Saturday, July 02, 2005
i figure i should have my Go Home! for Pride idea here, too:How do you feel about Gay Pride here in SF? This will be my 10th year and I have to admit that the thrill is gone. Though I'll attend the festivities, I will admit that it's done out of a place for something to do this weekend and not because I feel like I need to make a statement. Living in the bubble of San Francisco I got it pretty good. A home, a husband, a good job and a blog. I'm quite comfortable and feel somewhat untouchable by the events you report on at Queerday that happen elsewhere in the US. Recently, I complained on my site about gay pride and Joe from Joe.My.God emailed me because of something I said about the Pride catalog this year. He said, "...The intent of the cover was to reflect the grim status of the movement in light of the recent setbacks..." and "We're always open to suggestions, however" It really stuck in my mind because it's really easy to complain about something but if you really want to make a change you got to take some action. It's been nagging at me in the back of my mind and now I think I may have something that could really take off.
The idea/campaign is called:
"Go Home! for Pride"
It actually came to me as a joke at first. I was walking home from work through the Castro and seeing the prep for this year's Pink Saturday and Gay Pride. I was thinking about all the people who were going to pour in over the weekend and thought, "God, maybe these people should go home to their own Pride parades." But then when I really thought of the application of this idea, I thought it could be something actually quite amazing for the gay community as a whole.
Think of all the LGBT in San Francisco. I would bet most of them (myself included) came from some small town in some other state. Their own state may have their own gay pride events which is probably half of actual residents of that city and the rest are inflow of the surrounding towns. Many smaller towns have their own Pride celebrations/parades that are usually pretty small. Well, what if everyone made the arrangements to go home for their town's (or nearby town's) gay pride? Everyone's hometown would have more people attending, making every event a bigger deal and causing the local newspapers to report on the event. It would show the nation that there actually are gay people in every town in every state. It would give a gay face to the people in the small towns, making them realize that we are everywhere and we are the children, the students, the people who grew up and went to their churches years ago.
I know this may sound kind of ambitious, but were you at the March on Washington back in the early 90's? That was an excellent event in which everyone really pulled together to be sure that they would be there and get their voices heard. I'm thinking that "Go Home! for Pride" could be that type of event - an event that really mobilizes the gay community.
What I would like to do is work with my readers and Queerday along with other gay web outlets and create a home base for the campaign on the web. It would be a site that would explain the idea and allow people to pledge their commitment to it. Then it would be chock full of resources to help everyone get information on when their local event is happening, who to contact in their town and stuff like that. It could even have a bulletin board where each town has a board that people can post to talk directly with those in charge and talking to locals to arrange where to stay.
I guess it could also be something that brings in some revenue through sponsorship and ads, but that really isn't the direction I'd like to go with it. I'd like to keep it non-profit almost like MoveOn.org - powered by real people. Hopefully people would want to donate time to the site's creation and upkeep but I know that sometimes you gotta pay to get things done so the revenue angle is an option.
The timeline I was thinking of was to have the site ready by January 2006 so everyone could start planning for that following summer. I don't think this would be a yearly thing but a one time event. I could try to get other bloggers and big sites (Queerday, gay.com and such) on board advertising it. I'm also going to contact Joe about it being that he was the one who got my gears turning. Maybe his Pride publication can help out too.
I just thought of it a few days ago and the more I think about it the more it sounds like a great idea. I figured I needed to talk to people with connections before it just becomes one of those nice ideas that never really materializes.
What do you think?
7/02/2005 04:26:00 PM | link me
Links to this post | 10 comments10 Comments:
I blogged about what pride meant to me recently. I'm glad to see others are thinking beyond the flash of the parade.
I'd be willing to help out.By Moby, at 7/02/2005 5:27 PM
Hi Victor. I haven't introduced myself yet, but I've been lurking for about a week.
Here in Maine I've noticed a tangible reduction in gay events. In fact, I heard the gay pride march in Bangor had about 20 people this year. People are scared. Our gay rights bill could be shot down in a referendum vote this fall, and the loss of funding for AIDS awareness has resulted in a virtual collapse of "outright" and other gay youth projects. Even the monthly men's socials that I go to every month have had reduced attendance.
