Join Jason Crighton of the Western Pennsylvania Advocacy Initiative for an informative and exciting evening - July 8 @ 7:00 PM - Craze Night Club, 1607 Raspberry St, Erie, PA
LGBT issues remain a flash-point at every level of government, but especially at the state and federal level where legislation that would benefit lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals and families is stalled.
You can play a key role in changing that! Democracy is a participatory activity!
In this town hall forum learn about the status of pending legislation and the things you can do to assure the passage of these critical protections. You will leave with step-by-step ideas about how you can make a noticeable difference towards achieving equality.
This event is sponsored by the Western Pennsylvania Advocacy Initiative.
For more info, contact Jason Crighton at (412) 206-0874, or check out the Delta Foundation of Pittsburgh's Facebook page or their web site at www.pittsburghpride.org.
Learn more about the event HERE.
Looking forward to seeing you there!
More about the Delta Foundation
2 comments:
It would be good to hear a discussion about the complications of working for civil rights in a small town.
When we point a finger at "those crazy religious zealots and their intolerant politics" we are usually pointing a finger right back at the gay community.
Oftentimes those promoting these intolerant religious and political agendas are gays and lesbians who live in fear and shame, who live in the closet.
Studies have been done, (and they can be found online,) that show that those who fear homosexuality the most, and are the most overtly against gay rights, are themselves homosexual.
Deep fear and shame causes them to latch onto the most rigid, intolerant politics and religions in hopes that they will "fit in."
This leads them to violence and abuse against homosexuals, because their fear and shame never goes away and just eats away at them.
(Another tactic used by people living in shame and fear of their homosexuality is to turn that hatred inward, turn to drinking, drugs and unsafe sex, and self-destruct.)
So when we discuss political work in these small towns we can't simply do it by drawing a line of "us" versus "them"
Because THEM are US!
They are the leaders of the churches, authorities in the schools, on the police force and in the military. They are usually the one's promoting extreme patriotism and rigid religion.
And their politics of fear and shame to hide their own homosexuality permeates every aspect of the fight against gay rights.
There are also people who benefit financially from the fear and shame. As long as they get to stay in the closet, they can continue to make money and hold positions of authority, even if that means preaching hate and passing laws against homosexuals.
These people should be outed for what they are, which defines perverse. But oftentimes people fear outing them for fear of retaliation, especially in a small town.
Then there are the people who condemn any expression of homosexuality as being unsafe for kids. But when you look at their own families, you see that their kids are often on drugs, or in trouble, and live with abusive parents. The fear and shame of their own lives rules over their kids, which defines child abuse.
These influences prevent any change because it requires a courage of self-examination on the part of the closeted gay person. It requires that people look at their own lives and their own families, which can be very painful for them.
All of this occurs in larger cities too, but in a small town, it's condensed and much more difficult to work around.
So when we see so-and-so pointing a finger at homosexuals and claiming we are evil and ruining the community and destroying the lives of children, remember, they are sending out signals about their own evil, their own families and their own children.
If we can start the discussion of civil rights in small towns, with this in mind then maybe change will occur.
It would be good to hear a discussion about the complications of working for civil rights in a small town.
When we point a finger at "those crazy religious zealots and their intolerant politics" we are usually pointing a finger right back at the gay community.
Oftentimes those promoting these intolerant religious and political agendas are gays and lesbians who live in fear and shame, who live in the closet.
Studies have been done, (and they can be found online,) that show that those who fear homosexuality the most, and are the most overtly against gay rights, are themselves homosexual.
Deep fear and shame causes them to latch onto the most rigid, intolerant politics and religions in hopes that they will "fit in."
This leads them to violence and abuse against homosexuals, because their fear and shame never goes away and just eats away at them.
(Another tactic used by people living in shame and fear of their homosexuality is to turn that hatred inward, turn to drinking, drugs and unsafe sex, and self-destruct.)
So when we discuss political work in these small towns we can't simply do it by drawing a line of "us" versus "them"
Because THEM are US!
They are the leaders of the churches, authorities in the schools, on the police force and in the military. They are usually the one's promoting extreme patriotism and rigid religion.
And their politics of fear and shame to hide their own homosexuality permeates every aspect of the fight against gay rights.
There are also people who benefit financially from the fear and shame. As long as they get to stay in the closet, they can continue to make money and hold positions of authority, even if that means preaching hate and passing laws against homosexuals.
These people should be outed for what they are, which defines perverse. But oftentimes people fear outing them for fear of retaliation, especially in a small town.
Then there are the people who condemn any expression of homosexuality as being unsafe for kids. But when you look at their own families, you see that their kids are often on drugs, or in trouble, and live with abusive parents. The fear and shame of their own lives rules over their kids, which defines child abuse.
These influences prevent any change because it requires a courage of self-examination on the part of the closeted gay person. It requires that people look at their own lives and their own families, which can be very painful for them.
All of this occurs in larger cities too, but in a small town, it's condensed and much more difficult to work around.
So when we see so-and-so pointing a finger at homosexuals and claiming we are evil and ruining the community and destroying the lives of children, remember, they are sending out signals about their own evil, their own families and their own children.
If we can start the discussion of civil rights in small towns, with this in mind then maybe change will occur.
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