HRC backs National Equality March

By AMY CAVANAUGH, The Washington Blade
Aug 12 2009

The Human Rights Campaign officially signaled its support Wednesday for the National Equality March, an Oct. 11 event in D.C. to call for federal action on gay rights.

Joe Solmonese, the organization’s president, said longtime gay activist Cleve Jones sought support from HRC and other national organizations for the march, set for Oct. 11.

“We realized we could support it by talking to members and making whatever unique resources we have available to people coming to D.C.,” Solmonese said. “We’ve been inspired by what Cleve has to say about focusing on individual districts and arming people to go back to their districts to be citizen lobbyists. That’s what we do.”

The march, which coincides with National Coming Out Day, is set to begin at noon and will follow a route that is still being negotiated with D.C. authorities.

Event organizers are working to create workshops, training sessions, seminars and teach-ins throughout the weekend, and are discouraging parties and concerts.

“I think the traditional sense is that a march on Washington is about making a very significant statement — and sometimes that has been a statement of anger or solidarity,” Solmonese said.

“I think this march and gathering has the potential to send a new message about our collective power. It won’t be so much about expressing our anger, but about our willingness to do the work.”

In addition to HRC, GLAAD and Metropolitan Community Churches have also endorsed the march. Longtime activists David Mixner, Torie Osborn, Cleve Jones, Anne Northrop and Nadine Smith have backed the march, as have Kip Williams and Robin McGehee, who led the “Meet in the Middle” rally in Fresno, Calif., following the California Supreme Court decision on Proposition 8.

Solmonese said the march is not intended to take resources away from other efforts, such as the campaign to maintain same-sex marriage rights in Maine.

“That’s a negative way of looking at it,” he said. “We’re not being asked to donate money. I think a lot of people will come from New England who might not know as much as they need to know about Maine or how they could play a role there. Perhaps this will be a way to raise the profile of the Maine marriage fight and a way to inspire people. That’s not what Cleve said is the primary agenda, which is more about Congress and the lack of progress, but I say why not explore that possibility? Look at it as an opportunity to expose people to everything going on.”

Solmonese said that it would be up to march organizers to decide what role HRC would play in the event.

“What I would like to do is figure out a way to connect with as many marchers as possible, whether that’s opening our building or sending an HRC volunteer group down to the [National] Mall, since our volunteer team will be here for the national dinner,” he said.

“We want to make sure that when people go home, they are armed with information to be the best citizen lobbyists they can be. Whether that means we’re on the Mall asking for e-mails and ZIP codes and saying ‘you will have everything you need in your inbox’ or in our building, we want to be able to give them the tools they need to go home again and be powerful and efficient citizen lobbyists.”