What I'm driving at is that outside the bubble of SF people are getting demoralized. I agree with the intent of "Go Home! For Pride", but regardless of what form pride events take, there needs to be a meaningful result, i.e. the scattered factions of the gay rights movement need to be united. Otherwise, those of us outside the gay meccas will continue to hide in our homes for fear of the political ramifications. After all, feather boas don't deflect rocks.By Larry, at 7/03/2005 11:33 AM
Not big into the Gay Pride Events myself, but all the out-of-towners I know that head to San Fran for gay pride, do it to party and get laid.
Which is why they don't head back home, because there is less chance for fun or sex.
Not meaning to be stereotypical, but pride events have become more commercially-oriented and less community-oriented. Chance for tourist money and events.
Now, some organizations take advantage of the influx of people/cash to do some good, but the rest is about bigger/better/how many people next year.
If you want the focus to change, its more about shifting attitudes then shifting locations.
Just my soapbox-
-SmartassBy , at 7/03/2005 1:57 PM
I think this is an excellent idea from so many different angles:
1) GLBT activism has become a patchwork effort concentrated on the coasts, and it really needs to go to the heartland.
2) You folks need to get out of the bubble more often, because believe me, you have NO idea (maybe not you personally, just saying...) Instead of running to the bubble for safety, we need to meet our opponents head on. Battles are won on battlefields, not ghettos. Pride in Colorado Springs anybody?
3) We folks in the heartland can use a hearty boost in our pride activities. A friend of mine described last year's Pride parade in Tucson as "The little parade that almost could."
There are a lot of potential downsides to this, but then every idea has tradeoffs. It's too easy for people to sit on their hands and grumble that it won't change anything. No single action ever does -- there's no such thing as a silver bullet. Self-fulfilling prophesies occur when naysayers have their way. The Freedom Rides did not bring change to the South by themselves, but they were an important piece of the overall struggle.
This idea of yours has a lot of parallels to the Freedom Rides without nearly the danger. Count me in!By Jim Burroway, at 7/04/2005 9:00 AM
I think the concept is good, but I think there are a couple of things to think about.
1) Technically June is Gay Pride Month with what we consider Pride Weekend really ending what is supposed to be a month of celebration. That being said, smaller cities organize their celebrations the week before larger cities so that people can enjoy the festivities in the larger cities.
2) It's a big generality, but we homos like a big party. It takes a lot to pull off a big gay party in a smaller town and if it isn't a party I don't think it will be terribly successful...you know?
3) Smaller towns don't necessarily have the gay infrastructure to pull off Pride. (ok, this is pretty much the same as point number 2)
4) I think a lot of people in smaller towns prefer "escaping" to a larger city where they can really let loose. They can do things and act in ways that maybe they aren't comfortable doing in their hometowns.
5) Getting laid is a big part of Pride for a lot of people, so let's face it...if you live in a smaller town you've probably already met/know/and/or fucked everyone in it already.
I don't know, but perhaps another approach would be for the bigger cities to partner with neighborhood cities/sister cities and help them develop a better Pride.
And, as I've already mentioned, it is Gay Pride Month, not just a weekend. There are loads of ways to celebrate Gay Pride Month other than a parade and a big party.
It's all about attitude, organization, and marketing.By Cement Brunette, at 7/04/2005 10:02 PM
You said it yourself - You are over the Parade even in San Francisco. Here in the Midwest we no longer have parades - Toledo, Detroit, Cleveland. Even the parades in the State Capitals - Lansing, Columbus, Indianapolis - are fading. Queers from New York to Chicago now go to Toronto if they want an old fashion Gay Parade.
Why is it that Drag Queens, Leather Boys, etc. think it's OK to dish gays who don't share their wardrobe preferences? We get maligned for not doing something we don't want to do. And I totally disagree that the "freaks" of the gay community deserve the credit for advances we have made in the last 30 years.
However, I do agree that it is a good idea to let people know that we are everywhere living as responsible members of the community, not just on the Coasts. Trouble is, the big formal gay Christmas Dinners, fund raisers, etc. never make press, but the big gay sex parties do.
