Creating Change!

I just got back from the annual Creating Change conference sponsored by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (aka The Task Force or NGLTF). 

The Task Force is a vibrant, totally progressive organization that works on a real grassroots level in communities to (you guessed it) create change, especially around LGBTQ issues. This conference brings together LGBTQ folks and allies from around the country (and some from other countries) to focus on these issues.

“Change,” as we have come to call it, is always such a treat. The place pulses with folks’ excitement about this work. There are always lots of youth, and their enthusiasm and energy pervade everything that happens. They also make me very excited about the future of this movement. 

And “the movement” as used here means far more than LGBTQ rights. NGLTF has a broad-based, truly progressive agenda. So "the movement" includes the rights of women, of people of color, of poor people, of immigrants, of those with disabilities, of those outside the religious mainstream, and of all the other groups that are so easily left out of political discussions. 

Just being there is uplifting.

Besides, there are always these moments of surprise or insight that add to the fun. Here are a few from this weekend:

·        Our first evening there, in one of the social gathering areas (which buzz in a way I’ve never experienced at any other conference), I saw three young men in military uniforms. I stopped in my tracks and tried not to stare as I realized that this is the first time ever that members of the military could attend this conference openly. It’s the first time ever that the rest of us could see our brothers and sisters in uniform casually interacting with their civilian peers.

Never doubt that elections matter. And don’t doubt that Obama’s presence in the White House has changed the world in important ways.

·        "Change" always has gender-neutral restrooms, where people of all genders share the space. Conference newbies are sometimes surprised by this, but folks settle into a comfortable routine about it pretty quickly. So, one day, I was in a gender-neutral restroom that usually serves as a men’s room. The stalls were full, so I was waiting my turn. A man walked in just as a stall opened up, and he went directly past me and into the stall. My first thought was that he was being rude. But then I realized that he’s probably not used to encountering waiting lines in restrooms. So he didn’t recognize me as a “line,” but maybe thought I was just waiting for someone else.

Or, maybe he was rude. But in this context, I was quick to give him the benefit of the doubt. Instead of being cranky, I stopped to wonder what his experience might have been and what I could learn from this. Now that’s good energy!

·        I went to several sessions on upcoming elections about LGBTQ rights. In a fascinating twist, at least one of these elections (in Maine) will be an election about marriage equality initiated by the pro-LGBTQ side. Instead of fighting off initiatives designed to limit equality, this one will be an election on behalf of marriage equality. Word among folks who know these things is that it just might pass. Other states have their sights set on doing a similar thing soon. This is an empowering shift whether or not we “win” these elections. The fact that we have reached a point where we can take the initiative instead of just responding to attacks is huge!

Having survived Amendment 2 in Colorado and then thrived in its wake, I can see what an amazing change this is. Then, we were barely hanging onto our sense that we were worthwhile human beings. Now, we have the wherewithal to expect—not wait for, not beg for, not hope for, but expect—that we will eventually have equal rights. That’s a change that’s fun to see in its creation!

This shift comes to us courtesy of years of work by pro-LGBTQ activists, like the work on display at “Change.” With now dozens of elections under our collective belt, we have gained important ground. For one thing, public opinion has shifted increasingly toward support for equal rights. For another, grassroots activists have managed to gather a ton of information that they can use to craft campaign messages and campaign strategies. It won’t be perfect. But it will be a lot kinder to LGBTQ folks and their allies than the whole circus was a couple of decades ago, before we knew so much, before so much change.

I came back, as always, energized and enthused about what’s happening and what’s ahead. Also sleep deprived. Totally worth it.