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Editor’s Note
by Matt Comer . Q-Notes staff
February extravaganza
Queer February. It happens every year.
There’s always so much to do and so little time
with which to get it all accomplished. It seems
I’m forced to go into a state of sheer mania just
so I can check off everything on my to do list.
This year’s queer extravaganza was definite
ly magnified, and for the better. It was amazing
to see the LGBT community of the greater
Charlotte area and the Carolinas come together
as a truly united front against the antics of our
area’s anti-gay fundamentalist radical right.
Every year forihe past four, the Human
Rights Campaign has held their Carolinas
Cala in the Queen City. The radical right
never fails to find some way to counter an
event designed to celebrate our community’s
achievements and successes. At first, the anti
gay countering showed up in the form of loud
and obnoxious protests outside the Charlotte
Convention Center by the radical street
preaching group Operation Save America —
the same folks who find it necessary to grace
our community with their presence at the
Pride Charlotte and NC Pride Festivals. It
wasn’t long until one of Charlotte’s most out
spoken anti-gay religious leaders. Dr. Michael
Brown of the Coalition of Conscience, decided
he’d gain a little publicity with his week-long
lecture series on homosexuality
For a couple of years, the LCBT community
ignored Operation Save America’s antics and
Brown’s lectures and media stunts. In 2008, the
Human Rights Campaign sent their religion
and faith director, the Rev. Harry Knox, down
to Charlotte for a debate with Brown.
But it took the radical right upping the
ante ten-fold in order for the loci LCBT com
munity to organize and ensure fair, equitable
media coverage and discussion of our issues.
I was one of the community members help
ing to organize the new group, Charlotte
Rainbow Action Network for Equality I thought
it was extremely important for Ae community
to have a vocal and visible presence,
especially as the media turned their
attention to the curious, “happen
stance” placement of the anti-gay, “ex
gay” Focus on the Family conference
Love Won Gut on the same day as the
annual Human Rights Campaign Cala.
A local blogger on Brown’s website. Voice of
Revolution, told me that the Love Won Out con
ference’s placement on the same day as the Cala
was purely “coincidental.” I’m not going to
assume Brown, a speaker with Love Won Out
and the Charlotte area’s premier perennial HRC
challenger, is that stupid or naive.
The unity of our local, state and national
LGBT and progressive communities was
amazing. Local groups like the University of
North Carolina-Charlotte’s LGBT student
group. Gay Men’s Chorus, One Voice Chorus,
tile Charlotte Coalition for Social Justice and
the Unitarian Universalist Church of Charlotte
officially teamed up with state and national
groups like EqualityNC, Truth Wins Out, the
Human Rights Campaign and Faith in
America to promote a non-violent, peaceful
counter to the harmful “alternative” Focus on
the Family claims to offer those “suffering”
with “same-sex attractions.” Individual mem
bers from several other Carolinas community
organizations, including the Lesbian & Gay
Community Center of Charlotte, SC Pride
Movement, the Charlotte Gender Alliance,
Unity Fellowship Church, Raleigh St. John’s
MCC and the Charlotte Interfaith Network
also lent their helping hands.
Through mid-February, as the obligations
continued to pile up, bum out became more and
more of a reality for me. But, looking back at all
the amazing action taken by our LGBT and pro
gressive community members, I’m inspired and
filled with hope for the future of this city and
this state. Tm proud to work at this paper, proud
to be your editor and servant and proud to call
Charlotte and the Carolinas my home.
I hope you’ll read the wrap up of all the
wonderful Queer February events in this issue
(page 7) and check out Q-Notes Online for the
fabulous photo and video coverage from sev
eral of the events. I
Q-Notes unveils new online features
The staff of Q-Notes is proud to. unveil two new online tools to better serve our LGBT and
straight ally readers.
Grganizations, businesses and other groups can now submit their event listings for our Out &
About calendar through a quick, easy to use online form.
Log on to www.q-notes.com/out-and-about/submit/ to send your events to our staff. As always,
you can still send your event information and press releases to editor@q-notes.com.
Q-Notes is also moving forward with our online and multimedia reporting. A microsite has
been created at www.q-notes.com/multimedia/ to showcase our staff’s audio and video reporting.
Click over to the Multimedia site often to see new videos and new multimedia stories.
The Q-Notes blog, assembloge, is still rolling along and accepting free registration! Sign up for
an account at blog.q-notes.com today and start posting your comments and submitting posts. I
^online q-poll^
Do you think the era of the
gay bar/club is ending?
See the options and vote at
www.q-notes.com
Setui your 'letter to the editor or any
other thoughts to
editorQPq-notes.com or click on over to
our website at www.q-notes.com and
join the conversation there.
Web comments will be featured in each
issue. Limit letters to the editor to 150
words or less and include
your name, city and state and a phone
nund)er where you can be reached.
MARCH 7.2009