5 questions with Elizabeth Pax
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Elizabeth Pax is the Dallas organizer for Join The Impact. A native of East Texas, she moved to Dallas when she was 3 years old. She is currently working on her master’s degree in English at the University of North Texas in Denton. She speaks Spanish and says she can say various things in 10 other languages. She hopes to someday teach English to students overseas. Besides being a student and an activist, she is the lead singer for the band TeaForTwenty. She is currently single and lives with her Chiweenie, Lola.
What does Join The Impact do?
JTI is one of the newest organizations in the fight for equality. Two women organized JTI as a direct result of Prop 8 in California. Through social networking sites, they organized protests throughout the U.S. It is a very non-confrontational organization that tries to make people feel comfortable as activists. It is a way for people to be involved in a grassroots movement in a non-abrasive way. Not all people want to get in your face.
How did you become involved with JTI?
I was reading the Web site Perezhilton.com and he mentioned there were going to be rallies across the nation on Nov. 15 to fight Proposition 8. There was link to the JTI Web site, and I looked at the site and filled out the information. From there, I got the e-mail addresses of the people who were organizing the first Dallas rally. I became connected to those individuals, and then I signed up to be the Facebook organizer for Dallas. After the first event, I got promoted to be the city organizer for Dallas.
Are you involved in any other groups within the gay community?
I am a member of the Human Rights Campaign and Lambda Legal. I am also one of the organizers for Queer Liberaction.
How do you think we can win the fight for equality?
I think we should all work together. I have noticed a lot of organizations within the community are working against each other instead of helping each other. There is this general feeling that if your organization is not operating in the way someone else feels is best, then your organization’s efforts are invalid. I feel, however, there is a place in this fight for every kind of effort. The only way we are going to get anywhere is if everyone works together. Each organization has its own strengths. We are already fighting the enemy from outside. Why should we fight from inside too? It is ridiculous.
How do you balance your activist role with your role as lead singer of a band?
You find time for things that you love. I love being both an activist and singing, so I easily find time for both of them. When it comes down to it, both things are just a way to meet women.
Soundout is a weekly column featuring people whose jobs and interests have an impact on the daily lives of members of the LGBT community. It features those who often go unnoticed by the press and community. If you’d like to recommend someone to cover in this column, editor@dallasvoice.comÂ.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition March 6, 2009.