just hearing about it on the news. Not to mention, this is not about the bar… it is about what happened, not where it happened. Please reconsider your location.
I see where you’re coming from guys but when most people have candlelight vigils, they choose the scene of the crime as the location for the vigil. I was thinking that the hospital would be a suiting place for the vigil also but I think that having it in front of the bar will bring back the memories of what occurred that early Sunday morning.
I have no problem with this vigil being conducted at the Rainbow Lounge. It’s where the raid occurred and like it or not, has become our Stonewall. Because it is a bar is irrelevant…it’s where the violence occurred. To suggest this location will cause the public to forever connect gays with bars is ludicrous.
As far as getting out of the “safe space” I believe a protest was conducted outside the “safe space” at the Ft. Worth Courthouse steps on Sunday. I believe another one is being planned on July 12th.
Mark, John & Nick….get a vigil going at the hospital. It would be great to having two going on at the same time.
It’d be nice to find out about the vigil but as I’m not plugged into facebook I can’t get past the login screen to find out more info. 🙁
Compromise-How about we start walking around 9PM from the Rainbow Lounge 651 S Jennings to John Peter Smith Hospital in a show of solidarity support? The hospital is a mile away (about 18 minute walk) from the Rainbow Lounge, according to Google Maps.
Phil – Can we bring our drinks?
The reason I was against the idea of conducting the vigil at the hospital was out of respect for other families that will be having their own crisis at the hospital. With the size of this vigil I didn’t want it to interfere with hospital operation. I’m just glad that people were sensitive to this fact and held it at the rainbow lounge. I’m also thankful for the turnout to support Chad and his family. Hopefully they can begin to heal from this in the near future.
For those of you who want to get out of the bars and into the streets (as you recommended), Queer Liberaction will be holding what we call our “Milk Box” (named after Harvey Milk) where we stand on a soap box and talk about gay-related issues (great opportunity to be vocal about the recent raid). We will be in Sundance Square this Sunday and will continue protesting with a large rally nexrt Sunday, July 12th again at the Tarrant County Court House. I think it’s great that you offer input, but were you at any demonstrations? Are you involved in the community? If you are great. If not, I hope to see you at one of our two scheduled demonstrations so you can have a better appreciation for why we choose the venus we do for our events. To find out more about the upcoming events, visit http://www.queerliberaction.org .