Leave a Comment Sagesse
Olson & Boies Exorcise the Ghosts of Homophobia Past
June 15, 2010
By Rick Jacobs
(cross-posted from the Huffington Post)
By the time I graduated from Oak Ridge High School in East Tennessee 34 years ago, I knew a few things for sure:
1. I cared deeply about social justice.
2. I expected to become governor or a senator from Tennessee after college.
3. I was a homosexual, but desperately did not want to be.
More than three decades later in a courtroom in San Francisco–a city that I had once been afraid to visit lest people think I was gay–the ghosts and demons of self-loathing are being exorcised.
The legendary team of Ted Olson and David Boies, who faced off before the Supreme Court in Bush v. Gore in 2000, present their final arguments on Wednesday 16 June in Judge Vaughn Walker’s federal court. The arguments by both sides will sum up the twelve days of testimony that took place in January, focusing on Judge Walker’s pointed questions that I wrote about last week. We can expect a ruling shortly after the trial. And then we can expect appeals, most likely to the Supreme Court.
But history has already been made. I was in court every day of the trial (save one) in January. Even after 138,452 Courage Campaign members responded in the affirmative to the Judge’s request for public comment on whether or not to televise the trial, cameras were banned, largely hiding the proceedings from the public. That’s what the right wing folks who have put anti-equality measures on ballots all over the country wanted. They feared that their arguments would not stand the withering cross-examination of David Boies, much less the panoply of expert witnesses who would demonstrate that the only reason the oxymoronic Protect Marriage and NOM band oppose marriage equality is that, well, it’s not their definition of marriage. The trial also showed unequivocally that their political machine, a direct descendant of Anita Bryant who first used the ballot to enforce legal discrimination against gays and lesbians in 1972, was fueled by prejudice and stigmatization.
I live-blogged that trial (as I will again on Wednesday here at HuffPost and TrialTracker) at Prop 8 Trial Tracker where we received over two million hits and 30,000 comments. Whenever I wrote about a piece of the testimony that struck a nerve, people all over the country and the world chimed in with their comments, engaging in an online catharsis uniquely possible with today’s social media.
Based on what I witnessed and the reactions to the blog, we knew that we had to create a long-term public engagement and education effort to get the story of this trial out to the American people. How many others like me knew they were gay or lesbian but could not felt left out by a culture that says we are not equal? And more importantly, how many today still believe that? A million? Ten million? Regardless of the outcome of this trial, the testimony itself can change lives. Had this testimony been in the public discourse thirty years ago, the depression and suicidal thoughts with which I wrestled would have evaporated.
We launched Testimony: Equality on Trial, so that in its first phase everyone in this country can reenact or at least read short pieces of key testimony. We must make this trial our American heritage, shine the light on those ghosts that haunt others in Tennessee and Texas and Tallahassee and Tacoma? Marisa Tomei and other celebrities kicked this off, but we all need to ingest this testimony, to reenact it wherever we are.
Please, have a look at the Testimony site.
Later this summer, we’ll offer you the opportunity to give your own testimony. Once you see what happened in court, you can tell your friends and the American public your own story. How has discrimination affected you? What happened when you went to your wedding (we want everyone to tell this story, straight, gay, bi, lesbian and transgender)? What did your friends think? What do your friends think now? As Dustin Lance Black showed in his Oscar-winning script for MILK, stories are America. With modern social networking and good old fashioned on-the-ground organizing, everyone will join in to give their testimony, just as I’ve done a bit of in this post.
Our lives take odd turns. Mine included having met Ted Olson over 25 years ago where, as the client’s representative, I had a lot of exposure to Ted and his team. They were the best. And I was scared to death that they or anyone else would find out my secret, would learn that I was gay. I hid it from them and from everyone in my workplace. I tried desperately to hide it from myself. Now, at age 52, I live a happy, fulfilled life shared with the most magical man alive, Shaun Kadlec. Those years of hiding and sublimating, of living in fear and with loathing, powered me to create the Courage Campaign and to help build a movement for progress and equality in California and beyond.
I have no regrets, but I am sure glad that Ted Olson has come along again, determined to allow all Americans to live to our full potential. I hope we’ll succeed in court and change the laws once and for all so that we can end the outrage of voting on each other’s rights. But in order to succeed fully, to propel the nation where it’s headed anyway, we need to tell the story of the trial and we need to tell our own stories. We need to testify.
And there are few things we can do right now:
1. Join us on Facebook. The National Organization for Marriage (NOM) still has more Facebook friends than Equality on Trial. Will you help us change that?
2. Visit the site and commit to do one reading or reenactment and either film it or write to us about it.
Soon, this will all be history. And we’ll all have been part of it.
I’ll see you here tomorrow, in court.
Having technical problems? E-mail equalityontrial AT couragecampaign DOT org for assistance!
18 Comments Leave a Comment
1.
Kathleen | June 15, 2010 at 6:19 am
We'll be here, hitting the refresh key. Thanks for representin'!
Love,
Kathleen
2.
Lesbians Love Boies | June 15, 2010 at 6:21 am
Can't wait for tomorrow. I am sure we will all be glued to our computer monitors, iPhones, iPads.
Rest your fingers today Rick and good luck tomorrow.
3.
Kathleen | June 15, 2010 at 6:23 am
Also, to anyone who missed this in the earlier post's comments, both Plaintiffs and Proponents have filed their written responses to the Court's questions. See these documents and other filings in the case here: http://www.scribd.com/ownbycatz
4.
