QL council protest didn’t help gay Fort Worth
I was appalled and saddened to watch how the actors from Queer Liberaction of Dallas disrupted the Fort Worth City Council meeting on July 14, to the point of getting themselves removed from the council chamber.
This publicity stunt did nothing beneficial to help anyone who resides in Fort Worth.
I do believe there is a right time and place for loud protests, and we need people willing to do that. But their demands for exceptional treatment and public disrespect of our elected officials inside our council chamber was unacceptable and offensive to me as a resident of Fort Worth.
Their malicious behavior was no more acceptable than that of the officers in the Rainbow Lounge. Neither of these two episodes characterizes the way we treat each other in Fort Worth, and these antics of Queer Liberaction are unwanted in our great city.
Our mayor graciously treated these protestors with respect they were unwilling to return to him and everyone else in the chamber who had given of their own time to be there.
If the protesters had cooperated with the mayor and stayed in the meeting, they would have experienced something special later when both gay and straight speakers spoke with united passion about the city we call home and their desire to work together to get answers and healing.
They would have seen a mayor and council who responded to the pleas of its citizens with compassion and commitment to do the right thing. It is unfortunate they missed that experience because they were too demanding to sacrifice a few hours of their own time for the benefit of all who were present.
The creation of the new Fairness Fort Worth organization is a perfect example of how things are done well in Fort Worth. The GLBT community looked within itself to find capable neighbors who will work honorably with our city’s leaders to solve our concerns — that is "The Fort Worth Way" and people who do not live here will not understand that experience.
But we do.
Fort Worth
There is a very large part of the gay population that do not go to the bars and participate in all the drinking and drugging. The only problem is that the media only wants to focus on the negative aspects and the hysteria that we are bringing on ourselves. It’s actions and antics by a few, that is a detrement to our achieving true equality. The whole Rainbow Lounge incident should have been persued through the proper channels and not at a City Council meeting. Professionalism needs to be our code from here on. There are a lot of lawyers who would be more than happy to file a suit on your behalf. All this grandstanding and in-your-face is going to get us nowhere. It is only going to set us back more. If we want true equality, then WE are going to have to rise above all this juvenile behavior and start acting like adults. We need to treat the police and the TABC with respect, period.
No offense to organizations like Fairness Fort Worth, but you speak for a portion of the LGBT community, not the community as a whole. While QL’s approach to matters like this may make you uneasy, to the folks WE represent, timid, back of the bus, political pandering groups make US equally uneasy. There is the difference. Some groups are comfortable sitting and waiting for the chance to maybe, possibly create some kind of change, groups like ours stand up, even if it is not the popular or “correct” thing to do, and confront oppression head on.
So the question is.. how long will we let these groups determine the action of the community as a whole? How much longer will our community trust our equality to back room meetings, palm greasings and high dollar dinners? When will we no longer be satisfied with compromise? When will we begin to actually push back against oppression? For myself and hundreds of others who are involved with QL, the answer is NOW.
These civil meetings are the tactics we have relied on for 40 years in Texas, and despite a few city level victories and even fewer on the state level, we have little to show for our “cooperation” We are still regarded as second class.
It is easy to write letters, lobby political heads or go out and cast a vote every few years. It takes courage to stand up and say what most are afraid to say. It takes courage to be loud, to upset the status quo. It takes guts to do what is right when it may not be the popular thing. I for one will continue to be loud. I will continue to demand. I will continue to challenge the establishment. I will continue to stand.
Thank you Daniel for shuch a well written response, and I could not agree with you more. I am a PROUD Fort Worth Resident, having moved here from Chicago over a year ago. I have heard about this “Fort Worth Way” of hospitality, being behind closed doors and having quiet meetings. While there is a place for that, where has it gotten us. From my perspective (and I am speaking for myself), the homophobia is so thick I can feel it in the air. I cannot live that way. I will not live this way. I will get in the streets and scream, so that the voices of the people too afraid to come out can be heard. I want to know why there is all of this in fighting between activist groups. There is room for all of us. Instead of arguing and debating over QL’s actions, take a stand against the establishment. Let your voice be heard. I am proud to say you will here mine. I am not hiding, which is why my email is posted in this response.
This conversation about anger, demands and protests has been helpful. In fact, I believe there is little left to disagree about.
The question is whether or not we need to have a group of protesters “at-the-ready†in case something happens OR are we already here, if something happens.
Like many others I did not see a reason to protest or demand because of the Fort Worth incident. I was pleased with the community response and expressions of outrage from not only gay people, but straight as well. Calls for investigations came the day after the event. Since then there have been many very positive developments – all of which I think would have happened without marching. Most of the protesting took place online and via email, phone calls and issued statements.
I believe there is a role for Queer Liberaction alongside the rest of us if and when officials DO NOT respond to our outrage. As best I can tell thousands of us would have protested if Fort Worth and the TABC did not respond, but they did. We should all acknowledge that. I don’t think it’s fair to call the event at the Rainbow Lounge “oppression,†either. It was BAD COPS and it appears discipline and a change of policy is forthcoming.
When the rest of the World believes we are “over-reacting†we can’t simply ignore them. As with everything else in life there is an appropriate “balance,†which at times may include an angry show of solidarity. That wasn’t this time.
We have seen anger in the last few weeks – even some directed at me. I understand it. Anger is a great motivator. What I haven’t seen is a strategy or plan to direct that anger into something that will create lasting change. That’s what’s missing from this conversation.
Many of our fellow Americans “hate, dislike and/or disagree†with homosexuality. This is different than oppression. That’s what we need to fight – the “belief†that gay is wrong. We need a “smart†response to those beliefs, not just angry outrage or disagreement.
Perhaps the Dallas Voice and Jack E. Jett and others can create a Forum for that conversation. That would be helpful.
“It takes courage to stand up and say what most are afraid to say. It takes courage to be loud, to upset the status quo…….”
Yes Mr. Cates, however in a previous article here when one commentor upset your “activist” status quo, he or she was quickly labeled by you as “throwing a public pity party” yet you are considered courageous…. I guess it depends on which mouth the voice comes from doesn’t it ???