I’ve unsubscribed from barackobama.com not because I hate our president or because I feel betrayed, but because my participation in his campaign is dependent on his agenda. It is not unconditional. When the president’s attention once again includes GLBT equality, as I’m confident it will, I will once again become an avid participant.
I also made repeated donations and did everything I could to spread the President's message. During the campaign, I often found myself defending the President to friends who were suspicious of his level of support for gay rights. I find myself defending him still, but it's getting harder and harder to do.I'm no single-issue voter; I recognize how many pressing issues our country has on its plate. But the President promised to be a "fierce advocate" for gay Americans. Instead, we've had nothing but fierce silence--until last week, when we were fiercely attacked in Justice's DOMA brief. I'm still a strong supporter of the President, but the frequent emails from administration officials about other issues are just a constant reminder of what it hasn't addressed. I prefer not to receive them unless and until the President starts to make good on his promises to gay Americans.
I just wanted to let all of you know that I'm in Florida for the winter!
I'll be involved here (looking for fellow supporters in the Daytona Beach area!) and I'll see you in the spring!
I know all of you will keep up the great work that you do and volunteer in your community this holiday season!
Gail/freedom4u_n_me
I wanted to share with you the following email I received this morning from Obama Pride Chicago member, Michael R.
I'm a volunteer with Obama for America in Chicago. I'm doing everything I can here to support the campaign-- I even threw a house party and encouraged my friends to donate. But since Illinois is already pretty blue, I wanted to find ways to expand impact I can make. That's what makes Hometown Pride such a great idea. I grew up in Florida, so I have dozens of old friends in this important state. By contacting five or more friends back home, I'm making a difference where it counts the most. So far, this is who I've reached out to: My Mother-- I forwarded information about the campaign to her, and she passed it along to eight of her friends. They've started volunteering, making donations, and-- most importantly-- talking to their friends as well. My Best Friend-- he's gay like me, but he was misinformed about a lot of Obama's positions on GLBT issues. Summer Coworker-- It was only a summer job during college, but he and I email from time to time. Asking him to get his friends in the loop was a way to reach out to people I never would have met myself. My "Aunt & Uncle"-- we're not really related, but I made sure my longtime family friends know how important this election is. When people are like family, they listen differently, and I think they really wanted to know what I thought. My "Long Lost Friend"-- I hadn't spoken to her in a year, and a phone call about this historic campaign was the perfect excuse. She'd planned to vote for Obama, but didn't know about the registration deadlines. She registered online while we were catching up. Participating in Hometown Pride is easy, and it puts my efforts where the campaign needs them most. Sometimes people just need to hear from someone they know to get excited. Best of all, come November, when my friends help send Barack Obama to the Whitehouse, I'll have one more reason to be proud of my hometown.
Obama Pride Chicago joined nearly 100 other local Obama supporters on Saturday on a three hour bus ride to the Obama field office just outside of Davenport, Iowa. As it happened, John McCain was holding a rally downtown at the same time we were set to knock on doors in the city's precincts. His presence in the Quad Cities made us even more fired up to get out into the neighborhoods and get out the vote for Obama…
Read the rest of Ben Z.'s post HERE.
