Last weekend, a group of 24 “thinkers, donors and activists” from across the country met at a DFW Airport hotel to discuss the “immediate need” for full LGBT equality. During what they’re now referring to as “the Dallas Meeting,” from May 15-17, these 24 people came up with a document they’re calling “the Dallas Principles,” which you can read more about by going here or here.
Now I suppose we should be honored that this group met at DFW Airport and named their document after our fair city, but here’s the problem: Not one of them was from Dallas, Fort Worth or even Texas. According to their Web site, they came from 10 different states, and all but one of those states is on the East or West coasts (which seems somewhat at odds with one of their principles, “We will not leave any part of our community behind.”)
It’s unclear who organized this meeting or how participants were selected, but the authors of the Dallas Principles are claiming that because they’ve published their names on the Web site after the fact, they’ve achieved “full transparency.” However, as far as I know, no one from the media — and certainly not Dallas Voice — was notified about this meeting in advance.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to take anything away from the goals of the meeting or the document these folks came up with. But next time y’all decide to get together in Texas, could you at least let someone from here know?
You should know that the facilitator of the Dallas Principles meeting comes from a high profile organization in Dallas that is very involved with the Dallas LGBT community. The facilitator who helped craft these principles chose not to be listed. In addition, on participant is a Dallas native, and visited family and friends while in attendance.
We have the largest GLBT church in the nation/world. We have a suburban city ranked #5 in the nation for GLBT folks. We have a strong, vibrant, history-making community. So obviously we should be excluded. Thank God we’re centrally located so the East and West Coast “leaders” can go back to their homes and look down on us. And a facilitator who chooses not to be listed doesn’t really help change this perception.
As one of the participants in the meeting, I need to clarify something. The facilitator was Mike McKay, the executive director of the Resource Center Dallas.
As the facilitator, Mike’s role was to help the participants craft the principles, but not to be an active participant (which is against the rules of facilitation). Therefore, we could not list him as an author. As correctly reported, there were 24 participants (authors) plus the facilitator.
As the facilitator of this meeting, I’d like to clarify that I was invited to moderate this group’s discussion and was paid an honorarium, donated to Resource Center. It is incorrect that I chose not to be listed, since my role was to steer the discussion and not actively partipcate. I am proud of the work this group has done and have gladly, publicly endorsed the principles by signing on at http://www.thedallasprinciples.org and I encourage everyone to do the same.
Mike McKay
Executive Director
Resource Center Dallas
I participated in crafting the Dallas Principles. And, I am a proud Texan. Born and raised in Fort Worth. But that is not the point. The Dayton Accords were named for the city where they were drafted not the geography of the participants. What is important is this. Those of us who participated wanted to answer one basic question. How can we achieve full civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender Americans now, without delay. What came out of our conversation was a set of principles and goals on which we invite comment and debate. We hope that the Dallas Principles will inspire and mobilize a nation to achieve full LGBT civil rights, and will hold all of us in the community, our allies,our organizations and political leaders accountable for achieving full civil rights. The Dallas Principles are not about any of its authors, but about the nation coming together to raise the bar. We invite readers to go to http://www.TheDallasPrinciples.org and join.
I can’t put my finger on why this whole thing doesn’t ring true to me. The site seems to tell me nothing about what exactly prompted this other than “the time is now” and considering they just met last weekend, they already have logo (yawn) and Web sites set up rarin’ to go? Digital images ready to post on your sites and blogs and all else online? And their Facebook only mentions all the media attention they’ve apparently gotten. A melodramatic name like the Nuremburg Trials doesn’t help either.
John is right in that why didn’t media know about this? What’s to hide? For all the bloggers on the panel, their PR sucks because their idea is plainly weak and doesn’t sell. “Immediate”, “call to action”, “A new day has arrived”, poignant quotes – these are supposed to get me to sign onto something that does not have much more substance behind it. Dixie above says, “What came out of our conversation was a set of principles and goals on which we invite comment and debate” and the responses include “1.Full civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals must be enacted now. Delay and excuses are no longer acceptable. 2.We will not leave any part of our community behind. 3.Separate is never equal,” and so forth. Really??? That’s what you came up with over a weekend? Wow.
