Monthly Newsletter of the Alice B. Toklas Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Democratic Club
October 2007

Table of Contents

• Dates With Alice


• Co-Chairs' Report


• Reese's World: Perspectives from the Editor: "Coming Out Is Family Values"


• Thank You from Supervisor Tom Ammiano


• California GOP's Election "Reform" Measure Reeks of Rove by Assemblyman Mark Leno


• Alice Membership Form

Dates With Alice

top

October Co-Chairs' Report

Fall is upon us.  And Fall means there's an election cycle.  And that means Alice is out there.  This month's co-chair column focuses on the club's numerous volunteer activities and club activities.

Alice demonstrates once again why we are one of the most sought after, most respected endorsements in our City.  Despite the low election turn out, we are still organizing volunteers to get the word out about the November election, reminding the community that there is an election and every vote counts.  We need your help to make this season as successful as always.  Alex Randolph, our Field Chair, is organizing our tabling efforts at 17th and Noe every Saturday, as well as for the Castro Street Fair.  Please contact him at alexrandolph**at**gmail**dot**com if you have free time on any Saturday from now until November.

Our Fall Awards ceremony will be held at Club Eight, on Folsom Street between 7th and 8th on October 11th from 6:30-8:00pm.  This event will honor our friends who have made a significant contribution to the community.   This year, Alice is honoring:

top

Reese's World: Perspectives from the Editor
Coming Out Is Family Values
by Reese Aaron Isbell, M.P.P.

The buzzwords back in the 80's and 90's were about 'family values.' This was the Republican Religious Right's way of saying that they were for families by being opposed to us Gay folk. Even if we were part of the family. Because to them, valuing the family meant getting rid of the Queers, making us 'straight,' denying our existence, and shaming us out of their lives. And then, from a distance, they could talk about how they were against us, rather than we were already part of them.

We have not only taken the word Queer back from the hateful use of its history, but we're now taking the words 'family values' back too. Since we have been coming out more and more over the decades, we have been making safer spaces for others to come out more and more, which makes it even more safe space for others to do so and on and on. And within these safe spaces, our families are coming out too. As allies. Like never before.

Witness the conservative Republican mayor of San Diego and his speech in favor of marriage equality. Because of his daughter. Because she is openly Lesbian. Because he loves her and values his family. Had this been 20 years ago, would he have even acknowledged her, let alone valued her and her human sexuality? Or would he have hidden her? Or shamed her? Or sent her to get saved? Or also possible, would she have even had the courage to come out in a space that wasn't safe to do so?

We have made these spaces safe for our fellow Queers and our families by coming out and speaking truth about our lives.

Witness my family. Had I never come out, would they even talk about or discuss issues of Gay life? Would they have ever started feeling comfortable in speaking about Gay issues with others in their family and social and church networks?

Witness your own community. Had we not continued on ongoing fight for our right to be who we are, and live our lives openly and justly, would our cities or states have ever enacted non-discrimination ordinances or hate crimes legislation or domestic partnership rights or even full marriage equality?

And witness our own lives. Had we not come out and lived our own lives, would we have the growing families of our own that we have now? Witness the numerous Queer couples who are having and/or raising children. Who are going to their family reunions. As they are. With their partners. And less and less people are batting an eye. And more and more people are feeling safer to be open. Even if it's just to be open to support equality.

Coming out of the closet is family values. We are valuing our family when we let them in to who we are as part of the family. They are valuing us when they hear us, accept us, and let us live openly as we are. And we are all valuing the family when we live together as one.

top

Thank You from
Supervisor Tom Ammiano

Dear Alice Friends:

Thank you very much for your early endorsement of my candidacy to the State Assembly representing district 13. It means a great deal. Your support will help my campaign build the foundation for a strong, grassroots campaign, and begin communicating to the individuals and organizations across California whose support is crucial to getting things done in Sacramento

Working together, I am proud we were able to pass important legislation on health care access, the environment and greening of buildings, school funding, and campaign ethics reform. We were pioneers in passing the landmark Domestic Partners law. We have had opportunities to create change that we never imagined. I look forward to continuing our successes in Sacramento.

With you by my side, we'll continue to fight the important fights.

