My answer to David Mixner - no I'm not happy but I still don't support the National March

David Mixner, long-time gay activist, best selling author, and a member of the Bill Clinton Presidential transition team, has written a piece talking about why lgbts should support a march:

Are you really happy with the progress we have made over the last eight months with this Administration and Congress? Are you really happy with the progress we have made on the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)? Do you think that the leaders of our political parties have embraced marriage equality and our God given rights, benefits and protections that come with it? Are you content, relaxed and happy with where we are at this moment in history in the struggle for freedom?

Think very carefully about the above questions. Then make plans to come to Washington, DC on October 11th to march with thousands of your brothers, sisters and straight allies for freedom.

If you are like me, then most of you will be unhappy about any of the questions above. Almost NOTHING has been done in the last eight months by the president or Congress to take us dramatically closer to freedom.

It's an interesting piece that resembles a Sunday morning sermon. And that is the major problem I have with it. It, like the proposed march, is high on platitudes and hyperbole, but vague on courses of action. I wrote a response which I posted his blog:

I am still leaning against the National March. And to answer David's question - no I am not happy but with how things have been going for lgbts for a while now even BEFORE this administration took over. And that is the point of my disagreement. What took us so long to be angry. And why is our anger not directed against those who have maligned us?

I keep hearing all of these vague things- "a march will show how angry we are," "a march will energize us."

We've been angry for a while and America knows it. Should we be so consumed with again demonstrating our anger for the benefit of the public media. And what will we be energized to do? Are we going to go back and organize in our communities with a spirit of togetherness? Are we going to support our community organizations? Or are we going to assemble in our little cliques like we always do?

And I don't like the hypocrisy of the entire thing. We want to march to show our anger at how the Obama Administration is moving on our issues. Yet we can't dedicate as much energy to combat the lies of the religious right. Obama is not the one we should be angry at. It's those organizations that continue to lie on us. Let's be real. If ENDA was passed, if Don't Ask, Don't Tell was passed, if we got hate crimes legislation, could this community successfully fight against the religious right driven backlash that is sure to follow? Or would we so busy celebrating that when it does come, we run around like chickens with our heads cut off?

Forget the march. There needs to be a total overhaul on what exactly are we fighting for and who we should be angry at.

That is the way I have felt from the get-go and as we get closer to October, nothing said or done has changed my mind. And I'm not a stubborn, rigid person. Don't get me wrong; if the march does anything positive for the community then I will be one of the first to acknowledge it. However, I would like to see something a bit more concrete than just gathering together, holding signs, and "showing anger."