I was born in 1962. My lifespan has encompassed most of the fights for basic human rights the United States has waged within itself in the 20th, and now 21st, Centuries. One by one, legal battles have secured tenuous, but still holding, victories for Americans who believe we all should have equal rights--ALL the equal rights. Another victory just happened, again a legal one. But the battle didn't start in the courts. Nor in Congress, or with the Presidency, nor The Supreme Court. None of them did. They started in the pews of churches, the desks in front of classes, the local restaurants, the bars, the streets, the homes, the individual minds. They grew from a few voices trying to speak over the roar of bigotry, ignorance, and hypocrisy, to the sounds of collected voices leading burgeoning human rights movements that sprang up across the country, flowing forth like new rivers: city by city, county by county, state by state. Those who believed that change could happen yelled, preached, marched, picketed, even crashed places of government to be heard. Eventually, they gathered enough support and ran for elected positions, and (finally) won--from the local governing bodies on to the national ones. And over time, after much debate, and fierce, sometimes deadly, opposition, laws were made, and more and more equality, for more and more people, created a newer America. These are the well-told stories of my lifetime. Some of the voices who told them have been silenced. The rest of us need to keep telling them.
This happened in the 18th Century, of course, when a revolution created a republic, with a radical declaration and constitution that promised equality to everyone. But we still don't have it. We are closer than ever, but still not there. Just over a week ago, men and women who love others of the same sex can now enjoy freedoms I never dreamed could arrive in my lifetime, when I came out as a gay man at 25 years old. I have made a home with a loving and beautiful man for 22 years. If and when we choose to marry, we will be able to do so, no matter where in America we live. But the hate spewing forth on TV and YouTube and Twitter is loud and heated and irrational and fearful and dangerous. True, it will never again silence all of those who have fought and won those battles, but it won't go away. It never has. We have more battles, as the vile hatred from some of the non-entities running for President can attest. We fight on.
This July 4th, I am as proud to be an American as I ever have been. I live in exciting times. I have been shown more love and kindness this past year than I could have imagined. But even some of those I love dearly, and who love me as well, cannot break away from what I see as their prejudices. They think I cannot break away from mine. But they listen to my point of view, and I listen to theirs. To me, that's great progress, and encouraging. The fireworks and the music celebrate both the victories and the battles fought but not won. Like the flag, we are still there.
