First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me.
-Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984)
This post might enrage some people out there, but what's life without a little controversy?
I heard heads exploding after Joe the stoop Stupak and a passel of lobbying priests tightened up abortion funding restrictions on the House's version of the health care bill.
Then I checked my own reaction and realized I was rather 'meh' about the news.
Why?
Because we queers fought for legalized abortion before the Roe v. Wade era, and we had zero horses in that race.
My gay sisters and I have all put in time escorting women seeking legal abortions to clinic entrances amidst throngs of angry, violence prone, invective spitting, anti-choice maniacs.
Women born after 1973 never had to sweat getting safe and legal abortions because we older women hit the streets and risked our asses marching for legal abortion. At such marches, I recall the crowds were usually a 50/50 mix of straight women and lesbians.
So here we are.
Breeders can safely abort fetuses without breaking the law.
Yet we queers are still where we were 100 years ago in terms of equal rights.
If you ask the average dyke what Roe v. Wade was about, we could likely explain it in enough detail to be convincing.
If you ask the average straight women of abortion-having age what Stonewall was all about, chances are they'd look at you like you were asking them to explain quantum physics.
Frankly, I'm a little tired of straighties, especially women, doing little to nothing to help gay people get equal rights. Is it enough to just say you're for gay rights?
It might sound crazy, but maybe repealing Roe v. Wade might teach these people what it's like to have something as basic as choice taken away. Maybe they need to learn the value of a good protest march.
Go ahead and comment, telling me you think I've gone off the deep end.
But be sure and tell me what direct actions you've taken to demand equal rights for gays.
I've done my part for abortion rights, and so has virtually every lesbian I know.
I haven't just been pro choice, I've been in the trenches, risking my gay ass.
A little quid pro quo would be nice.
