Gay rights PAC endorses Howard Dean for president

[pruner]

By KATHY BARKS HOFFMAN
The Associated Press
10/6/03 7:25 PM

LANSING, Mich. (AP) -- Pride PAC, a Michigan political action committee representing gays, lesbians, bisexuals and the transgender community, has endorsed Democrat Howard Dean for president.

<snip>

"Dean supported civil unions even when it was not politically popular and just months before his next election," said Pride PAC President Sean Kosofsky. "He is a man of courage, integrity, fairness and has been the most exciting candidate for president to many GLBT voters around Michigan and the country."

The Detroit-based group said it made its endorsement based on answers to issues ranging from hate crimes to civil rights, parenting, family, youth and military issues and HIV/AIDS policy.

http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/michigan/index.ssf?/newsflash/get_story.ssf?/cgi-free/getstory_ssf.cgi?g6504_BC_MI--PoliticalNotebook&&news&newsflash-michigan

[realFedUp]

1. Cool.

You go Dr. Dean.

[foreigncorrespondent]

2. While it is great...

...and I do feel that Dean is the best candidate to take the WH house back next year. I still feel the LGBT rights groups should have looked at all of Deans feelings on every subject.

They are only supporting Dean because of his civil unions approval in Vermont. Yet if they looked at Dean's record for wanting gay marriage, which really is the begin all, end all of our rights, they would find he doesn't support it.

I can only hope that when Dean is president and makes civil unions a federal thing, that it will also include a revamp of the immigration laws to include gays and lesbians who have fallen in love with someone from another country.

[tsipple]

3. Not Sure What You Mean?

I guess where I differ with some of my Democratic friends is that some apparently believe that a candidate has to be absolutely 100% pure in any issue stance. (Dean is not. Al Sharpton is.) I don't.

The question should also come down to which candidate can get things done. Howard Dean supported civil unions, signed it, and did it in such a way that Vermonters don't have to worry about losing their legal rights tomorrow. (He's ahead of everybody on that issue except perhaps a small handful of people, like Al Sharpton. Remember, we've still got folks in Washington who would pass a bill locking up every gay person if they could do it.)

That's a huge difference for me. It's not (only) what you favor. It's what you can get done.

So if the choice is between getting GLBT civil unions and still wishing for GLBT marriage, sign me up for the former. Let's get it done.

[pruner]

4. Sharpton can support gay marriage til he's blue in the face…

knowing that in all likelihood he'll likely never have an opportunity to "practice what he preaches" by signing such a law.

if I had a gazillion dollars I'd give every cent of of it away and end poverty throughout the world.

it's pretty easy to say such a thing when I'm 99.99999% sure I'll never actually have a gazillion dollars.

[ozone_man]

5. That's it, one step at a time.

Dean is way ahead of the pack on this issue.

[foreigncorrespondent]

6. Oh I know he is...

...and that is why I do support him.

[Demobrat]

7. The difference between a civil union and a marriage

as I understand it, is that a civil union takes place at city hall, or Vegas, or a judge's chambers, or on board a ship, and is performed by a government official. A marriage takes place in a church and is performed by a minister, priest, rabbi or other holy person. Legally there is no difference, however people who choose to "make it legal" without benefit of clergy are not recognized as married in the eyes of the church, straight or gay. If I am right, then shouldn't it up to the individual churches whether they want to marry gays or not, and not the state or federal government? And if I am not, could somebody tell me where I am off base? Thanks!

[Laughing Mirror]

8. giving me, a gay man, the promise of some wishy washy

"civil union" endorsement is still a message to me that I must put up or shut-up about my second class citizen status

and that, my dear brothers and sisters here at DU, is something I refuse to do

Thirty, almost thirty-five years ago we were chanting this at all the huge anti-war demonstrations on the Mall:

Two Four Six Eight
Gay is just as good as Straight

Never ever in a million years, would I have believed that in the year 2003 we would still be forced to sit at the back of the bus

[tsipple]

10. Dude, Here's What You Have Now...

In most places:

1. You can be fired because you're gay.
2. You can be evicted because you're gay.
3. You can be denied adoption because you're gay.
4. You can't visit your boyfriend in the hospital because you're gay.
5. You can't file a joint tax return because you're gay.
6. You can't collect survivor's benefits because you're gay.
7. You can't collect (or pay) spousal support because you're gay.
8. You can't enjoy spousal credit history benefits because you're gay.

Etc., etc., etc. You're a THIRD class citizen. Right now. And you will be forever at this rate.

So how do we fix these things? Let's start by getting a guy in the White House who actually HAS fixed these things. 'Cause it ain't gonna be easy to get even one of these items crossed off the list. Hate to break it to you, but most people in America think you should be a third class citizen.

I don't care if they call it "marriage," "civil unions," or anything else. That's a label. ("Sticks and stones," you know?) Let's get the rights right.

[stickdog]

11. Let us straights have the word "marriage" for a few more years.

We've already ruined it for all intents and purposes.

Once the ignorant rednecks realize that civil unions won't "destroy America," the word really won't matter.

It's like if the Catholic Church were to let nuns perform masses and other sacraments but still call them nuns. A few years down the road, the words used to differentiate male and female ministers would lose their meaning.

[Jinx]

9. pride

At the San Diego Pride parade there were supporters circulating stickers of Dean's name against a pink triangle background. Now, admittedly I'm not a big attender of such events so I'm not sure if that's unusual, but I was impressed that a presidential candidate would make a bold step like that. Certainly none of the other candidates were represented there showing their support for gay and lesbian issues.