National Equality March 2009

Last Sunday I had the honor of attending the National Equality March in Washington, D.C. Living so close to D.C., I often feel like I take the beauty of our national historic sites for granted. I have seen the White House countless times, given many tours of the area to visitors we have hosted, and protested at the Capitol a few times as well. This time was different, however. The feeling in the air was so peaceful, and there were an estimated 250,000 marchers for equality.

We marched along Pennsylvania Avenue, from the White House to the Capitol, the same route that President Obama's motorcade took on inauguration day earlier this year. Once at the Capitol, there was a three hour rally with countless speakers who demanded full equality for GLBT Americans. I saw a man wearing a tshirt that read, "Legalize Gay." The shirt encompasses all of the issues that the GLBT community is fighting for. We didn't just march for marriage rights, or march to demand the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell. There were so many issues that inspired this march, and we marched for every single one of them:

Marriage Equality
Repealing the Defense of Marriage Act
Ending the military's Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy
Passing Hate Crimes Protection Laws
Passing the Employee Non-Discrimination Act


Judy Shepard, the mother of hate crime victim Matthew Shepard, spoke about the importance of passing the Matthew Shepard Hate Crime Act, which currently sits in the Senate awaiting a vote. Cleve Jones, a prodigy of Harvey Milk, spoke on the urgency of funding AIDS research, among many other things. Lady Gaga even spoke and demanded that President Obama and Congress pass federal same-sex marriage bills that protect all couples and families.

The spirit of equality was in the air... the march was peaceful... and the crowd was angry and hopeful all at the same time. Let's hope that this movement has inspired many people, both gay and straight, to continue fighting the little battles that will one day add up to a win for full equality. I was blessed to spend the day marching and rallying with my partner and my mother, and thought of our countless friends and family members across the country who were there with us in spirit.