Details after the break
For Immediate Release 9-28-10
Media Contact: Iana DiBona, 718-309-8598, queersos@gmail.com
Yesterday, Monday, Sept. 27, 2010, NYC activists began a daily vigil Standing OutSide of Senator Gillibrand’s campaign office at 15 W. 26th Street, from 10 a.m to 6 p.m. to urge the Senator to take action for LGBTQ inclusion in the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
The demand is that Gillibrand file the American Equality Bill (AEB) which would add “sexual orientation & gender identity” (SO+GI) to The 1964 Civil Rights Act, which would be consistent with her campaign platform announced last October, 2009.
The Queer SOS! activists received support from local residents and passers by on Day 1. Press visited and Senators Gillibrand's office responded positively.
"Today was amazing," said Todd (Tif) Fernandez, the Campaign Facilitator for The AEB Project, "Senator Gillibrand's campaign manager is putting us in contact with a higher Senate staff member to discuss the bill."
However, despite this olive leaf, Queer SOS! activist Alan Bounville reminds, "We still wait."
THE QUEER SOS! – will involve sentries Standing OutSide Gillibrand’s office every day (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.) until the bill is filed. If no action is taken, on October 11th – National Coming Out Day – the vigil will go around the clock (24/7), and, as of Nov. 2nd, some members will begin a water-only fast to demonstrate the urgency.
Each day at noon there will be a “Homophobia Kills Die-In” to bring attention to the fact that LGBTQ people commit suicide or are killed regularly due to this country’s on-going sanction of homophobia.
“Homophobia kills,” said Alan Bounville, a founding member of Queer Rising NYC, “and each day that Congress fails to include us in the Civil Rights Act they are complicit with more of these deaths.”
The Queer SOS! daily vigil and community commune will also feature art, music performances and friendship, amidst steady activism. See the schedule atwww.queersos.com, or just come by.
PERFOMERS and ACTIVISTS can sign up for sentry duty, or to perform by emailing queersos@gmail.com, or at www.queersos.com – or just show up – 15 W. 26th Street/Broadway.
Follow The QUEER SOS! – on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
NOTE: The AEB Project is all grassroots, all volunteer. The AEB adds SO+GI (sexual orientation and gender identity) to the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, giving full and equal federal non-discrimination/civil rights protections to over 30 million LGBTQ Americans in every state with one bill – covering housing, employment, credit, public places, government buildings (including schools), and all federally funded programs (like HIV and health programs, homeless youth, adoption, etc.) (see bill and FAQ at: www.queersos.com).
Yesterday, Monday, Sept. 27, 2010, NYC activists began a daily vigil Standing OutSide of Senator Gillibrand’s campaign office at 15 W. 26th Street, from 10 a.m to 6 p.m. to urge the Senator to take action for LGBTQ inclusion in the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
The demand is that Gillibrand file the American Equality Bill (AEB) which would add “sexual orientation & gender identity” (SO+GI) to The 1964 Civil Rights Act, which would be consistent with her campaign platform announced last October, 2009.
The Queer SOS! activists received support from local residents and passers by on Day 1. Press visited and Senators Gillibrand's office responded positively.
"Today was amazing," said Todd (Tif) Fernandez, the Campaign Facilitator for The AEB Project, "Senator Gillibrand's campaign manager is putting us in contact with a higher Senate staff member to discuss the bill."
However, despite this olive leaf, Queer SOS! activist Alan Bounville reminds, "We still wait."
THE QUEER SOS! – will involve sentries Standing OutSide Gillibrand’s office every day (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.) until the bill is filed. If no action is taken, on October 11th – National Coming Out Day – the vigil will go around the clock (24/7), and, as of Nov. 2nd, some members will begin a water-only fast to demonstrate the urgency.
Each day at noon there will be a “Homophobia Kills Die-In” to bring attention to the fact that LGBTQ people commit suicide or are killed regularly due to this country’s on-going sanction of homophobia.
“Homophobia kills,” said Alan Bounville, a founding member of Queer Rising NYC, “and each day that Congress fails to include us in the Civil Rights Act they are complicit with more of these deaths.”
The Queer SOS! daily vigil and community commune will also feature art, music performances and friendship, amidst steady activism. See the schedule atwww.queersos.com, or just come by.
PERFOMERS and ACTIVISTS can sign up for sentry duty, or to perform by emailing queersos@gmail.com, or at www.queersos.com – or just show up – 15 W. 26th Street/Broadway.
Follow The QUEER SOS! – on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
NOTE: The AEB Project is all grassroots, all volunteer. The AEB adds SO+GI (sexual orientation and gender identity) to the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, giving full and equal federal non-discrimination/civil rights protections to over 30 million LGBTQ Americans in every state with one bill – covering housing, employment, credit, public places, government buildings (including schools), and all federally funded programs (like HIV and health programs, homeless youth, adoption, etc.) (see bill and FAQ at: www.queersos.com).
Please SEND IT as a comment to the White House at:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.whitehouse.gov/contact
...
And LET THEM HEAR US SAY:
*** Mr. President PLEASE SPEAK OUT LOUDLY about homophobia, school bullying and equal civil rights for LGBTQ people -- no more suicide letters. ***
To President Obama,
All of us are horrified by the tragedy of Tyler Clementi, the young man who committed suicide after his sexual encounter with another man was posted on the internet. We share anger and disgust at the 2 students accused of this despicable act.
But if our outrage stops there, we will be doing a grave disservice to the millions of young gay men and women in this country who live with shame and fear everyday and who have a 4 times greater risk of suicide than their straight counterparts.
Most people would be embarrassed and angered at having their private sexual acts secretly recorded and posted on the internet, but it seems unlikely that Mr. Clementi would have been driven to suicide if this had been a heterosexual encounter. A young heterosexual man would not likely experience the shame and fear that Mr. Clementi must have felt.
Yes, the 2 students accused of this crime must be held accountable for their actions, but as a society we must all share responsibility for creating an environment that drives young gay people to suicide.
This country has come a long way toward acceptance of gay people in the last few decades, but we still have a long way to go. Young gay people still face bullying and abuse at home and at school; many experience ostracism by family and friends; discrimination in school, work, housing and social services; and isolation from supportive communities of peers, as well as anti-gay violence in public and private. It's no wonder that the shame and fear of 'coming out' can be fatal.
In the cyber world we now live in, there will undoubtedly be more cases of invasions of privacy on the internet. They can be punished, but not prevented. It is up to all of us in this society to make sure that young gay people feel safe, secure and accepted, so that shame and fear never again result in death.
PLEASE SPEAK OUT.