HRC out of touch with community

Comments

1. Andoni on Jul 7, 2008 8:52:26 AM:

   The wording of the Blade survey could have been better. For instance they say "work to" for ENDA, DADT, and hate crimes. In constrast, for federal benefits to gay couples they use "grant" which makes it sound as though the president can snap his fingers and it's accomplished. However, in spite of the uneven wording, I believe the voters got the main idea behind each point when they voted.

   Also, I realize HRC supports repeal of DOMA which would give federal benefits to gay married couples in MA, CA, and NY, but that still leaves out the rest of us as well as those who are civil unioned. My point is that we have a Democratic presidential nominee who explicitly wishes to give those 1200 federal benefits to gay couples, and HRC has not picked up on this to get behind it or add it to their agenda.

1. Kevin on Jul 7, 2008 10:13:55 AM:

   Your underlying point, Andoni, is absolutely spot-on right.

   The question remains -- what are they going to DO?? What is HRC's concrete plan to ACHIEVE ANYTHING - especially if Obama is elected President with an expanded majority in the Congress for the Democrats. What is the plan?? What will be the order of priority? How will they deliver on it? What is the average gay person's role in it all? How will they hold people accountable if they don't do as they promised before getting elected?

   The ever-less-clear precisions of HRC or any of the leading national groups around these fundamental questions -- not to mention the vaguenesses from the mouths of the politicians themselves -- represent an abject failure of leadership and an ever-receding sense of competence and courage among the people who get millions of gay dollars in return for next to nothing in results.

   Remember Enron? Remember Tyco?

   Same deal, folks.

1. theGayEditor on Jul 7, 2008 10:26:12 AM:

   Thank you for confirming what I have thought for a few years-- that the HRC no longer reflects my needs and concerns as a professional gay male. So many people in my circle are on auto pilot when it comes to the HRC that they can't see what I've been trying to point out. They just write the annual check and go on about their business. Now I know I'm not alone!

1. Strict Scrutiny on Jul 7, 2008 12:03:35 PM:

   All of the above "choices" are important -- as a community we should not poo-poo choices A,C,or D because we're most interested in having choice B.

   That said, the major problem with HRC is that it is too focused on "what's achieveable" or "what's realistic." They're never interested in the big ticket items, like choice B above, because they don't think the country is ready for it.

   This demonstrates an shocking lack of vision and leadership. No civil rights movement ever made progress by asking for half-measures or semi-equality or what was realistic.

   From that perspective, I agree with you, Andoni. Also, Kevin makes a good point that HRC has no plan and no accountability for its failure. They're more interested in photo ops and fundraisers than advancing our issues. Joe Solomonese in particular is a joke -- he's supposed to be working on gay rights issues in Washington, but instead he's on the road with the True Colors tour taking in shows every night. What a colossal waste of his time and our money.

   I strongly urge anyone who reads this blog to cut HRC off until they get their sh-t together.

1. Allan on Jul 7, 2008 12:17:21 PM:

   Last year, when money wasn't so tight for us, my husband and I joined the HRC Federal Club. Never again.

   Lack of accomplishments, focus on throwing parties to get more money from us, and the revelation that HRC leaders donated money only to Hillary Clinton, and I was done with them.

   I'm donating everything I can to the candidate with the most progressive LGBT agenda ever nominated by a major political party - Senator Barack Obama.

1. Henry on Jul 7, 2008 3:27:06 PM:

   Here is the HRC list of ‘Federal’ issues. It includes Domestic Partner rights for federal employees, changing the tax laws to stop punishing gay couples who get health care through their spouse, and extending the Family Medical Leave act to Same-Sex families (not to mention ENDA, DODT, and the FMA).

   I would add more to the tax bills, requesting that the IRS treat as spouses under the law according to the state (which is what is supposed to happen) thus allowing same-sex couples to file jointly.

   What would you add?

   If you don’t like or support the HRC, that’s fine. I’m not sure how you can suggest they are ‘out of touch’, as they seem to be working on all of those items.

1. Andoni on Jul 7, 2008 3:36:08 PM:

   Henry, there are about 1200 federal benefits and you list a half dozen. Also, the bill you reference only deals with federal employees which 99% of us are not.

   So HRC is doing things piecemeal, or incrementally, instead of comprehensively. I would say, OK to this if it were working, but there is NO TRACK RECORD. Incremental changes has been a total failure. We need broad strokes at this stage.

   Even if all those piecemeal bills get passed in the next year, it still leaves us short on the needs of the community.

1. Kevin on Jul 8, 2008 8:50:08 AM:

   Henry:

   I could list things on this website and say I'm for them. Does that mean I'm "working on" them? Hell no.

   Where on HRC's website is the list of ACCOMPLISHMENTS related to these issues? Where is the PLAN to accomplish them? Where are the speeches, the letters to Pelosi or Reid, the HRC-led movement to organize delegates at the DNC convention around platform planks?

   Where are the vital signs of anything remotely resembling a political lobbying organization around any of these issues at the federal level?

   That's what Andoni is objecting to, and that their M.O. is just warmed-over 1990s dreck -- minus the actual lobbying -- and needs to be tossed out.

1. Michael C. on Jul 8, 2008 11:43:29 AM:

   HRC knows what we want, it would say that it knows better than everyone else what we need. Apparently what we need is a bunch of career know-it-all, smug, lobbyists who are more concerned with black tie dinners and being sycophants to far-left organizations who are only too glad to take our money and words of support as long as the gays don't ask anything in return.

   HRC has never accomplished anything. Nada. It hasn't even been able to prevent anti-gay legislation from going through. Any successes we've had have been through the hard work of other national organizations, and, of course, the ever-hard-working local organizations.