The foundations or principles these are founded upon are elementary at best and groups have been doing this long before Obama was elected. All of the sudden, we’re supposed to sign up with the Principles and that should satisfy our urge to help. What does signing up get us? Nothing it looks like. And at what point will I be asked to donate money because they will need it.
I see grassroots groups like Queer Liberaction taking less time to prepare and more time performing. Whether what they do works or not, we see a kind of action. Not this schoolmarm approach of getting everything nice and tidy and then we’ll see what happens next. I fail to see what The Dallas Principles can do for the community when other groups and people have been doing it for years already.
It strikes me that the issue here isn’t the principles themselves but the principal participants. When I participated in the International March on the United Nations to Affirm the Human Rights of Lesbian and Gay People in June 1994, I learned a valuable lesson: There are no gay stereotypes. Consequently, any group that purports to speak on behalf of the entire community will undoubtedly fall short.
This isn’t about whether Dallas or Texas was represented at the talks. Dixon is right in saying that this isn’t about the geography of the participants. But someone had to determine which “doers, thinkers and activists” would draft the principles. Who is that someone? I would have liked to see Patti Fink included. And what about Gregory Pynes? Or Steve Atkinson? These are all “doers, thinkers and activists,” as well as many, many more, here and nationwide.
That there is a sense of urgency for our cause is unquestionable. That our community lacks a single, unified voice is also unquestionable. We certainly won’t find that voice if we launch these initiatives without — at the very least — informing the community and inviting broader participation. It’s a matter of placing the cart before the horse.
Jon, I disagree that it isn’t about the geography at all. Again, all participants save one were from coastal states. That one individual is from Colorado. Texas is the second-most populous state in the nation, DFW is the fourth-largest metropolitan area, and Houston is the fourth-largest city. How can you hold an event like this here and not invite ANYONE to participate other than as a facilitator? As an example, I believe something like six of the participants were from Washington, D.C. This almost seems like a Washington insider problem on an LGBT level. For the record, Dixon Osburn, who commented above, is originally from Fort Worth but DOES NOT live here. So what about the flyover states?
And Rich, the bloggers that you mention were participants, not reporters, apparently helping to come up with the principles. How can they have any degree of objectivity? It would be like me becoming an organizer for Queer Liberaction, then reporting on the group’s activities.
To Rich who says: “1.Full civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals must be enacted now. Delay and excuses are no longer acceptable. 2.We will not leave any part of our community behind. 3.Separate is never equal,†and so forth. Really??? That’s what you came up with over a weekend? Wow.” — I agree. It’s not like we don’t all know the goals by now. I fail to understand what is new or different about these goals compared to those of say HRC, NGLTF, Lambda Legal, DGLA, CCGLA or any other existing organization. Couldn’t the leaders of those groups come together? Why were they not invited? I agree with the principles, I just don’t understand the packaging…the overly italicized words that are supposed to motivate change.
And the “Call To Action” section:
“Our organizations and individuals need to develop a collaborative and revolutionary new organizing model that mobilizes millions of supporters through emerging web and phone technologies.” – Are we playing BS Bingo? Does anyone really understand what this means other than we’re going to use phones, email and websites to get our message out? Maybe we can have a phone tree or a newsletter. Maybe everyone could follow someone on Twitter and Facebook and have a flash mob at Newt’s house. Of course we already do this. I get action calls from HRC, Equality Texas, CCGLA and others.
“All LGBT individuals must accept personal responsibility to do everything within their power for equality and should get involved in the movement by volunteering, giving and being out.”
— (sigh) Yes, we really just aren’t working hard enough. That’s what’s wrong. We didn’t get out the vote, volunteer in the rain and heat, drag our partners and children out to meetings and conferences (at our own expense) or stay up long enough hours posting on blogs and writing our political leaders.
Here’s the real problem that I see. We’ve already won several states, the liberal states where these fine folks are coming from and returning to. But no one is putting money into red meat states like TX, Oklahoma, Alabama, Georgia where they figure they just can’t win. We have candidates who can beat Kenny Marchant, Joe Barton & Mike Burgess if we can just get FUNDING and backing. Great change can happen in city councils and state houses if investments are made locally. But we are dominated by a two coast mentality which is what generated this stream of posts to begin with.
