The true and real heroes and role models for LGBTQ America are our youth and students as they are proudly coming out in their middle schools and high schools, and taking their rightful places and demanding the same respect that is due to all students. Today’s LGBTQ youth and students are organizing LGBTQ clubs in their schools and running openly as gay students for school offices and prom kings and queens and getting elected by their fellow students. At Patrick Henry High School in San Diego two lesbians were elected as prom king and queen! Across America our youth are doing something my generation would never do in school and that is come out as LGBTQ.
This past Saturday I had the honor of being asked to judge a LGBTQ talent contest at the School of Creative and Performing Arts in Chula Vista. My fellow judges were School Board Member Kevin Beiser and Gay San Diego Editor Morgan Hurley. LGBTQ students from 13 to 17 years old, parents and friends were in the enthusiastic crowd.
The talent I saw was amazing and what I witnessed was most certainly future singers, poets, comedians and dancers. They all could have appeared on NBC’s America’s Got Talent and made it to the finals.
We as a community need to support our LGBTQ youth much more than we do. As I’ve said many times: “Stop saying that the youth are our future as they are our here and now!”
I salute our School Board Member Kevin Beiser who fights for our LGBTQ youth and all students every day. A big “thank you” to Principal Timothy Farson and GSA Club Advisor Eric De Donate for your outstanding life dedication to our youth. Yes, indeed our LGBTQ youth are our true heroes and role models.
June 11 – LGBTQ America is marching!
Sunday, June 11, LGBTQ Americans will be marching all across the country; in Washington, D.C. our nation’s capital and in over 70 cities and counting (including some foreign cities). This is the sixth time that LGBTQ Americans will be marching on Washington. The first national march was in 1979 and the last was in in 2009.
Hundreds of thousands are expected in Washington, D.C. including our friends, families and allies from the recent Women’s March, Environment March, Immigration March, etc. The attacks on our transgender community will be focused on, as well as the push for the Equality Bill in Congress and other important issues facing our community.
Also, a focus will be on getting out the vote for next year’s election and building better and stronger coalitions with our allies. I am proud to once again be elected as a national co-chair and will be in Washington, D.C. for a week. Local veterans’ leader Bob Lehman will be helping me organize a salute to our veterans during the rally.
For more information visit
facebook.com/TheEqualityMarch2017/
Ninth Annual Harvey Milk Diversity Breakfast: May 19
Nine years ago I approached Dr. Delores Jacobs and Robert Gleason about starting an annual LGBT civil rights breakfast similar to our city’s annual Martin Luther King and Cesar Chavez breakfasts, and as they say, the rest is history. Once again over 1,000 San Diegans will gather next Friday morning for the ninth annual event at the San Diego Bayfront Hilton at 7:30 a.m.
2017 honorees will be civil rights icon Cleve Jones, Bishop Yvette A. Flunder of City of Refuge United Church of Christ and San Diego police officers Dan Meyer and Christine Garcia.
Get your tickets today as this event is always sold out. A big “thank you” to Dr. Jacobs and The Center staff for all their hard work with this breakfast.