Warmest regards,

Tom Ammiano

top

California GOP's Election "Reform" Measure Reeks of Rove
by Assemblyman Mark Leno

Dear Alice Friends,

This is one straight out of Karl Rove's political playbook. A group of Republican political operatives and their powerful special interests have hatched a desperate scheme to rig California's electoral process to their advantage. They're proposing a statewide ballot initiative to change how California casts its electoral votes for President. They've cleverly labeled it the 'Presidential Election Reform Act,' which would sound credible if it weren't so cynical.

But make no mistake, this wolf-in-sheep's-clothing has nothing to do with reform or protecting voters' interests or preserving the integrity of our Constitution. It's an audacious power grab by the GOP as it spirals into irrelevance leading up to the 2008 Presidential race.

The Republican Party is in complete disarray. Wracked by scandal and corruption, the GOP has apparently concluded that it has little chance of appealing to voters on the merits. President Bush's poll numbers are melting faster than an Alaskan glacier and a recent nationwide poll showed that two-thirds of young voters surveyed believe that Democrats do a better job than Republicans of representing their interests.

Add to that reports of the state Republican Party's serious financial woes and the resignation in June of its embattled chief operating officer and it's easy to see why state GOP leaders figured it was time for a little election reform.

It shouldn't come as any surprise that some of the same Republican forces behind this bogus reform effort were responsible for the despicable Swift Boat ads attacking Presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004. Bob Perry, who contributed $4.5 million for the Swift Boat ads, is so far bankrolling the GOP electoral reform initiative to the tune of $50,000.

There's no question that our nation deserves a meaningful discussion about improving the way in which we elect our chief executive officer. The 2000 Presidential election showed us that our current system is far from perfect. But that's not what this is about and it's not what the GOP has in mind.

No, this Karl Rovian scheme is a slick GOP effort to steal as many as 24 of California's 55 electoral votes and deliver them to their party's 2008 Presidential nominee. Under our current system, whatever candidate wins the majority vote in California gets all of the state's electoral votes. Republicans, out-of-step with California's progressive values and unwilling to change their message, haven't had much success.

Unfortunately, the "solution" the GOP is proposing for divvying up California's electoral votes based on Congressional districts would be even less fair than the system we've got now. An analysis by the respected election reform organization FairVote (www.fairvote.org) concluded that the GOP reform scheme fails to "promote majority rule, greater competitiveness, or voter equality" and would, in fact, "dramatically increase incentives for partisan machinations."

With all of the serious issues we are facing in this state, from health care to education to our crumbling infrastructure, is this really the issue that Republican leaders believe California should be focusing on? More likely, it's the one that fits their national agenda for keeping us in Iraq indefinitely, ignoring global warming and giving tax breaks to the rich while burdening future generations with unprecedented debt.

The apparent strategy of the GOP operatives who are advancing this initiative further reveals their sinister and cynical intent. They are looking to place it on the June 2008 ballot and exploit low voter turnout to sneak it through. Beating back this GOP power grab will take an aggressive education effort. As a recent New York Times editorial concluded, "If voters understand that the initiative is essentially an elaborate dirty trick posing as reform, they are likely to vote against it."

Let's make the Republicans come to their senses and drop this scheme altogether. Republicans may be understandably frustrated that they cannot get their hands on California's rich pool of electoral votes and that the GOP's values, policies and conduct at the national level don't resonate with the majority of Californians. Rather than trying to bamboozle voters, they should focus their attention instead on cleaning up their act and updating their message.

Mark Leno
www.MarkLeno.com

P.S. Be sure to also check out the Summer edition of the "Leno Report."

top

Alice Membership Form

Alice B Toklas LGBT Democratic Club
1800 Market Street PMB#18
San Francisco, CA 94102
Tel: 415-707-2010
www.alicebtoklas.org
Alice Reports Editor: Reese Aaron Isbell, M.P.P.

Month of October: Membership Meeting, October 8

You can now join online www.alicebtoklas.org/abt/joinonline.asp, or fill out the application below

Membership Application

Yes, I want to join the Alice B. Toklas Democratic Club!

__$35 Regular
__$100 Supporter
__$250 Sponsor
__$500 Champion
__$20 Special Needs
__Other

__I am renewing my membership        __I will be a new member

__I am a registered Democrat

Name ______________________________________________________________

Address _____________________________________________________________

City ____________________________________State: ______Zip: _____________

Phone: Day __________________________Eve: _____________________________

Email: _________________________________________

Please send checks payable to “Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club” and mail to:

Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club
1800 Market Street, PMB#18
San Francisco, CA 94102

top