I’ve sat in on my share of “facilitated meetings’. It’s my experience that very little daring comes from those rooms. But put a few charged up GLBT folks in front of an elected leader, or a police chief or a DART board, put a flag in our hand and tell us to march or sit in or protest all night, and then you’ve got a ballgame. Where’s the ACT UP of today? Why aren’t we closing 14th street bridge with a sit in and demanding DEMANDING our rights? I’m not sure more polite facilitated meetings are what we need. Someone pick up the mantle of Larry Kramer or Harvey Milk or John Thomas or any of the other out-in-the-street folks and maybe the time for change will be sooner than later.
And nobody invited me?
I reeeeally think the authors, while well intended, should have made one stop on their way out of Dallas, and that would be to a local community college, to submit their draft to the editing pen of any run-of-the-mill professor of writing or communications.
So a bunch of unhappy former HRC staffers, ex ED of SLDN, current and former gay Democrats, and one blogger from NC got together last weekend to tell me to get angry and active. Yawn.
Couldn’t make it to your invitation-only closed door strategy session about fighting for queers and justice, in your cool hotel meeting room.
I was busy in SF in the blazing hot Harvey Milk Plaza bring together politicians of green and DNC stripes, artists, reverends, iranian american, straights, trans people, and a few half naked boys, to stand in solidarity and fight for and raise money to benefit queers escaping the horrors of Iraq.
And you all show great insensitivity and offense to the Hiv/AIDS community by so closely naming your project near the Denver Principles’ name. Create some confusion for the community, why don’t you? Oh, and I don’t like that HIV/AIDS is totally missing from your list of principles:
https://www.thedallasprinciples.org/The_Dallas_Principles/Principles.html
But fear not! The word is out in the mainstream press, on the AP wire, that gay Dems met in Texas. You all are NOT representative of the true political diversity of our community.
This Green man with AIDS ain’t backing your latest self-serving project. I’m doing busy actually doing a lot of the stuff you say you want!
From the AP:
The administration has drawn criticism from gay and lesbian activists for not moving quickly enough to repeal the policy. Democratic activists and fundraisers met last weekend in Texas to coordinate an online campaign known as the Dallas Principles to prod the president.
https://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/05/ap_military_gays_policy_052109/
And big thanks to John Wright and Dallas Voice for raising criticism about the recent meeting and the actions of the organizers.
More debate is needed about this crew that met in Dallas and I hope it takes place here.
https://mpetrelis.blogspot.com/2009/05/sf-gays-to-pelosi-condemn-torture-of.htmlIraq
My good friend and political artist Clinton Fein has made a terrific video of the May 17 solidarity rally and fundraiser for gay Iraqis at Harvey Milk Plaza, in Nancy Pelosi’s congressional district.
For me, the most relevant and emotionally moving speaker was community organizer Gary Virginia, who demanded our member of Congress, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, speak out against the torture of LGBT Iraqis.
It’s unacceptable that Pelosi, who represents the most energized gay political district in the nation, is getting a free ride about the abuse and gruesome murder of gay Iraqis from Democratic gay leaders at HRC, NGLTF and GLAAD, at a time when she is mired in controversy over torture.
I’m proud to associate with Virginia and other San Francisco voters who want our Congressmember to use her voice to bring attention to the plight of the gay community in Iraq.
After you watch Fein’s video, give Pelosi’s speaker office in DC a call and leave a message, demanding that she forcefully condemn the torture and killing of LGBT Iraqis. Let Pelosi hear your voice on behalf of justice for our brothers and sisters in Iraq. Her number is 1-202….
And big thanks again to everyone who turned out for Sunday’s important rally, and to Clinton Fein for creating the video.
Look at this tape, and spread it far and wide:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY5SzHX-YbM
Why would a bunch of HRC critics putting together a virtual protest against the HRC decision to leave transgenderd people behind invite anyone from an HRC rag like the Dallas Voice?
Seriously, you throw the word “tranny” around like you own it while sweeping the T issue under the rug at every opportunity. Whine some more.
And while I’m sad that the gay community has been treated the same way by the Obama administration in its failure to deliver on its promise regarding “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” I have to admit that it is ironic. How does that shoe fit, now that it is on the other foot?