Civil society's essential to the democratic process. It's that nebulous, accessible space between the state and the people in which the masses can rally for or against particular issues. Nailing down a definitive meaning of "civil society" has proven to be a matter of political contention, so we're going to settle on a fairly well-regarded and flexible definition from the London School of Economics: "Civil society refers to the arena of uncoerced collective action around shared interests, purposes and values".

The United States constitution reserves a special place for this special social space. Our first amendment reads: "Congress shall make no law…abridging the [freedom] to petition the government for a redress of grievances." Our democratic process thrives on - and incorporates - a variety of civil organizations, including nonprofits such as Human Rights Campaign.

Arguably one of the most well-known and mainstream gay rights organizations, HRC has come under serious fire over what some activists perceive to be a soft stance on trans rights. As more than 300 activist groups coalesce to fight for a trans-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act, HRC refused to actively oppose an orientation-only act. Rather, the group says they're not supporting it, but hesitates to come out for trans rights, despite the fact they've worked on this bill for over three years. So, why's HRC rolling over? One Washington insider has a theory:

HRC can't be trusted on this issue. They're desperate for a legislative victory. They're as desperate for the victory as the democratic leadership is, because they're about to kick up their fundraising and they want the gay money.

While that may be true, such an accusation's only part of the story. And, even if it were the whole truth, it wouldn't necessarily be wrong. Not politically, at least.

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