LGBT GROUPS TAKE STAND AGAINST WAR
By Leslie Feinberg
A number of leaders of lesbian, gay, bi and trans groups across the United States have announced their plans to hold a media conference on Nov. 8, 2002, iin Portland, Ore., to "address the impending war against Iraq, the Bush administration's continued infringement on civil rights and civil liberties in the United States, and their implications on the wider LGBT community."
The news conference will take place at the opening of the annual Creating Change conference, sponsored by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF).
An impressive list of confirmed speakers at the press conference includes: Faisal Alam, founder and director of Al- Fatiha Foundation for LGBT Muslims; Surina Khan, executive director of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission; Dayo Gore, chair of the Police Violence Working Group, Audre Lorde Project; Lorri L. Jean, executive director of NGLTF; Craig Bowman, executive director of the National Youth Advocacy Coalition; Joseph DeFilippis, coordinator of Queer Economic Justice Network; Mandy Carter, long-time anti-war activist from Durham, N.C; Katherine Acey, executive director of the Astrea Lesbian Action Foundation; Susanna Fried, co-chair of Amnesty International OUTfront Steering Committee; Kay Whitlock, special representative for LGBT Programs of the American Friends Service Committee; YK Hong, organizer and activists, Freedom Trainers; and Carmen Vasquez, long-time LGBT activist from New York City.
In the news release, Faisal Alam stated, "The Bush administration continues to violate domestic and international law by its continued aggression in the name of a 'war on terrorism.' We must stand united as a progressive LGBT community and speak out for peace and justice.
"National Gay and Lesbian Task Force should be applauded for creating an opportunity for progressive LGBT people to discuss the Bush administration's domestic and foreign policies and their impact on our communities," Alam added. "We urge NGLTF and other justice-seeking LGBT organizations to take a firm and vocal stance against war, while standing firm in its commitment to social justice."
News conference organizers said they plan anti-war mobilizing actions, including leafleting, distributing buttons and stickers, petitioning and holding a community- wide dialogue about the war, the Bush administration's post Sept. 11 policies and how they have impacted on LGBT people and organizations.
Those supporting the news conference and anti-war organizing include the Out Against the War Coalition, the Fairness Campaign of Louisville, Ky., African Ancestral Lesbians United for Societal Change, Queers Against the War, Queers for Racial and Economic Justice, the Queer Economic Justice Network and the Lavender Green Caucus of the U.S. Green Party.
Kevin Weaver, spokesperson for the Out Against the War Coalition, urged the lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex communities, "including national and international organizations, to take a clear, visible and vocal stand opposing all wars, especially the Bush administration's unjust war against the Iraqi people."
The news release listed LGBT and allied organizations that have issued or will soon issue statements "opposing the Bush administration's (current and past) war plans and its continued infringement on civil rights and civil liberties since Sept. 11."
These groups include: Al-Fatiha, the Audre Lorde Project, the National Youth Advocacy Coalition, The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, the Astrea Lesbian Action Foundation, the Unitarian Universalist Association, the United Church of Christ, the Christian Church-Disciples of Christ and the American Friends Service Committee.
In addition, the AFL-CIO labor federation's Pride At Work--a broad organization of LGBT union members--issued a resolution Oct. 3 "against U.S. preemptive attacks and war."
The Out Against the War Coalition news release concluded that since Sept. 11, hundreds of thousands of people have rallied and marched in cities across the U.S. and around the world to protest the domestic and foreign policies of the Bush administration.
The International ANSWER coalition--Act Now to Stop War & End Racism--formed shortly after Sept.11, has invited LGBT leaders to speak at every one of its mass demonstrations against the U.S. war and the racist roundup of Arab, South Asian and Muslim people in this country
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