Jeff
Toledo, OhioBy , at 7/05/2005 5:32 PM
I'm not really sure why Jeff is hating on everyone. Bad day, Jeff? I DO think that "The freaks" helped Jeff in the long run. I think maybe he'd do himself some good, looking at some of the literature on Stonewall and the "Freaks" there. Button up that Polo Shirt and those Khaki pants, Jeff! You REALLY do look "Normal." REALLY.
Anyway, Gay Pride.
I live in Vermont. Gay Pride here used to be a fun, yet educational event. Now after Civil Unions, it's all taken for granted and everyone stays homwe or bitches about how boring it is now.
It's also been moved to the first weekend in July. You know, the one where everyone already has plans?
That was very evident this year. A lame 4 minute parade, no events after and what there was was poorly attended.
It's not that there's not a need for Pride. It's that the queers that are already out, take everything for granted.
I personally think that in the background right now, there's a concerted effort to revoke all gay rights. However, our "Community" has become so jaded and forgetful, that we're bound to relive something bad in the future.
There's always the possibility of rolling back everything that has been fought for up until now. Just look at how the Supreme court is going to go 4 - 5 in the future and you'll see Gay Pride getting bigger as people get more scared.
To those jaded queens who say "It's boring" Take a good read at the Maine poster above. There's alot of crap going on that those of you in the larger cities are missing.
While you take your pride fests and get bored with them because of their sheer size and magnitude, there are still those of us who have nothing and less than nothing.
Take it for granted all you want. Just don't be surprised when your rug gets pulled out from underneath you.
Alan In VermontBy , at 7/11/2005 3:27 PM
You talkin' to me Alan?
I am a leather "freak" - I have SEVERAL regional leather titles and have used them for charity events benefitting the gay community. I also did drag at The Closet Ball in San Francisco to raise money for PWA assistance back in the day when our government didn't offer ANY help. I also know quite a bit about gay history starting way before Stonewall (did I see you in New York in 1994?).
The point I was trying to make is that I'm tired but the younger gays just don't seem to give a damn as our recently won rights start to evaporate. I've done my activism (and had alot of fun a long the way) and am pretty much protected, but I feel sorry for younger gays who are going to get really screwed by the fundalmentalists. Hell, we can't even count on them to VOTE!
Jeff
Toledo, OhioBy , at 7/12/2005 6:38 PM
For some reason all your old blog posts are showing up on your feedburner feed today. So I saw this one. I think it's a great idea. My partner George and I did the NYC parade for a few years, until we got sick of the heat and the crowds. We did the Boston parade for 2 years until the same thing happened, and in the meantime we were in the Albany parade and got on the 6 o'clock news for our matching T-shirts.
Then we found ourselves getting the cold shoulder from the guys who run the AIDS support groups and community center, either because we're May/December or openly pro-sex, and lost touch. As far as I knew, until my doctor's receptionist said "We missed you yesterday" the day after it had happened, Albany had stopped having pride parades altogether. Even if we weren't involved in them, I think we'd have attended if we'd known about them. The year we did go, we got the newsletter with the schedule of gay pride week events about 3 weeks after it had happened.
I grew up in Springfield, Massachusetts, though, and I consider that my hometown. I moved away when I was 18, so I was never involved in the community apart from visiting bars every couple years when I drank. I have no idea what even goes on in their community apart from the Hartford Colts having a bar night up there now and then, if they even still exist. So I hope that if nothing else, whatever comes of this includes a centralized location for local community groups to post about their pride events. I hope you don't give up on it as the responsibilities of parenting overwhelm your life.By raindog, at 9/12/2005 11:07 AM
I am the Board Secretary of Little Rock Capital Pride in Arkansas. I attended the InterPride World conference and have begun working with some of the organizers of larger Prides on the very same idea. We were thinking of having a Come Home for Pride campaign to promote up-and-coming Prides. I would love to synch up with you so we could work together! Please contact me at joelafountaine@littlerockcapitalpride.org
By Joe L, at 10/31/2006 7:39 AM
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