Analysis:
7{(is the time come far civif disoBecfience?
by Jim Duley
The Unitarian-Universalist hall was full
with about 100 or so lesbians and gay men
who came to hear John D'melio, UNCG Pro
fessor of History, speak on the past, present
and future of the gay rights movement.
The event, a fundraiser for North
Carolina's first Direct Action Group, the
North Carolina Lesbian and Gay Liberation
Front (also known as the Queerheels), was a
truly homosexual one; what other group of
people would think to raise money with a
combination political speaker/dance party?
The general tone of the lecture was fa
miliar and comforting. Lesbians and gay
men, energized from the amazing March on
Washington in October, were getting their
acts together in a way unseen since the
pumps flew and the claws scratched in the
Village during the summer of '69.
Cities in North Carolina where gay poli
tics traditionally meant an occasional sj'sned
letter to the editor (gaspi) have been or
ganizing new groups and strengthening old
ones. The list of gay and lesbian organiza
tions which could not-so-long-ago be counted
on one person’s fingers, now need almost ev
ery extremity of a whole gaggle of queers.
Cities from Asheville to Wilmington are now
the homes of umbrella-type political/
educational lesbian and gay organizations,
at least seven college groups, a substantial
number of AIDS-support and education
groups and four MCC's (not to mention how
many lesbian potluck groups).
And at the same time. North Carolina
and the Western World are witnessing an in
crease in public demonstration and civil dis
obedience by members and supporters of the
lesbian and gay community(ies).
John D'Emilio spent much of his speech
on this issue (rightly so, since it was a ben
efit for those "rowdies" who staged the
Valentine's Day kiss-in at Jesse Helms'
Raleigh office and were the talk of the local
media). He drew a number of intriguing
parallels between the Black Civil Rights
movement and the Gay and Lesbian move
ment to help clarify why CD and public
demonstration in general seem to co-occur
with a huge blossoming of energy, organiz
ing, and empowerment.
The Black movement spent several
decades in an initial phase of development,
when organizations like the NAACP and the
Urban League were founded. At this time,
however, the dominant (i.e. straight and
white and male) society was able to pretty
much ignore the "Black problem" and go on
discriminating as per usual.
After World War II, however, the move
ment entered a second, more visible stage in
its development. No longer could the white
majority ignore the people of color and their
outrage over their oppression. Lawsuits
were filed and often won by blacks and
black organizations, most notably Brown v.
the Board of Education of Topeka, which be
gan the dismantling of apartheid, Merican
Style.
But it was about this time that the Civil
Rights movement entered its third and most
radically successful stage of development
one that saw successes outnumber failures
at an ever increasing number and that
paved the way for eventual (although not
complete in the 1980s) success of the struggle.
What brought about this quite sudden
shift in the movement? Direct Action! Peo
ple like Rosa Parks refusing to move to the
rear of the bus, people like the youths who
refused to leave the Greensboro Woolworth's
lunch counter, and people like Martin Luther
King, Jr. addressing hundreds of thousands
of blacks and whites at the March on
Washington.
Similarly, John D'Emilio said, the lesbian
and gay movement has gone through these
stages of development. Before the late 1960s,
organizations like the Mattachine Society
were established, and although they contin
ued to grow, they were virtually ignored by
the straight society. After a time often
marked by the 1969 riots in Greenwich Vil
lage, the lesbian and gay movement moved
into a second stage of steady progress and
victory, such as local ordinances in cities
like Chapel Hill and San Francisco and even
Wisconsin.
But now some members of the lesbian
and gay community, who have been "within
the system" types since they were baby
dykes and faggots (and I am definitely one of
them) have come to understand that it is
only through direct action that any real
change is possible, to both let the general
non-gay populace sit up and take notice of
us, and also to let them see our strength and
power.
The power of direct action became clear
to the nation as the largest civil rights
demonstration ever to be held in Washington,
DC was planned and carried out by queers
and their friends. This was a march to
show the world that we are here (and have
always been here) and that we are strong
and united. Strong and united because of (in
spite of?) our tremendous diversity as a
people.
But, these same "within the system"
types who helped make the march so
powerful are often a bit skittish when the
subj0ct of civil disobedience, an (ohmigod) il
legal action, comes up. "It'll just feed the
fire of homophobia" they say, and in many
respects, they are right. Often our actions
do provoke the hatred of others. But this is
no reason not to fight. Just ask Coretta Scott
King about her husband's work. Was it
worth it? Can you seriously ask?
Illegal CD is certainly not for everyone,
and not to be done lightly. Groups like the
Queerheels (which is, by the way, a direct
outgrowth of the CD in Washington at the
March) recognize that some people cannot
afford (socially, economically, emotionally) to
break laws to point out injustice. Often, as
was the case in Washington, the action pro—
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