Or, plan your own target state trip by emailing us at pride@barackobama.com
Fair Wisconsin would like to announce to its members the endorsement of Barack Obama and Joe Biden. There are only 36 days until the election, and there is much work to be done. Please take action to help elect Barack Obama President on November 4th!Senator Obama has called for an end to federal discrimination by fully repealing the Defense of Marriage Act and Don't Ask, Don't Tell, and supports an Employment Non-Discrimination Act that includes sexual orientation and gender identity. Wisconsin's own Our Lives Magazine recently profiled Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin, a national leader for LGBT equality and the co-chair of Barack's national gay leadership and policy committee. For more information about Barack's positions on issues important to the LGBT community, please visit http://pride.barackobama.com
Michelle Obama states her case in The Advocate:
The World As It Should BeBy: Michelle ObamaIn about a month, Americans will head to the polls to cast their votes for the next president of the United States. It will be a momentous day. But this presidential election has already changed our country in profound ways. The candidacies of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have smashed old barriers and broadened opportunities for all Americans. And I’m grateful to them -- both as a citizen and as a parent of two young girls. But our country’s journey toward equality is not finished. It’s been five years since Lawrence v. Texas. It’s been 39 years since Stonewall. And we still have more work to do before we achieve equality for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Americans. Election Day offers an opportunity to take another crucial step toward equality. Millions have joined this movement for change. People are hoping again -- believing again -- that we can come together to create a stronger, fairer nation. And on November 4 we’ll have a chance to put that hope into action. Translating hope into action is something Barack has done for his entire career. Barack and I met in Chicago 20 years ago. He thought the best way for me to know him was to get a sense of the work he cared about most. After college he had worked in neighborhoods that were devastated when steel plants shut down and jobs dried up. He’d been invited back to speak to people from those neighborhoods about how to create new opportunities for their families. He asked me to come with him. I watched as Barack took off his jacket, rolled up his sleeves, and instantly connected with every person in that room. He gave the most eloquent talk about “the world as it is” and “the world as it should be.” Too often, he said, we accept the distance between the two, and we settle for the world as it is -- even when it doesn’t reflect our values and aspirations. But he reminded us that we know what fairness and justice and opportunity look like. And he urged us to believe in ourselves and find the strength to strive for the world as it should be. Barack Obama, the 2008 presidential nominee, is the same man I fell in love with on that day 20 years ago. He has never stopped pursuing that better world. As an Illinois state senator, Barack championed the law that amended the Illinois Human Rights Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis of both sexual orientation and gender identity in the workplace, in housing, and in public places. In the middle of a tight race for U.S. Senate, Barack went on the record supporting a complete repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act. As a U.S. senator, he voted to protect our Constitution from the stain of discrimination by voting against the Federal Marriage Amendment. He has supported full funding for the Ryan White CARE Act and has pledged to implement a national HIV/AIDS strategy to combat the continuing epidemic in the United States. He has also spoken out against the stigma surrounding HIV testing, a stigma tied all too often to homophobia. And he’s led by example: On our trip to Kenya, we both took a public HIV test. This is why Barack is running for president—because he believes that if we work together, we can build the world as it should be. We all know what that world looks like. It’s a world where we repeal laws like DOMA and “don’t ask, don’t tell” and oppose amendments that would write discrimination into our Constitution—because discrimination has no place in a nation founded on the promise of equality. It’s a world where the federal government protects us all against hate crimes and we recognize that equality in relationship, family, and adoption rights isn’t an abstract principle but goes directly to whether all Americans can lead lives of dignity and freedom.
The World As It Should Be
By: Michelle Obama
In about a month, Americans will head to the polls to cast their votes for the next president of the United States. It will be a momentous day. But this presidential election has already changed our country in profound ways. The candidacies of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have smashed old barriers and broadened opportunities for all Americans. And I’m grateful to them -- both as a citizen and as a parent of two young girls.
But our country’s journey toward equality is not finished. It’s been five years since Lawrence v. Texas. It’s been 39 years since Stonewall. And we still have more work to do before we achieve equality for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Americans.
Election Day offers an opportunity to take another crucial step toward equality. Millions have joined this movement for change. People are hoping again -- believing again -- that we can come together to create a stronger, fairer nation. And on November 4 we’ll have a chance to put that hope into action.
Translating hope into action is something Barack has done for his entire career.
Barack and I met in Chicago 20 years ago. He thought the best way for me to know him was to get a sense of the work he cared about most. After college he had worked in neighborhoods that were devastated when steel plants shut down and jobs dried up. He’d been invited back to speak to people from those neighborhoods about how to create new opportunities for their families. He asked me to come with him.
I watched as Barack took off his jacket, rolled up his sleeves, and instantly connected with every person in that room. He gave the most eloquent talk about “the world as it is” and “the world as it should be.”
Too often, he said, we accept the distance between the two, and we settle for the world as it is -- even when it doesn’t reflect our values and aspirations. But he reminded us that we know what fairness and justice and opportunity look like. And he urged us to believe in ourselves and find the strength to strive for the world as it should be.
Barack Obama, the 2008 presidential nominee, is the same man I fell in love with on that day 20 years ago. He has never stopped pursuing that better world.
As an Illinois state senator, Barack championed the law that amended the Illinois Human Rights Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis of both sexual orientation and gender identity in the workplace, in housing, and in public places. In the middle of a tight race for U.S. Senate, Barack went on the record supporting a complete repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act. As a U.S. senator, he voted to protect our Constitution from the stain of discrimination by voting against the Federal Marriage Amendment.
