Shame on you

What is the purpose of government? I am here to suggest that the purpose of government is to look out for those who can not look out for themselves. As individuals, we can not always rise to meet the challenges that strike at our core. Which is why we rely on our government to respond for us as a collective.

Government supports a police force to protect its citizens. Fire departments to protect citizens from danger. First responders to respond to tragedy. National guard to respond to disaster. Military force to protect the nation from danger.

North Carolina passed an initiative that amends the state constitution to make civil unions illegal. The STATE CONSTITUTION. This bypasses a law that was already in effect that made civil unions illegal. Apparently that wasn't good enough. This is a law that in 20 years will be overturned. Why? It isn't a party line thing. The split was age. The older generations are against civil unions. The younger generations have realized that homophobia is the next civil rights battle ground. But the thing that hurts the most is that the same people who stood with MLK on civil rights for African Americans are now drawing a line in the sand and stating that their religious doctrines say that homosexuality is a sin. Shame on you for not seeing the hypocrisy in this. Shame on you for not standing up for your brothers and sisters who are now fighting a civil rights battle. Shame on your for not realizing the bible says many things and that you must cull the items which no longer make sense in our world.

Closer to home, here in Colorado, the GOP effectively blocked a civil unions bill by preventing any debate on the floor which, in turn, prevents an up-down vote on the bill itself. At some point, you people need to realize you are standing on the wrong side of history. While homophobia will never disappear, the tide is turning as you age yourselves out of the way. I only hope that you realize how wrong you are, the legacy you are leaving in your wake and at some point either step aside or concede that your younger generation will overturn your shameful decisions. Shame on you, House Speaker Frank McNulty, for keeping this from a vote. Your fear should not prevent the rest of Colorado from making a decision. Your fear should not prevent the government from creating a stance for those who have been bullied, derided, abused and discriminated against. Shame on you for forgetting that government is created to protect those in the minority, those who need the support and protection of a larger entity, those who are simply looking for the same rights afforded to their fellow citizens.

Finally...shame on me. Shame on me for not lending a more active voice. Shame on me for not taking the time to stand shoulder to shoulder with others who stood in support at our state Capitol. Shame on me for not setting an example to my children that we must be more politically active.

With that, I climb down from my soap box.

I love this game, part trois

I've just been served. Thank you, Mr. Baldwin.


And this.

And finally:


I am more than happy to take a drubbing on this one!

I love this game part deux

What other professional sport is putting gay rights advocacy front and center? Is it just that I really only follow hockey that I see this? Or is the sport I love so much really this cutting edge?

 

Read this.

I do know that there is a line being drawn in the sand. That history will look back on us, right now, and judge who was on which side of that line. We look back on the Mason-Dixon line. The Emancipation Proclamation. Suffrage and the 19th Amendment. The Holocaust. Rosa Parks and Montgomery. Four students in Greensboro. Harvey Milk.

I stand proudly on my side of the line. I will gladly be judged by the test of history.

"And though it's only my opinion

I may be right or wrong

You'll find them both

In the Grand Canyon

At sundown."

-Dylan

I love this game

Fred Korematsu

This was a message from Brandon this morning. I had never heard of Fred Korematsu before yesterday...which I hate to admit considering my heritage. But I learned of him when this link came across my desk. It started an email conversation with Brandon.

For those of you who do not know Brandon, he and I grew up in Central Maine together, best of friends from middle school on and even attended Middlebury together. He decided to return to Maine after graduation and was a teacher for many years. He is now the Schools and Curriculum Coordinator for the Maine Civil Rights Team Project. He is tasked by the Office of Maine's Attorney General to increase the safety for all Maine students by addressing prejudice and bias-based harassment at the school level...K-12.

Our world needs more Brandons....

Brandon and I got into a discussion about Fred Korematsu, Japanese internment (US and Canada), WWII and the implications that our American history has on the current environment we live in. Primarily, the general misconceptions we now have of the Muslim faith.

His message:


Thought I'd share...

I do a monthly newsletter. I needed a topic for my introductory column. I had a few ideas, but after exchanging e-mails on Fred Korematsu, I thought that he's be a good inspiration. Not enough people know about him.



He was one of millions. He was an American. He attended public schools. He played sports. He had a part-time job. He graduated. He got a full-time job. He was living the American Dream. He believed in his country.

Then he became one of thousands. He was Japanese. He was the enemy. He was not to be trusted. He was to be watched carefully. He was not allowed outside of Military Area No. 1. He was to be detained, interned, feared.

Then he became one. He would not submit. He would resist. He would cry injustice. He would fight. And he still believed in his country.

He was Fred Korematsu, a Japanese-American in California who resisted Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Executive Order #9066 that allowed for Japanese internment during World War II. Korematsu fought his case all the way to the Supreme Court in 1944, who decided that the government’s actions, while extreme, were justified in times of emergency.

It took this country many, many years to admit that it was wrong. In 1983, a U.S. District Court judge formally vacated Korematsu’s sentence. He stood in front of that judge and said “I would like to see the government admit that they were wrong and do something about it so that this will never happen again to any American citizen of any race, creed, or color.” He devoted the rest of his life to that cause.

After the attacks of 9/11, Korematsu warned the U.S. government not to repeat the same mistakes of World War II. He was a vocal and visible advocate for civil rights and civil liberties until his death in 2005.

On January 30, California celebrated and observed the first-ever official Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution. It’s a shining example of the greatness of America. In recognizing our past and presence failures, we offer hope for the future. This country and its constitution failed Fred Korematsu. His civil rights and civil liberties were violated. His faith in America, his identity as an American, and his life were shaken.

But Fred Korematsu believed in something. He believed in it even when he had no obvious reason to continue believing. Eventually there were apologies, pardons, compensation, honors, and ultimately recognition, but in the moment, there was only Fred Korematsu and his belief that he was right. Amidst his struggles, that must have offered some solace, knowing that eventually, what is right will inevitably gain acceptance. It takes hard work and struggle, but ultimately, for someone, it’s worth it.

“[D]on’t be afraid to speak up. One person can make a difference,
even if it takes forty years.”

-Fred Korematsu, 2005

For more information on Fred Korematsu and his amazing life, go to:

http://korematsuinstitute.org/

LD 1020 and 89-57

It's another beautiful day here in Colorado. The sun is out, the grass is green and all is well. But the day is even more incredible back in Maine. The Senate and House have both passed LD 1020 (21 - 14 and 89-57, respectively). This is a step toward legalizing gay marriage in the great state of Maine.

Is the battle over?

No. Unfortunately, there is a group who is trying to organize a people's veto by collecting 55,087 signatures which is not outside the realm of possibility. But the fight exists and while it is not clear where the governor stands on this divisive issue, it is clear that the majority of Maine's government is ready to take a stand on their beliefs.

It's a proud day for us Mainers!

More here....