My interest in LGBT activism

Having attended the National Equality March, I have had some questions along the lines of "why are you so interested in LGBT issues?" So this post will attempt to answer that question.

I am interested in human rights in general, and I started being interested specifically in LGBT rights in college. I think the first time the importance of equal rights really struck me was during the Bone Marrow Drive freshman year. I was working one of health history tables, which is where they look over your info and take your cheek cell samples. A guy came up to me (I have no idea who he was) and sat down. I looked at his paperwork, which has a spot where you put if you have any of the AIDS risk factors. He was gay, but he had noted that he had recently been tested and was HIV negative. I called over one of the nurses. She told me we had to decline him. This man was willing to give his bone marrow to save someone's life, but I had to tell him he couldn't. It was crushing for me to have to say that to him. I felt terrible (and I still feel bad about it when I think about it). Clearly society values some people less simply for their sexuality. This didn't seem right to me.

I had already encountered discrimination against people. I come from a rural, intolerant area (in many ways - not just of LGBT identified people). I made my first gay friend in 11th grade - I didn't grow up around anyone openly very different from me, but my parents raised me to be open-minded, loving, and tolerant. This friend had a lot of issues due to his family's refusal to accept who he is and teasing and ridicule at school. So I knew there were injustices. In addition to that, I had fallen in with a group of evangelical Christians who preached the wrongness of homosexuality (I never really bought it, personally, which I'm glad about).

Not long after the BMD incident, I made a lot of friends in the Lambda Alliance. Now I am a great proponent of many of the movements for LGBT rights, and have been involved in some activism. I really think everyone deserves to be treated equally, regardless of any differences they may have. So there you go.

PS - if you want to see my story on the National Equality March (which made the front page!!!) go here.

Maryland Renaissance Festival and National Equality March

Basically copying my Yelp review for the Ren Fest:

This was my first renaissance festival. I was surprised at how affordable the food was (I had sort of been expecting Busch-Gardens-level expensive) and how delicious it was. I had macaroni and cheese on a stick (yes, it's possible) and a baked potato and tried some of my boyfriend's turkey leg. The shops actually had some high quality stuff (not kitschy at all). Watching the jousting was fun, and the German juggler had some cool tricks and was mostly funny. I was tempted to ride an elephant because I've always wanted to, but I wanted to save that experience for something more than a glorified pony ride. The best part is just watching the people. My boyfriend commented that it would be a time-traveler's nightmare, and I bet he's right. Nevertheless, it was good fun. I will second, however, another Yelper's comment about people smoking - it was quite inescapable, so keep that in mind.

As for the National Equality March, it was incredibly inspiring. Nothing like being with hundreds of thousands of people who are all gunning for the same change you want to see to brighten your day. On top of that, there was a spontaneous rainbow on the sunny, clear day, which we took as God's approval. Of course. I believe in rights for everyone. I don't think being slightly different should mean you hold less worth as a person in the eyes of politics. I stood by my LGBT friends and fellow allies as we marched passed the White House and up to our nation's Capital Building. I took a lot of pictures which I will share later. There were many signs; some funny and some simply true. I only saw 3 protesters, and they weren't doing a very convincing job. There were many states and colleges represented (people from Alaska, Princeton, U of Wisconsin, and Harvard, among those I saw). There are so many people who just want the same freedoms that the normative culture enjoy (marriage, the right to serve openly in the military, immigration rights, etc). I hope that the nation saw all of us in all our different shapes, sizes, colors, and personal identities and was inspired by that.