LGBT Civil Rights: Here Come The Republicans!

By David Mixner-

   In the last few months, we have seen a flood of prominent Republicans come out for marriage equality. Many of them are not only supporting the issue but actually speaking out and raising funds to assist in the battle. Most of them are getting behind the American Foundation For Equal Rights Court Case. Some LGBT leaders and activists are having difficulty adjusting to the new allies who have opposed us in the past, come from a totally different ideological spectrum and still support candidates who don't support us.
   While it is understandable that people would have a difficult time adjusting to this shift in support for marriage equality, trust me, this is good news - very good news. Most importantly, nothing more symbolizes that we are edging very close to victory than the emergence of these new allies. In fact, our entire movement has been geared to organize where our opposition will be isolated as right wing nuts. With respected and thoughtful conservative and libertarian voices joining our struggle, that is exactly what is beginning to happen in this battle for full equality.
   In 1978, the LGBT community was fighting the tidal wave of victories by Anita Bryant and her allies. She won in Miami, St. Paul, Wichita and Eugene. Ms. Bryant seemed unstoppable as she brought her hate band wagon to California. With the public support of State Senator John Briggs, they put on the ballot Proposition Six that would have made it against the law for school teachers to be homosexual. Initially no one thought we could win but a group of us were determined to fight. In the last weeks of the campaign, we couldn't quite reach the magical 50% plus 1 that we needed for victory. Exasperated but determined, Peter Scott and I went to Governor Ronald Reagan to ask for his support. Many in the community were appalled that we would seek the support of a man who opposed everything we stood for in life. To make a long story short, we obtained his support and he put us over the top. We won with 54% of the vote.
   On that election night as thousand cheered and wept in celebrating our victory, not one person came up to me to question getting Reagan aboard. It was a huge victory.
   Winning full equality in 2010 is not going to happen until we build new allies out of our traditional base. That is the purpose of a movement - to educate and change minds, to extend hands and create winning coalitions. No one is served to punish our new allies for having contrary backgrounds or different ideologies. Believe it or not, this is not about any individual's personal beliefs; it is about the next generation being free from fear, hate and oppression.

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