RANT:
Queer Politics

Queer Politics
a double entendre

by Ruby Lips
May 31, 2002

This past Wednesday we wiggled way downtown to a Gubernatorial Candidates Forum hosted by OutPOCPAC.  What is that? Its not a ping pong club; rather it is an erudite and straight forward organization called, Out people of color political action club.  Gay groups such as this are the new wave of self-empowerment; no longer need we rely on empty promises from politicians outside the community who will tell us anything to get our votes.  We now have our own elected officials who are either gay or proactive in implementing gay rights legislation.  Moreover, gay urban communities now have sufficient political momentum to afford specific identity groups to represent themselves without any dilution of the common cause.  These legions of queer people in pressed pants who spend endless evenings at small political party gatherings are the ones who make our current rights progress possible.

All the candidates were invited to attend and speak.  The only major candidate who showed up was Carl McCall.  The profound insult by the others spoke for itself.  A representative of Mr. Cuomo's campaign was scheduled to appear, but never arrived.  Governor Pataki was endorsed via a message from Log Cabin Republicans which was read aloud to the assemblage.  I must say that the fact that that dubious endorsement was dutifully presented demonstrates the fairness and integrity of the OutPOCPAC group.

A number of local politicians and candidates for local office were present.  Most prominently, Margarita Lopez of the City Council was there and gave an incredible, powerful, and fiery introduction of Comptroller McCall.  At one point she quipped, "I'm on the LEFT and sometimes people get nervous (about her endorsing them)."   I wish that she were now herself running for governor of the State of New York.  She speaks so strongly and eruditely for rights for all people.  She has come to office as a result of all the past struggles for civil rights.  And now, speaking of Mr. McCall's qualifications and the fact that he is Black, she repeated, "the time is now, the time is now, the time is now!  At first I was not so certain, in my own mind, that these facts were reason enough to decide to vote for Mr. McCall as opposed to Mr. Cuomo for whose name and political lineage I had some favor.  But, I began to realize that the fact that Mr. Cuomo found it inexpedient to represent himself to this small gay black group may mean that the time has passed for him to be considered to lead this state.

Mr. McCall, himself, was not a particularly impressive speaker this evening.  He stumbled on the phrase 'LGBT' as if trying to remember to whom he was speaking at the end of a long day.  He also made use of that most unfortunate locution, "you people," which, I presume unintentionally, made clear his need to separate himself as a person of color from gay people of color. He gave a canned grinder of a speech about his intent to legislate for better schools; the sort that is indistinguishable from promises made by politicians for the past thousand years.  He did, after that, address gay issues, although somewhat vaguely, indicating his support of SONDA. He also noted that, as governor, he would have openly gay people on his staff.  Oh pleeeeze, we've had queers in the White House for years, even under Republicans as it were.  Mr. McCall kept one hand in his ill fitting suit pocket while discussing gay issues.  Make of that what you will.  I still would like to hear what Mr. Cuomo has to say; but if he doesn't bother to talk to those still on the fringe of historical disenfranchisement, then Mr. McCall will get my one vote because he does have the courage to appear and to listen to others who are still on the road to self-empowerment.