FREEZING COLD AND FIRED UP
At noon on Nov. 15, while city workers hurriedly decorated Kiener Plaza with holiday lights and erected Christmas trees along Market Street, a chorus of chants and cheers took flight on the autumnal air as St. Louis once more was filled with the melodies of social justice.
More than 1,400 gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender (GLBT) and straight allied activists from throughout the region braved the cold and damp afternoon to protest the recent passage of Proposition 8 in California on the steps of the Old Courthouse downtown.
On Nov. 4, California residents voted by a margin of 52.7 to 46 percent to pass Prop. 8 to amend the California state constitution to restrict the definition of marriage to a union between a man and a woman. In doing so, they struck down a California Supreme Court decision which legalized same sex marriages in May. Over 18,000 gay and lesbian couples who were legally married in California now find their relationships in limbo.
"Show Me No Hate" (SMNH) was the Gateway City’s offering as part of a nationwide day of protest aimed at pressuring the California Supreme Court to reaffirm its earlier decision and restore the rights of gays and lesbians to marry. Similar gatherings were held across the country in cities large and small.
The boisterous but peaceful crowd waved signs, banners and rainbow flags as chants rang out, including "Love Not Hate" and "We’re Gay—We’re Straight—No On 8." State and city officials who spoke from the podium included: Francis Slay, St. Louis City Mayor; Missouri State Sen. Joan Bray; Missouri State Rep. Jeanette Mott Oxford; Lewis Reed, President of the St. Louis City Board of Alderman; and St. Louis City Comptroller Darlene Green. Religious leaders Rabbi James Stone Goodman, Rev. Krista Taves, Rev. Susan Drake and Rev. Julie Jennings also spoke out against the passage of Prop. 8.
Mayor Slay, who attended the rally with one of his three gay siblings, reminded the crowd of the diversity of the city of St. Louis which has a Domestic Partnership Registry, a GLBT inclusive nondiscrimination policy and was the only jurisdiction in Missouri to vote down a similar marriage amendment four years ago.
"I came here today to stand with you," Slay stated from the podium. "And tell you that I support you and that I support your right to live your life free from hate and free from discrimination. I look forward to a day not too far in the future where the theme of this group isn’t ‘Show Me No Hate’ but ‘Show Me With Pride’."
"Amy" from San Diego was attending a convention in St. Louis when she saw the signs and had to participate. She was moved to see so many St. Louisans’ supporting California.
"Prop. 8 was so unpleasant and it became violent at times," Amy explained. "My family had "No on 8" yard signs repeatedly ripped up and destroyed and we were verbally harassed and our cars were vandalized. Seeing everyone here really makes me feel better."
In addition to Prop. 8, similar anti-gay amendments were passed this year in Arizona and Florida while Arkansas passed an amendment banning unmarried couples from adopting children.
Connecticut, which began same sex weddings this past week, and Massachusetts are the only two states that allow gay marriage. Thirty states ban the practice with a handful opting for the compromise of civil unions or domestic partnerships that grant some rights of marriage.
A New Resource for Activism?
SMNH was organized in less than a week by local activist, Ed Reggi and a host of community leaders and organizations. After hearing about the national day of protest, Reggi began calling around to everyone he knew only to find out that nothing was planned locally. He then took matters into his own hands and began contacting everyone from local community leaders and organizations to area politicians and religious leaders to plan an event.
"I was overwhelmed," explained Reggi. "I’m still pinching myself because every step of the way people were just on board. There was never anybody that said we can’t do this. I knew when I decided to do this that the mere logistics of it were going to be challenging, but the part that never ceases to amaze me is the total commitment from everybody."
Utilizing new technology, Reggi went live with a website which immediately started getting traffic and created a presence on social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace. Within the first 24-hours the group already had 300 people on Facebook, and by Wednesday, Facebook and MySpace reached well over 1,000 potential participants. In addition, Reggi, who deals with the media through his work in entertainment, began pitching stories and conducting interviews for area media outlets to help drive the story.
"I was on board before, but now I am very committed to the idea of what this grassroots [organization] could look like and what this can be," stated Reggi. "One of the things that worked very well is the mobilization—the response—through the different social networking sites. I personally enjoy using that—I feel comfortable with that and use that in my livelihood. So that connection is there and it’s solid right now. ‘Show Me No Hate’—that represents more than just the website, it represents the whole package."
SMNH may be in its infancy but has gathered a valuable contact list which, according to Reggi, took flight by tapping into the energy following Barack Obama’s win and the anger following the passage of Prop. 8.
"Its part of what’s been missing in St. Louis—the ability to mobilize and tap resources and work with the media," Reggi explained. "I am happy that I have hundreds of cell phone numbers of people who told me ‘You can text me when you need to do something fast.’ I think that’s great. This is what Obama’s campaign realized that needed to happen."
For upcoming details check out www.showmenohate.com
You can e-mail Colin Murphy at colin_murphy@sbcglobal.net