Casey | June 15, 2010 at 6:49 am
Once again, Rick, from all of us to you and the P8TT team: thank you for doing this for us. We will disseminate everything you see and hear tomorrow, and show the world no fear.
Winding up my refresh button…see y'all tomorrow.
5.
Ben Crowther | June 15, 2010 at 7:00 am
I know this is really technical, but you wrote about "transgendered" people. The more correct term is just "transgender". Putting the "ed" at the end makes it a verb rather than a noun or adjective like the word "gay". People don't go transgendering down the street. Like I said, it's a really technical point, but I think it's important nonetheless.
6.
couragecampaign | June 15, 2010 at 7:10 am
Not technical at all. It's important. That has now been changed.
-Julia
7.
Richard A. Walter (s | June 15, 2010 at 7:22 am
Thank you, Rick. Thank you to everybody at Courage Campaign. thank you to David Boies, Ted Olson and all of our legal team. thank you to all my fellow Trial Trackers. this has been a very momentous part of my life, and all of you have been a very grand family and I truly hope we all get to meet face to face.
8.
Regan DuCasse | June 15, 2010 at 7:28 am
I've read the documents that answer Judge Walker's list of questions.
The Prop. 8 supporters don't seem to know much about history, the contexts in which their own research has nothing to do with gay people.
Their ideals are from another era, or doesn't exist in the first place.
Such as a morals test or qualification to marry.
The intent or ability to have children.
Or what a person does in marriage according to their gender.
Their argument is seriously reliant on stereotypes around gender and sexual orientation.
This can't be good for their side.
And neither can their assertion that marriage equality is radical or destructive in ANY way.
They, relying on stereotype, don't seem to know, care or understand just how much alike gays and heteros are.
ESPECIALLY in the intentions and goals for their offspring.
I think it bothers them most of all that they haven't proven in court, nor can the court enforce, nor can the majority of voters find the boogey men they think they see.
9.
Ronnie | June 15, 2010 at 7:49 am
Thank you…will also be here 2morro….<3…Ronnie
10.
Southern Bell | June 15, 2010 at 8:07 am
I will forever be saddened by the fact that this trial was not televised in the first place, but we cannot dwell on the past can we? After all, this trial is about our future. I've tried to tell everyone I can about this site and this trial. No matter what the outcome, blogs such as this have already changed history, so let's not stop talking just because the trial has ended, there is plenty more 'educating' to still be done.
11.
Sagesse | June 15, 2010 at 8:08 am
Have read both responses now. Striking how the D-I's talk about the right (or not) to 'same-sex marriage', like it's all one word. It's the marriage (two people) that should be protected.
Proponents (correctly, it seems) talk about each individual's fundamental right to marry the person of their choice, and to form a family. That right says nothing about checking an acceptable box (race, gender) for your choice.
The second sounds like a constitutional argument, the first doesn't.
12.
Dalow | June 15, 2010 at 9:05 am
While a television broadcast of the trial proceedings would have been welcome, I think that what resulted — this blog and the many other resources and reports — is far more valuable. They document the event in ways that might not have happened otherwise. And it has involved, on a personal level, many more people than might have watched, read, listened and contributed otherwise. All those involved, especially Rick Jacobs, deserve our praise and gratitude. Mine is at the top of the list!
13.
Jack | June 15, 2010 at 10:15 am
I graduated from Cumberland County High School in Crossville TN about 16 years after you did from Oak Ridge HS but like you there were three things I knew at the time:
1. I cared deeply about social justice.
2. I expected to become governor or a senator from Tennessee after college.
3. I was a homosexual, but desperately did not want to be.
After internships in DC during college – I decided to let go of #2.
After I came out to my family members, my fraternity brothers, and my friends who loved and supported me I was able to let go of #3.
I will never let go of #1 and I hope that you understand that what you and our team have done is to help reorder my priorities.
#1. Continue to care about social justice
#2. Take action on issues concerning social justice.
#3. Fight so that my partner of 10 years and I can have a legal and recognized marriage.
Thanks again and keep up the good work.
14.
Straight Grandmother | June 15, 2010 at 10:31 am
AND let us all never forget that it was Rob Reiner & his wife Michelle Singer that started this and put up the first money to hire Boies & Olson. They have kept in the background, I hope to see them on the day the verdict is issued. Olson & Bois and their teams deserve enormous credit and they are the face to the media but to me the real heros are Rob Reiner and Michelle Singer his wife.
15.
Rick | June 15, 2010 at 11:05 am
Thanks for reminding us of the incredible contribution of Rob Reiner and his wife Michelle Singer. For their efforts, Obama should award them the Presidential Medal of Freedom. No matter what the outcome, these folks, along with Olson and Boies, are truly making history.
16.
Richard A. Walter (s | June 15, 2010 at 11:14 am
Amen on that one. I wonder how we would go about nominating them?
17.
Papa Foma | June 15, 2010 at 1:11 pm
Thank you, Kathleen for posting the answers for us! The East Coast is listening, too — and your contributions all along have kept us up to date and able to exercise our minds as we set our hearts on a positive outcome to this trial. — Papa Foma
18.
Richard A. Walter (s | June 15, 2010 at 1:18 pm
Yes, and I wish you and Felyx were closer to us here. Would be nice to have a group here together to follow the closing arguments. Maybe we can set up a conference call. Felyx has my number.
Leave a Comment
XHTML: You can use these tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>
TrackBack URL | RSS feed for comments on this post.