HRC Joins the Stand Out for Equality Rally!

On Saturday, November 15th over 1500 people attended the Rally for Equality in Commercial Center in front of the LGBT Center.  The event was sponsored by The Center, Human Rights Campaign (HRC), and the Women’s Empowerment Network (WEN) and was part of an effort to hold Equality Rallies across the US that same day.  The turnout and the energy of the crowd were impressive.  The purpose of the rally was to signal the LGBT community's reaction to the recent loss on Proposition 8 in California, overturning the California Supreme Court's ruling that made marriage of same sex couples legal.

Tom Kovach, the president of The Center, and Candice Nichols, the executive director of The Center, began the presentation by thanking everyone for their participation on such short notice and promising that this is just the first of many such rallies and events to increase visibility and exposure locally in our quest for equal rights.  Following their welcome, we heard from various speakers that each gave an inspiring and personal view of how discrimination has touched their lives.  Dan and Josh Smithman spoke of their recent wedding in California and their dismay of having their rights stripped away by Proposition 8 just months after they celebrated their union.  Jennifer Bolton spoke of the injustice of not having both she and her partner “legally” recognized as parents of their children.

While these stories were discouraging, all the speakers had a message of hope.  Hope that with our continued efforts to educate and talk with our neighbors, co-workers, and families about our struggle for equality, that LGBT Americans will continue to make great strides towards our goal.  Although Prop 8 was a big defeat, the LGBT community continues to have incremental successes such as the recent election of Barak Obama and hundreds of other fair minded politicians throughout the US.

The speakers stressed that the defeat on Prop 8 shows us that we cannot let down.  Those attending the rally were overcome with excitement as Wanda Sykes, a nationally renowned comedian, took the stage unexpectedly.  Wanda’s appearance and speech at the Las Vegas Rally for Equality made national news, including USA Today and the New York Times.  Wanda told the crowd that she was a “proud black lesbian,” but that until she was enraged by the outcome of Prop 8, she had not seen how important it was to tell the world that she was a lesbian.  She said now she knows that we can’t win this fight unless we tell our story to everyone we know.  If someone personally understands how discrimination affects a friend or loved one, then they will understand the importance and join our fight.

The speeches ended and the crowd took the rally to the street and spread out across a large section of sidewalk on E. Sahara.  The crowds held up hundreds of signs and flags and drivers by honked their horns in support.  Local news stations were on hand to report on the rally.  All in all, it was a terrific kick-off to a series of events in Southern Nevada aimed at making citizens aware of the LGBTs large presence and our quest for equality.  Let’s keep up the pressure!