Walt Amses: We’ve come a long way, but there’s a long way to go – vtdigger.org

This commentary is by Walt Amses, a writer who lives in North Calais.

President Joe Biden invited multitudes to the White House in celebration of his signing into law the Respect for Marriage Act, landmark bipartisan legislation protecting gay marriage extraordinary on its own.

But even more compelling is considering the distance we’ve traveled since the seismic response to Vermont codifying gay relationships in 2000. 

Called “a momentous legal victory” by the ACLU, the civil union bill was based on the state Supreme Court ruling that the benefits and protections of marriage must be extended to same-sex couples. 

As I recall, none of that was nearly as simple as it sounds. Laws can be changed with the stroke of a pen. Minds take a little longer — 20-plus years in this case — and despite how far we’ve come on paper, we’re still not done.

Writing in support of civil unions and later gay marriage in the Times Argus and other local media outlets, I vividly recall the unbridled loathing leveled at the LGBTQ community and anyone advocating equality and acceptance of same-sex unions, some of it aimed in my direction. 

One thing I learned that continues to play out two decades later is that demonizing the gay and trans community still pays political dividends in certain circles, so consequently remains a potent wedge issue, especially for evangelicals, who claim essentially that hate crimes and religious liberty go hand in hand.

While sexual orientation is a protected category along with race, color, national origin and religion in federal anti-discrimination laws, gay couples continue to experience bigotry in a number of ways, especially from conservative-owned businesses. In a case currently before the Supreme Court, a Colorado web designer argues that her websites constitute art and are “One of a kind, unique” as she explained to NPR: “I cannot create something that violates the core of what I believe,” which is that marriage should be only between a man and a woman. 

Citing the state’s public accommodation law as a “violation of her right to free speech and expression,” she is petitioning the court to protect her “right” to impose her religious beliefs on others — creating wedding websites that are “consistent with my faith” — which she cannot legally do while offering services to the general public. Imagine a business owner similarly discriminating against any other group with protected status. 

It’s unthinkable that the court would countenance a business open to the public that refused to serve Jews, or African Americans, or Muslims, so why might it be an open question whether the LGBTQ community is entitled to similar protections? That the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear the case at all is troubling enough, but indications, according to some legal experts, imply that the conservative justices are sympathetic to the web designer who most likely brought the case at least in part based on the makeup of the court, gerrymandered by Mitch McConnell into an ironclad far-right majority.

The progress of gay rights, particularly marriage, over the past two decades is undeniable. As recently as 2004, according to The Washington Post, “Polls showed the majority of Americans — 60 percent — opposed same-sex marriage while only 31 percent were in favor.” The Pew Research Center reported four years ago that those numbers had reversed to 61 percent across multiple demographic groups now supporting, marking a near unprecedented shift in attitudes unique to this issue. 

Despite decades of progress, though, equality is “not within reach and often not even within sight” for those impacted by violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in the United States, claims Victor Madrigal-Borloz, the U.N. Independent Expert on protection against such violence and discrimination. 

His conclusion following a 10-day visit was that the LGBTQ community in the U.S. continues to face significant inequality in relation to health, education, employment and housing, as well as being disproportionately impacted by violence.

Even as the president signs protections for gay couples into law, the LBGTQ community is reeling after another targeted mass shooting at the Club Q in Colorado Springs, where five died and 25 others were wounded by a 22-year-old gunman who almost certainly would have killed more if not for the heroism of patrons at the bar, long considered a safe haven. 

Gay Americans have become convenient scapegoats and easy targets for bullies of all stripes, from the camouflaged, gun-toting bigots who show up at Pride Parades to GOP stalwarts like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who would have his constituents believe trans youth and comprehensive sex education are the biggest problems facing the state. Anxious to burnish his conservative bona fides for an expected 2024 presidential campaign, DeSantis caters to the ever-increasing radicalism of the Republican base with atrocities like his “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which appears designed to keep the state’s students as ignorant as he pretends to be. 

With same-sex marriage now codified by federal law, especially in light of 12 Senate Republicans having joined the majority with another 47 voting yes in the House, it would seem a celebration is in order. 

But while we’re patting ourselves on the back, we should keep in mind that the Respect for Marriage Act is a specific victory, in a specific battle in an ongoing war against the discrimination LGBTQ individuals face in health care, housing and employment, which often threaten physical and mental health along with financial well-being. 

This journey isn’t over and the magnitude change necessary will not come easily or quickly, but we’re on the road and have been for 50 years. Since the Stonewall riots launched the modern gay rights movement in 1969, the community has fearlessly taken giant steps, relentlessly pushing the envelope, demanding the right to be themselves, educating everyone else in the process, always with a life-affirming resilience that will eventually win the war. 

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