Outside the Log Cabin

LGBT activists continue a tired cause

By Rachel L. Wagley

Log Cabin Republicans” used to conjure up images of Abraham Lincoln, sitting in his Illinois home and drinking hot cider by the fire. Now, Patrick Sammon heads an organization by the same name, which has changed the term from a bit of imagery to a major LGBT faction in the Republican Party.

“Gay Voters & the 2008 Election” drew a diverse crowd to Harvard Hall on October 14. The Executive Director of the Stonewall Democrats, Jon Hoadley, joined Sammon in a debate over LGBT issues in partisan politics. Jeffrey Kwong organized the debate, which was co-sponsored by the LGBT Political Coalition, the Harvard Republican Club, and the Harvard College Democrats. 

Hoadley gushed over his candidate and party, declaring, “Obama is miles ahead of his opponent when it comes to LGBT equality.” Sammon conceded that the Republican Party “isn’t where it needs to be [on] equality issues,” but no progress can be made without the Republican vote.

Disagreeing with “95 percent of what the Democratic party represents,” Sammon focused on the so-called positives of McCain’s policies. McCain voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA), paying the political price for his decision in subsequent elections. He also supported federal protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation in the workplace and reviewing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” making him by far the most inclusive Republican presidential nominee ever to run. 

While Hoadley retorted by reminding the audience of a vote on a constitutional amendment in Arizona to ban gay marriage, which McCain supported, that “was even worse for LGBT issues than FMA,” he is wrong to support Obama unilaterally. The presidential debates confirmed that Obama and McCain’s campaigns stand on the same platform when it comes to LGBT issues. 

Sammon asked why Obama did not push for LGBT issues while he sat in the Senate and accused him of delivering little more than words. Obama’s flip-flopping opinions on gay marriage did not faze Hoadley, who joked, “If Obama changes his mind on marriage, I’ll be the happiest guy in the room.”

Sammon also defended Republican vice presidential candidate Governor Sarah Palin. Although Sammon pointed out that a vice presidential candidate’s opinion is negligible when judging a candidate’s LGBT inclinations—Vice President Cheney’s only open contention with President Bush involves the FMA—he took pains to support Palin. In Alaska, social conservatives pushed Palin to sign a bill banning benefits to same-sex partners of state employees, which she vetoed. Sammon argued her supposed wavering social conservatism qualifies her for Vice President, as he insisted Palin “knows she can never be president if she’s a hard-line social conservative.” Indeed, Sammon lauded McCain’s apparent “disdain for social conservatives.”

The jab aimed at social conservatives elicited sidelong glances from the audience, most of whom smiled, while a few grimaced. Ultimately, this loaded comment lost Sammon my respect. Most social conservatives take great pains to distance themselves from homophobic sentiments and stereotypes, and Sammon’s blatant insult to this group was unnecessary. 

The LGBT rights agenda is hardly being impeded from any side. A growing number of Republicans support civil unions: This year, forty-nine percent of RNC delegates supported civil unions and a growing number of states have legalized gay marriage. On October 10, Connecticut’s Supreme Court legalized gay marriage. The court’s 4-3 ruling reflects a growing trend toward integrating gays into traditional institutions. While three states now acknowledge gay marriage, other institutions hope the ruling will spur California, Florida, and Arizona to pass constitutional amendments against gay marriage. James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, laments, “We decry this decision by justices unelected and unaccountable to the people…they have usurped the role of the legislators to create law.” As state courts increasingly condone homosexual marriage, LGBT issues at Harvard are likewise popularized. 

The College, the Women’s Center, and LGBT student organizations over-emphasize gay issues on campus. LGBT causes feel overdone and leave those weary of hearing about gay rights abuses rolling their eyes. Fortunately, “Gay Voters & the 2008 Election” served a definite purpose, persuading those who vote Democrat merely for LGBT reasons to open their eyes and smell the coffee. Obama will do no more than McCain, and pertinent issues in the daily lives of the American people cannot be sacrificed for LGBT voting crusades.