He has supported full funding for the Ryan White CARE Act and has pledged to implement a national HIV/AIDS strategy to combat the continuing epidemic in the United States. He has also spoken out against the stigma surrounding HIV testing, a stigma tied all too often to homophobia. And he’s led by example: On our trip to Kenya, we both took a public HIV test.
This is why Barack is running for president—because he believes that if we work together, we can build the world as it should be.
We all know what that world looks like.
It’s a world where we repeal laws like DOMA and “don’t ask, don’t tell” and oppose amendments that would write discrimination into our Constitution—because discrimination has no place in a nation founded on the promise of equality.
It’s a world where the federal government protects us all against hate crimes and we recognize that equality in relationship, family, and adoption rights isn’t an abstract principle but goes directly to whether all Americans can lead lives of dignity and freedom.
Find three to five people back in your hometown who you think you could have a conversation with about Barack and Joe. When you talk with these people, tell them why you personally support Barack and Joe. These are your friends and people who know you, tell them your story.
Get Started Today.
Not sure who to talk to? Think about people you're still close to, like family members – but also think about people you might not have talked to in years. Think about:
Family members, Former Teachers, High School Friends, Your Piano Teacher, Sports or Drama Coach, an old Babysitter, Barber or Sunday School teacher. T-Ball Teammates, College Friends, Mentors and Professors. Your first boss and co-workers at the drive-in, bookstore or corner diner. What about your first boyfriend/girlfriend?
Not sure what to say? If you're talking about LGBT issues, we have some great talking points to help you start the conversation.
· John McCain has never once voted to progress LGBT equality. He voted against federal legislation that would protect LGBT people from being fired just for who they are, he believes gay people should not be able to serve in the military, visit their loved ones in the hospital and he isn't even sure we should be able to adopt. · Barack Obama has a clear and consistent record in support of LGBT people. He promises to include me and other LGBT people in his vision of America and will work to make sure I am secure in my job, safe from hate crimes and equal in the eyes of the law. · The Supreme Court is one vote away from overturning important decisions about personal privacy, like Lawrence vs. Texas and Roe vs. Wade, that protect all Americans from government intrusion – especially LGBT people.
· John McCain has never once voted to progress LGBT equality. He voted against federal legislation that would protect LGBT people from being fired just for who they are, he believes gay people should not be able to serve in the military, visit their loved ones in the hospital and he isn't even sure we should be able to adopt.
· Barack Obama has a clear and consistent record in support of LGBT people. He promises to include me and other LGBT people in his vision of America and will work to make sure I am secure in my job, safe from hate crimes and equal in the eyes of the law.
· The Supreme Court is one vote away from overturning important decisions about personal privacy, like Lawrence vs. Texas and Roe vs. Wade, that protect all Americans from government intrusion – especially LGBT people.
Don't stop here. Do you know that your former high school English teacher is worried about social security? Is your softball coach or first boss worried about the struggling economy? Did your uncle just lose his job? Find out about Barack's plans to help every American HERE.
Obama Pride is now officially on Facebook. Join and find other supporters in your area, keep up with the blog, take a peek at new photos and videos from speeches and events around the country, register to vote, post and find Obama Pride activities near you.
JOIN TODAY!
In light of Gov. Palin's stemwinding and sarcastic speech last night, I say we send Hillary and every female surrogate we have to take her down! Send the women out to defend you and set her lies straight, while you focus only on McCain. Don't give them the satisfaction of lowering your sights to her level.
I know your staff reads all the blogs (wondering why I don't have this job?), but wanted to make sure you see this:
http://rossdouthat.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/09/free_advice_for_democrats.php
The press will dig up dirt on her - that is a given -- so you can take the high road (as usual) and let Joe mop the floor with her in the debate. Actually, I wouldn't mind seeing you unleash Michelle on her too!!
Obama/Biden '08!
Happy Labor Day!
CLICK HERE (or click the picture below) to watch a new Obama Pride video! It was originally premiered at the LGBT Caucus meeting at the Convention last week.
"When I am President of the Unites States, gays and lesbians will have somebody who will fight for equal rights for them, because they are our brothers and they are our sisters."-Senator Barack Obama
"When I am President of the Unites States, gays and lesbians will have somebody who will fight for equal rights for them, because they are our brothers and they are our sisters."
