Several recent surveys by major pollsters have confirmed what LGBT activists and their supporters already know: As the struggle for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality continues to intensify in cities and towns across the United States, public opinion is turning in favor of LGBT equality and against the efforts of right-wing zealots to promote their hateful, bigoted agenda.
On May 20, the Gallup Organization released poll results showing that 53 percent of the U.S. public supports marriage equality for same-sex couples—a statistic corroborated by other polls. The number is higher in western states, where 61 percent support marriage equality. Even more dramatic is the fact that 70 percent of those in the 18-to-34 age group now support marriage equality, an astounding gain of 16 percent just in the last year.
The people mobilize in the streets
It is significant that the latest polls also show the greatest gains for the cause of LGBT equality in California, the battleground over the bigoted Prop. 8, the highly financed right-wing initiative to ban same-sex marriage in the state.
While bigots smugly cheered the right-wing victory of Prop. 8 in California, something more important was going on in response. Across California, and across the country, people poured into the streets to fight back, to militantly demonstrate against the forces of reaction behind the law. Millions were affected by this outpouring of resistance and determination as the hate-mongers were pushed more and more into the corner.
Like the 1969 Stonewall Rebellion in New York City, where LGBT people took history into their own hands and fought back against the New York City Police Department, today’s LGBT movement and its supporters have also stood up and fought back, determined to win.
Independent and militant action in the streets is a major factor in the struggle against bigotry—particularly against Prop. 8. This action points to the need to break from blind reliance on the capitalist parties, both Republicans and Democrats.
The current surge in support for LGBT rights, outlined clearly in recent polls, can be attributed to the growth of this fightback movement for true justice and equality.
Far from being over, the struggle against the right wing continues in the face of attempts to codify overt discrimination against LGBT people into law.
In Pennsylvania, for example, State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe has introduced an amendment to the state constitution to ban equal marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples. Metcalfe has a long history of fomenting bigotry against LGBT people and others, at one point opposing a resolution condemning domestic violence because he claimed the resolution was part of the ”homosexual agenda.” He is also a leader in the racist movement to ban birthright citizenship for immigrant families. In addition, he introduced a “birther bill”—a bill requiring political candidates for certain offices to prove their citizenship—in the state legislature and introduced legislation to curtail the rights of workers to form a union.
Similarly, the Minnesota legislature voted to approve a proposed Constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, which means it will be on the ballot in 2012. The vote took place despite polls that show 55 percent of state residents oppose such an amendment. During the votes, the supporters of same-sex marriage flooded the state capitol to protest the bill, chanting and carrying signs demanding civil rights for LGBT people.
These measures, while shocking and contemptuous in their overt hostility to civil liberties and justice, are confined to legislative bodies that represent narrow interests subservient to the capitalist ruling class. The corporate media regularly feature screaming anti-gay fanatics. Rather than succumb to this campaign, LGBT organizations are mobilizing to fight back.
A broader view of the current state of the struggle demonstrates the gains that have been made in the recent period.
Gains of the movement
On Dec. 22, 2010, facing growing opposition to the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy that bans gay and lesbian service members from revealing their sexual orientation, President Obama signed a bill that had been passed by Congress that authorizes the repeal of DADT. DADT, however, is still in effect six months later and it is still being used to discharge service members. The repeal bill requires that the president, secretary of defense and chairman of the joint chiefs of staff certify that the Defense Department is prepared to implement repeal, and then there must be a 60-day waiting period. There is no specified timeline for certification.
Under DADT, many young service members see first-hand the bigotry and brutality of the top military brass against those who speak out and are attacked for coming out as gay or lesbian members of the military. This victory will spur on the movement for equality both inside and outside the ranks of the military.
The notorious “Defense of Marriage Act,” the federal ban on same-sex marriage that was signed into law by President Bill Clinton, has increasingly been challenged in recent months. The Obama administration announced in February that it would no longer defend Section 3 of DOMA in court. There are many cases against DOMA ongoing across the country, and the LGBT rights movement has made its repeal a central pillar of their work.
On May 25, Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval signed into law a new bill that bans job discrimination against all transgender workers in Nevada. This victory is an important step forward for transgender people, who face widespread discrimination and violence because of their gender expression. It is also a victory for the entire LGBT struggle and all progressive movements for civil rights, but the struggle for transgender rights and protections still has a long way to go. Nevada is only the 14th state to pass such a law.
There is a new and growing outcry from people throughout the country against the reign of anti-gay violence that is a part of life in the United States, most recently targeting LGBT youth. Those who engage in violent bashing and all types of bullying, sometimes pushing LGBT people and especially youth to the point of suicide, now find themselves faced with a growing fightback movement that is no longer afraid.
The struggle continues
The above victories and many more to come are not the result of politicians granting the LGBT community favors regarding basic civil rights. Rather, these actions are a response to a united and resilient movement that is mobilized and refuses to accept discrimination.
Violence and brutality against LGBT people has been going on since the rise of class society, but there is a new political game in town that can effectively oppose and fight back against anti-gay violence. Like any strong and militant movement for justice, the LGBT movement is reaching out in solidarity with others who are oppressed by racism and sexism in capitalist society, winning allies and forging the necessary unity for the battles yet to come.
