COME OUT AGAINST HOMOPHOBIA
MEMORANDUM
To: NOW Activists
From: Patricia Ireland,
Kim Gandy, Karen
Johnson & Elizabeth Toledo
Subject: Come Out Against Homophobia in October
Date: August 7, 1998
National Coming Out Day
is October 11th, and we are encouraging NOW activists across the country
to come out against homophobia by organizing actions in support of lesbian
rights around that date. While the decision to disclose one's
sexual orientation is very personal, we all know that coming out often
has a powerful political impact as well. We are asking activists
of every orientation to decry discrimination based on sexual orientation.
NATIONAL COMING OUT DAY BACKGROUND
After the October 11, 1987 March On Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights,
which included a display of the Names Project's AIDS
Quilt in its entirety, National Coming Out Day was founded to help
perpetuate all of the organizing and progress on lesbian and gay rights
issues beyond the march. Celebrated on October 11th every year, people
throughout the nation commemorate the day by coming out to colleagues,
family members, friends, neighbors and business and school contacts.
For many, National Coming Out Day combines the celebration of the lesbian
and gay community with the denunciation of homophobia and heterosexism.
Since the penalties for coming out of the closet can include being rejected
by one's family, losing a job or custody of a child or eviction from a
home, many lesbians and gay men conceal their sexual orientation out of
fear of reprisal. The goal -- and in large part the effect -- of
National Coming Out Day has been to create the visibility and support people
need when coming out. We take comfort and find strength and safety
in numbers.
CALL TO ACTION
This year we are encouraging actions geared toward the same-sex marriage
issue. As the Hawaii and Alaska vote gets closer and closer (November
3rd) now is the time for action. We need to show politicians and
legislators that we support the freedom to marry. Lesbians and straight
women alike stand to benefit from a positive outcome in Hawaii and/or Alaska.
This would be a decive desicion in the right direction. Sending a
clear message that the government can not regulate our bodies.
We urge you to organize a Come Out Against Homophobia action because
lesbian rights is an important feminist issue. Lesbian-baiting continues
to be a potent, effective tool to divide women against each other.
From military bases to corporate boardrooms, from classrooms to assembly
lines, the lesbian label is used to discriminate against women. How
many times have we seen a woman's sexual harassment complaints dismissed,
discredited or discouraged by the act or threat of outing her as a lesbian?
All of us -- regardless of our own sexual orientation -- have experienced
the pain of being pushed back into our "places" with a homophobic slur.
We are asking NOW chapter and state activists in towns and cities across
the nation to speak out against homophobia and stand up for the freedom
to marry this October. Last February, scores of Valentine's Day actions
were organized in support of same-sex marriages. We are counting
on you to generate the same enthusiasm and visibility for lesbian and gay
issues around National Coming Out Day. We have included the following
materials to assist you in your organizing efforts:
MAXIMIZING OUR EFFORTS
We realize that October is a hectic month for feminist activists.
Many chapters and states have scheduled Take Back the Night and other events
to commemorate Domestic Violence Awareness Month. October is also
Breast Cancer Awareness Month. We certainly appreciate how busy you
already are. We know and understand that every chapter and state
cannot do every action.
If you already have an event planned in October, please consider including
a lesbian rights component to it. Any Take Back the Night action
could -- and should -- include speaking out against hate crimes against
lesbians. Given their homophobic rhetoric, a picket or news conference
countering the Promise Keepers should include a discussion of ending discrimination
based on sexual orientation. If you are participating in a Breast
Cancer awareness event, be sure to talk about the high incidence of
the disease among lesbians as compared to the low level of research on
and awareness of lesbian health issues. Whatever your chapter
or state is doing in October, please be sure to include some sort of
Come Out Against Homophobia action.
TELL US ABOUT IT
If your chapter or state does plan an October action, please let us know.
We want to be sure to include your event in any national news release or
other promotion of NOW's Come Out Against Homophobia campaign. Please
contact Cindy Jordan at extension
760 in the Action Center and tell her about your plans. Also feel
free to call Cindy if you have any questions about or need assistance with
this action campaign.
Thank you for all of the work you do for NOW. We look forward
to working with you on this issue during the month of October and beyond.
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