GLBT Capitol Rally

Today was a great day. A great number of Minnesotans -- gay men, lesbian women, lesbians with children, old mammas, highschool students, my old sixth grade teacher -- stood on the steps of the state capitol, over 3,000 of us, condemning a vitriolic piece of constitutional amendment bullshit and demanding that gay and lesbian families be treated with the same respect and dignity accorded to straight couples.

Aaron and I arrived at around eleven am, and wandered about the interior of the capitol. I hadn't been there for awhile--not since I was a kid and certainly not since moving down here to go to university.

It's always great to see families at these kinds of events. Makes me think of my mom. I called her yesterday; asked her to call our rep up there in Duluth, Tom Bakk, and ask him to vote against this amendment. "Oh, I don't follow politics that much, I don't always know what's going on..." she said. But she took down his number and promised to call. Bless.

Aaron and I were wandering through the crowd before the rally and someone called my name--my sixth grade teacher Mrs. Johnson! I love her! She was like, my favorite! She had come down here from Duluth with her husband to support her gay son and his partner! It was amazing! She's retired now and luvvving it. She was so excited to be down here, kicking some ass for her gay son! When I was in third grade I had my appendix taken out and she was my tutor. We made Revolutionary War dioramas out of clay and I wrote a book called "My Appendix Operation" that was bound in the shape of an appendix. She's awesome.

The speakers at the rally spoke the truth about the unconstitutionality of this constitutional amendment. The signs told other sides of the story...

The crowd easily surpassed that of the fundaMENTALS. I'd never been to a rally before. Sure, Marc and I had a Protest and Posh day, but that was just for fun. These things aren't just for fun anymore. Things have gotten down right scary, and lawmakers need to know that we won't stand for it. Noon during a workday. Over 3,000 people turning out. How great is that? Kudos to my boss, for letting me take some time out for this day. It means a lot.


Saw Brian and Tim and Shanai there, which was good. The crowd swelled. Spilled down the steps of the capitol, past the unseeing statues on their plinthes. The windows of the capitol looked down blankly at us, mostly.
But during the brief moment when we chanted, and our words echoed against the walls of the building ... I dunno ... call me crazy, call me idealistic .. I felt like something was happening, we were making a difference... we'll see tomorrow, when the Senate votes (hopefully) to derail this train wreck. Until then, write your legislators!