-Senator Barack Obama
Earlier today was the first DNC LGBT Caucus meeting led by Caucus Chair Rick Stafford.
“We are only here because of those who marched and bled and died, from Selma to Stonewall, in pursuit of that more perfect union.”
We are all in this together.
America is in Denver tonight. The convention room is filled with an amazing quilt of people, all strengthened by a common cause and empowered by unshakeable hope. Every time I saw another Obama Pride or LGBT for Clinton button I was excited by the part our community is playing in this convention conversation, in this historic election, and in the future of our country... and it is still only day one!
Governor Sebelius has just adjourned the convention until tomorrow at 3:00 PM so I will leave you for tonight but please check back tomorrow! The LGBT Delegates are gathering for lunch with Tammy Baldwin, Barney Frank and a host of exciting speakers. I look forward to telling you all about it.
UPDATE: Rocker and gay rights activist Cyndi Lauper spent day one on the floor of the convention with Obama Pride staffer Alex! Cyndi spent the evening visiting with LGBT Delegates, talking to press about LGBT equality and even had a visit with the Biden family. Check back later today for photos!
Ok I have raised $135 dollars so far. That is a far cry from the $1000 that I am requesting. I will match you dollar for dollar until we reach a $1000 donation from small donors. Total out of pocket for me will be $1000, total out of pocket for you can be as little as $5. Just log into my personal page and donate and I will match your donation.
Thanks!
Travelingmanrick
The Advocate has spent the last month talking to personal friends and colleagues, all LGBT, of Barack's, as well as Illinois activists who know his work the best. The piece does a great job of reminding us of his great stances on our issues but also shines light on the important ways LGBT people have impacted Senator Obama's life. I strongly urge you to read the whole piece.
Barack Obama had just finished a long day of campaigning for the U.S. Senate in 2004 when he called his daughters on the cell phone to say good night. Then he sat back in the car, turned to an aide (who had also been a close friend for more than a decade), and asked, “So, Kevin—have you and Greg thought about having kids?” The aide, Kevin Thompson (who no longer works for the candidate), says Obama often asked questions about his life as a gay man: wondering how he and his partner made various decisions, why they didn’t want to get married, why they weren’t planning to have kids. And after Obama marched in a Chicago pride parade for the first time, Thompson says, questions again poured forth: “He wanted to know the history of Pride—how is it that every city has one, what was the origin of it, what was the whole story about Stonewall.” Obama had seen Thompson through ups and downs. They first met when Thompson worked with Michelle Obama in the Chicago mayor’s office in the early 1990s. At the time, Thompson was married to a woman, but in the difficult period when his marriage ended and he started coming out, he says, Michelle became one of his closest confidantes. “I knew that [my coming out] made a lot of people uncomfortable, no matter what they said. I never worried, never wondered for a second what Michelle and Barack thought of me. They were the kind of friends who I knew would always be with me.”
Barack Obama had just finished a long day of campaigning for the U.S. Senate in 2004 when he called his daughters on the cell phone to say good night. Then he sat back in the car, turned to an aide (who had also been a close friend for more than a decade), and asked, “So, Kevin—have you and Greg thought about having kids?”
The aide, Kevin Thompson (who no longer works for the candidate), says Obama often asked questions about his life as a gay man: wondering how he and his partner made various decisions, why they didn’t want to get married, why they weren’t planning to have kids. And after Obama marched in a Chicago pride parade for the first time, Thompson says, questions again poured forth: “He wanted to know the history of Pride—how is it that every city has one, what was the origin of it, what was the whole story about Stonewall.”
Obama had seen Thompson through ups and downs. They first met when Thompson worked with Michelle Obama in the Chicago mayor’s office in the early 1990s. At the time, Thompson was married to a woman, but in the difficult period when his marriage ended and he started coming out, he says, Michelle became one of his closest confidantes. “I knew that [my coming out] made a lot of people uncomfortable, no matter what they said. I never worried, never wondered for a second what Michelle and Barack thought of me. They were the kind of friends who I knew would always be with me.”
Please take a minute to read the entire article here.
Congratulations Obama Pride Chicago on registering and re-registering over 1,000 voters from all over the Midwest at Northalsted Market Days!
Would you like to get involved with an Obama Pride event near you? Click here for events in your city.
