Common Foes on Common Ground? LGBT, Pro-Choice Movements Need to Draw the Line

[Hazumu]

Common Foes on Common Ground? LGBT, Pro-Choice Movements Need to Draw the Line

It's hard to believe that there still is no federal workplace protection for LGBT people. ENDA, or the Employee Non-Discrimination Act, has been around in one form or another since 1974, struggling to become law. Again, that seems to be a good enough reason for some compromise language to break the impasse. Religious conservatives have disingenuously argued that their religious freedom would be compromised if they were required to hire LGBT people, cloaking outright prejudice in the vestments of the church. And what emerged has been the willingness of liberal politicians to exclude transgender people from protections against employment discrimination. What kind of a message is that?

To those who say the time is not right, the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" is a powerful response. King answered criticism that he was divisive and "untimely" by pointing out that no real progress has ever occurred without a struggle by the oppressed for their freedom, however uncomfortable that process feels for people nervous about conflict.

Emphasis mine =K

[GinaDouglas]

You don't go far enough.  It's more than LGBT and pro-choice that have common ground in the battle against the hypocritical right.  Republicans and Conservatives constantly spout that they are "against government intrusion into their lives", when really they are only against government intrusion into their wallets.  In the meantime, they want to use government to legislate their views on morality.  Else there would be no laws against gambling, pornography, drugs or prostitution either.  We need an entire coalition for personal liberty incorporating us, pro-choice, and the other groups.  The question then becomes, can we all stay in the same boat withoug killing each other.  Or will some people say, "I want my liberty, but you can't have yours, because I find it icky."