Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. DOMA. Transgender-inclusive hate crimes bill. The fact that Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is a raging homophobe. Watch as Rep. Barney Frank covers the major gay issues in just three and a half minutes.
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geoff
I hope Rep.Frank is right but I wouldn’t hold my breath. Obama only cares about us as long as the checks clear.
RichardR
Take that, Scalia!
Captain Freedom
Barney Frank has been an awful advocate for gay rights.
He is part of the Pelosi/DNC/HRC wing of the Democratic Party that believes gays should “wait their turn” and not push too hard for marriage rights. After all, transgender people aren’t that important to the heteronormative Joe Solmonese patrol. Barney Frank should shut his fat mouth. He and the HRC sold out transgender Americans in order to win over more Evan Bayh type Democrats. They didn’t gain one single vote.
Barney Frank needs to go! We need a new generation of LGBT lawmakers like Tammy Baldwin, Jared Polis and Bevan Dufty. I am almost embarrassed that this man considers himself a spokesperson for us.
Doug
Barneys like a pit bull dog who won’t take shit…
Captain Freedom
Oh and one more thing, it takes a lot more than 3 minutes to cover the major issues LGBT Americans face. Let me just give the laundry list…
– Marriage (no brainer)
– Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Bill (transgender inclusive)
– ENDA
– DADT
– DOMA
– Immigrant acknowledgment for LGBT couples
– Homelessness in the LGBT community (HRC never mentions this, probably because they are taking tens of millions out of gay communities to fund their black-tie affairs with the Establishment Bourgeois of the Democratic Party)
– HIV/AIDS (its getting out of control)
– International LGBT discrimination
These issues take more than 3 minutes. They take weeks, months, and sometimes years to educate average Joe Sixpack Americans. We need to take the time to sit down with people and truly educate them about where our community stands and what we need to be equal.
RM
Captain Freedom may not like him, but I challenge the Captain to name a single person who’s done more for gay and lesbian rights in the past 10 years. Who’s sponsored/cosponsored more legislation on those exact issues Capt. Freedom lists? Who’s spoken out more often on those issues? Who’s tackled bullying of in schools (an issue that should be added to that list)?
I’m glad that people like Capt Freedom are holding our leaders’ feet to the fire, but I think there’s a kind of attitude that belies a revulsion to actual progress.
strumpetwindsock
@Captain Freedom:
You might want to remember that Barney Frank does not own the TV Network that broadcast that news report. I think the decision to limit the piece to three minutes was made by the producers and editors, not him.
I can’t think of any politician frankly, who would turn down the opportunity of more free air time if he had the chance.
As well, three minutes is actually a fairly long time in televisionland. Most people know that if you want more in-depth analysis you have to go to the papers, internet, or a feature news show, not a spot news broadcast.
The Gay Numbers
@RM: “FDR was, of course, a consummate political leader. In one situation, a group came to him urging specific actions in support of a cause in which they deeply believed. He replied: “I agree with you, I want to do it, now make me do it.”
He understood that a President does not rule by fiat and unilateral commands to a nation. He must build the political support that makes his decisions acceptable to our countrymen. He read the public opinion polls not to define who he was but to determine where the country was – and then to strategize how he could move the country to the objectives he thought had to be carried out.”
I keep this quote around now for comments like the one you made. FDR’s statement is true of every polician, whether President or House of Representative.
RS
@Captain Freedom: “We need a new generation of LGBT lawmakers like Tammy Baldwin, Jared Polis and Bevan Dufty.”
Bevan Dufty??? Give me a break. Your point makes sense, especially if you had included people like Mark Leno or Carole Migden. But just try to name one single accomplishment Bevan has made in all of his years in office.
Alex
@Captain Freedom: Like it or not, Seniority matters in congress, as does the fact that Frank will never ever ever lose his seat (a friend of mine who is in his district has never seen anyone run against him). Yeah, he and Joe completely sold out our trans brothers and sisters, but if you watched the interview, you’ll see he has come around on that (both in terms of hate crimes legislation, which we desperately need, and ENDA). Bayard Rustin, Harvey Milk, Sylvia Rivera, Rita Mae Brown, Cleve Jones: none of these people were born activists. And while I wouldn’t compare a politician like Barney Frank with a true activist (well, except Milk, who was himself a politician), you have to give the man credit when he gets it right, just as you need to blast him when he gets it wrong.