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01 May 2008 08:01 am

Obama And The Gays

It's so strange to me that some believe that Obama's politics represents some kind of messianism, while he consistently tells people that they have to be the change they want in the world and that no leader can do it for them. And that's also his message to gays:

I have always said that I don’t think that the LGBT community should take its cues from me or some political leader in terms of what they think is right for them. Real change comes from the bottom up, not the top down.

Some of us have been saying this for years; and it's incredibly heartening to hear a politician echo it. This is a core difference between Obama's and Clinton's philosophy, it seems to me. Clinton believes government can save people and she, as the benign representative of government, can bestow equality on minorities. You just have to vote for Democrats, give money to the Democratic party interest groups (like the Human Rights Campaign) and your equality will come eventually (but always later than they say). I prefer an approach that tells gay people that they need to get off their asses, talk to straight people, build their relationships, support their community, empower themselves and win the argument for inclusion and integration. No politician can do that for us. And Obama is one of the few politicians who is honest enough to say so.

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