Obama Leaves Gays in the Cold

Failure to Acknowledge the Inevitable

It's a sorry state of affairs when Dick Cheney has usurped Barack Obama's position as a steward of progress. But that's exactly what has happened, with Cheney declaring his acceptance of gay marriage as Obama desperately attempts to avoid confronting the issue. Cheney's action is neither brave nor commendable. As the country's #2, he had 8 years where he could've made a positive difference. His recent support for gay marriage is a product of personal circumstances, and a daughter whom he hopes to protect from the discrimination that the LGBT community currently subjected to. Once again, nothing wrong with this motive, but his minimal gesture should be put into context.

Obama's moment has come, and so far he has completely flip-flopped on the issues of gay marriage and "don't ask, don't tell" (DADT). Perhaps the writing was on the wall when Rick Warren was hand-picked to give the invocation at Obama's inauguration in January. Warren, the California pastor who lobbied voraciously for Prop. 8, seemed an unlikely candidate for the coronation of someone who received extensive support from the gay community during his campaign.

Since assuming office Obama has dodged the issue of gay marriage, and has upheld DADT under the premise of "legitimate interest in military discipline". One such case was Dan Choi, an Army National Guard Lieutenant who is faced with discharge from the military after coming out. His position as an Arab linguist affords him tremendous importance in America's overseas campaigns, an importance that is apparently rendered trivial by concerns of sexual persuasion.

Just how widespread are these concerns though?

The senselessness of the military kicking out a soldier whose much-needed skills are in short supply has not escaped the American public. A recent Gallup poll found that almost 70 percent of Americans are in favor of military service by openly gay men and lesbians, and even a majority of conservatives -- 58 percent -- do not oppose openly homosexual soldiers serving in the military.

Obama may be biding his time before taking on a lightning rod issue such as this, hoping to shore up support and political capital before the confrontation. But as with all civil rights issues, you can never give the powers that be the benefit of the doubt. If past lessons teach us anything, it's constant grassroots pressure that ultimately leads to the deluge.

Read Der Spiegel's report, American Gays and Lesbians Feel Betrayed by Obama.

The inspiring Lt. Dan Choi:



This video is also quite telling, and quite humorous. I think it speaks for itself: