• Equality
  • Community
    • Health
    • Youth
    • Seniors
  • Voices
    • From the CEO
    • Take Five
    • Why I Give
  • About the Center
  • Galleries
  • Calendar
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Trending
  • 2nd Annual Sabor de Mi Centro Block Party Boogies in Boyle Heights
  • Senior Prom Celebrates 25th Anniversary
  • “Solidarity Forever”: Montana State Rep. Zooey Zephyr at Trans Town Hall
  • “We Are Immense, and We Are Abundant”: Trans Pride LA Organizer Gina Bigham Looks Back on a Decade-Plus of Highlights and the Biggest Trans Pride Yet
  • Trans Actors, Athletes, and Activists Celebrate Community and Solidarity at First-Ever Trans Town Hall
  • “My Crown Is Paid For”: 12 Center Portraits of Juneteenth
  • House of Avalon, Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence Join Center Staff and Supporters for LA Pride: “F*ck the Margins. We’re the Center.”
  • This Year’s AIDS/LifeCycle Participants on Why They Ride
Twitter Facebook Instagram YouTube
LGBT News Now
Learn about career opportunities at the Center
  • Equality
  • Community
    • Health
    • Youth
    • Seniors
  • Voices
    • From the CEO
    • Take Five
    • Why I Give
  • About the Center
  • Galleries
  • Calendar
LGBT News Now
You are at:Home»Voices»From the CEO»Resistance Isn’t Enough
Voices

Resistance Isn’t Enough

0
By on November 24, 2018 From the CEO

Less than six months into the Trump presidency, the man who vowed to protect LGBT people has appointed to his administration a slate of anti-LGBT, misogynistic, xenophobic people who have made speedy progress in undermining the rights and health of countless Americans. They have:

Revoked Obama-era guidance protecting LGBT school kids from discrimination;
Withdrawn litigation against North Carolina’s notorious anti-LGBT law which, contrary to misleading claims, was simply replaced by another discriminatory law;
Passed legislation aimed at defunding Planned Parenthood;
Appointed someone to oversee federal family planning dollars who thinks that contraception doesn’t work;
Quietly rescinded safeguards for LGBT employees of federal contractors;
Removed questions related to LGBT people from the National Survey of Older Americans and the 2020 Census;
Signed a so-called “religious liberty” order paving the way for anti-LGBT, anti-woman discrimination by anyone claiming a religious or moral belief as justification; and
Neither the President nor the Secretary of State has said a word about the Chechen government’s concentration camp-like incarceration, torture, and murder of gay men.
This cursory list of his attacks on our community is just the beginning. That’s why I’m heartened by the growing resistance movement throughout the country, including the more than 500 people who joined us in March for some strategic phone-banking to help defeat the first version of the heartless Obamacare “replacement” bill.

We must resist, no matter how hard it may be. But we cannot and must not operate solely from a frame of resistance. That’s not how the women’s movement created a revolution. It’s not how LGBT people came from the shadows to a place of pride. Focusing on resistance, alone, is not how we have literally changed the world.

No matter the obstacles we faced, no matter the party in power, we NEVER accepted the status quo or settled for crumbs. And we certainly have not been satisfied with simply trying to limit the damage being done to us.

I’ve been an activist for 37 years, ever since I led a petition drive in junior high school so girls could wear pants. If I’ve learned anything over the years it’s that we should never sell ourselves short. Simply hunkering down for the next four years is not an option. We cannot allow timidity or fear or even the prospect of short-term failure to reduce our expectations or our demands. That kind of determination has been the key to our movement’s success thus far. And it is key to our future.

We have always fought for more than what the insiders and many outsiders advised. Often we’ve fought for more than what most even dreamed was possible. That has been our movement’s hallmark. In the face of seemingly insurmountable odds, we have always expected more. We have demanded more. More freedom, more equality, and more justice for our LGBT community and for all oppressed people.

We have always set our sights high and persevered, even in the most difficult times imaginable. In the darkest days of the AIDS epidemic, with death and devastation all around us, and the horrible backlash that followed against all LGBT people, we never let up. And in so doing, we’ve inspired others all over the world.

And because we never reduced our expectations or lost sight of our ultimate goals, we have won enormous victories; victories that many believed could never be achieved. We changed health care. We enacted non-discrimination laws in cities and states across the nation. We won the right to raise our own children and to serve openly in the military. And we secured the freedom to marry.

Fighting for justice, and winning, is what we know how to do. It’s one of the things we do best. In these difficult times, it’s critical to remind ourselves of that fact. We must remember not only that we are on the right side of history, but that we are fierce and resilient and inspiring. We must use that power to ensure we do more than simply weather the storm. We must BE the storm!

Los Angeles and California have enormous power. We will be to Trump what Texas was to Obama. We will set the example for our nation, continuing to make real progress while holding fast to the values we cherish: inclusivity, diversity, and acceptance. We will organize our community and our allies elsewhere, in red and purple states, so that voices like ours will be heard at town halls, school board meetings, polling places, and everywhere that our rights and health are at stake.

