LGBT POV

(Longtime LGBT, Latino and labor activist Gloria Nieto is pictured here with her friend Phyllis Lyon at the memorial for Phyllis’ partner of 50 years and finally wife, Del Martin. – KO)

It is the end of a three day weekend.  The holiday is today – Columbus Day.  It is the proverbial slap in the face to indigenous people throughout the continent.  That includes the LGBT Native Americans and Latinos, people of this land.  The celebration of our “discovery” shows the mindset of the ruling class, the pilgrims who came here to bring famine, disease and death to us, to take our lands and languages all in the name of religious freedom.

It is the same ruling class that is shrieking about our President being named the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.  The Lou Dobbs of the world who want to blame all the troubles wrought through greed, lies and incompetence on immigrants.  The Glenn Becks who see the world through the narrow focus of their own prejudice.  The Rushs who will denigrate the country at the altar of their own homophobia, racism, and xenophobia continue to try and take away things we should be proud of as people of this country.

His enemies are our enemies.  We are not equal citizens of the country.  We all continue to be “the other.”

When I lived in New Mexico, I spent a lot of time with my Native American friends.  We laughed at the complete bafflement of some of the people who oversaw our work.  There was joking among us about the “woowoo” people who came to New Mexico in search of Native American wisdom.  As if the knowledge of centuries could be passed on, seeking easy answers when there are none.

Columbus Day was always a hard one.  But yet we found a way to laugh about it.  As if our folks had not suffered greatly from the racism written into the culture, the laws, every day life.  My friends who had gone to boarding school and struggled to keep their language and culture could laugh together about shared miseries.  The others whose families had lived on the same land for centuries and spoke the language of their ancestors always invited us into their homes to share the feasts, the dances, the community.

Today, we “celebrate” the first oppressor.

As things happened in the center of the universe, Washington D.C., this weekend, I continue to look for those who look like me and speak the language of our ancestors.  Where are we?  Neither Luis or I are not on TV but Perez Hilton is, why?  My brothers and sisters remain nameless, faceless, not counted on this weekend celebrating the beginning of our subjugation.

The President addressed “us” at the HRC national dinner Saturday night.  Many listened for hope, a change for us at the federal to make us equal.  This happened at an event attended by people with money because it is, after all, a fundraiser.  But we were not there.  The first African American president will talk through the filter of Columbus, the pilgrims have won and they get the turkey.

Yesterday, three Latinos spoke at the march.  That is progress.  But how many brown people, how many indigenous people were there.  A lot?  A few?  Again we were nameless, faceless, alone in a crowd of people.

As people celebrated National Coming Out Day though the LGBT filter, those of us whose skin is the color of the land saw something different.  Many lifetimes of discrimination that others are just now seeing because we have a black president who just won the Peace Prize.

Let there be peace and equality in our lifetimes by recognizing what has been done so we can change the future.