We must remember not only that we are on the right side of history, but that we are fierce and resilient and inspiring. We must use that power to ensure we do more than simply weather the storm. We must BE the storm!

We will speak up and expose wrongs and hold the perpetrators accountable. And in 2018 and 2020, with regard to those who would have us regress to an America that was never great for people like us, we will send them packing!

And while the extremists in Washington attempt to dismantle health care, destroy Planned Parenthood, attack immigrants, pollute the environment, take away women’s rights over our own bodies, promote discrimination against us, and more, your Center will definitely be fighting back and resisting. But with your help, we’ll do so much more. While they build a wall, WE will build our transformational Anita May Rosenstein Campus.

Spanning more than a city block along Santa Monica Boulevard, the campus will dramatically expand our services and housing for two groups who need it the most: LGBT youth and seniors. It will be an iconic landmark that will serve as a beacon of hope and inspiration for people around the globe, reflecting the real values that define us, as a people and as a nation: truth, compassion, community, optimism, liberty, and justice for all.

Our campus will be proud and living proof that no matter who is in control, we cannot and will not be stopped. Not now. Not ever. That’s the kind of leadership you should expect from our movement. And I promise you, that’s the kind of leadership your Center will provide.

To learn more about the Anita May Rosenstein Campus including how to become a donor, visit lalgbtcenter.org/campus.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)

Related Posts

Center CEO Joe Hollendoner: “Our Work Is Never Done”

Lorri L. Jean: “Great Things Must Come to an End”

Center CEO Lorri L. Jean: “It’s Been a Wild Ride — But We’re Still Hanging On”

Comments are closed.

Upcoming Events

  • There are no upcoming events.
About Us

LGBT News Now

LGBT News Now is a publication of the Los Angeles LGBT Center. Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2019, the Center is the largest LGBT organization in the world, dedicated to building a world where LGBT thrive as healthy, equal, and complete members of society. Learn more at lalgbtcenter.org.

Follow Us on Instagram

lalgbtcenter

The Los Angeles LGBT Center is building a world where LGBT people thrive as healthy, equal, and complete members of society.

🚨 #LACounty is ending all HIV prevention contra 🚨 #LACounty is ending all HIV prevention contracts by May 31—putting lives, jobs, and decades of progress at risk. The Center and our community won’t stand by. Silence = Death. We’re fighting back @LACountyBOS #ActUpLA. Take action at the link in bio!
Celebrating the brilliance, vibrancy, and joy acro Celebrating the brilliance, vibrancy, and joy across our AANHPI diaspora—where queerness and ancestry intersect in ways both tender and powerful. 🌈🌺 #AANHPIMonth #QueerJoy
🚨The Department of #HHS released a federal repo 🚨The Department of #HHS released a federal report promoting conversion therapy under a new name—dismissing decades of science-based evidence for lifesaving, gender-affirming care for #TGNBI+ youth. Swipe to learn what’s at stake and visit our Take Action page at the link in bio. #ProtectTransYouth
Happy 70th to the iconic and first ever Center glo Happy 70th to the iconic and first ever Center global ambassador, @donatella_versace! Forever [stuck] in our hearts and thankfully not our elevators!
⚠️TW: A 61-year-old transgender woman in #West ⚠️TW: A 61-year-old transgender woman in #Westlake has been the target of multiple violent hate-motivated attacks. #LAPD is seeking help identifying the suspects and any additional victims. Anyone with possible information is encouraged to contact the Rampart Division detectives at (213) 484-3495 or Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477. Swipe to learn more.
🌅#GoldenHour is back May 17! This all-ages #AAN 🌅#GoldenHour is back May 17! This all-ages #AANHPIMonth night market honors @lararajj of @katseyeworld! Curated by and for queer AANHPI communities—expect karaoke, tea tasting, cultural bites, live performances & more. Presented by @gileadsciences and @mayumi_market 
RSVP: lalgbtcenter.org/GoldenHour
On Saturday night, our Anita May Rosenstein Campus On Saturday night, our Anita May Rosenstein Campus came alive with love, recognizing the resilience of our community at the Center’s #LAForever Celebration. Nearly $800K was raised for our life-saving services, with unforgettable moments from honorees @thesherylleeralph and Dr. Johanna Olson-Kennedy of CHLA, and our vibrant host @bobthedragqueen. Thank you to everyone who showed up, stood up, and reaffirmed that our lives are worth defending. Read more at the link in bio 💜
Lesbians: visible, powerful, and probably funnier Lesbians: visible, powerful, and probably funnier than you. Happy Lesbian Visibility Week! #LV25 #QueerJoy
Celebrating the unforgettable Jiggly Caliente, a f Celebrating the unforgettable Jiggly Caliente, a fierce performer, advocate, and trailblazer whose light touched so many. Her loss leaves a deep ache in our community, and we hold her loved ones close in our hearts during this time.
Follow on Instagram
Stay Connected
Subscribe
Copyright © 2022 Los Angeles LGBT Center
  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy
  • Contact Us

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.