The Gay Marriage Vote and the Rainbow Flag of Victory

In a few hours the foul and shameful debate on gay marriage will begin. Again. For a few more hours after that we'll have to endure the unendurable. As they grope our rights, describe us as less than human. And insult our love.

But at least it looks as if the debate will be a short one.

And when it's over, and the vote is taken, it looks as if we're going to win. Again. And that's all that counts...The whole world will get the message that our beautiful rainbow flag of freedom and victory still flies proudly in Canada. That we won!!! And they lost!!!

Although it's too bad we had to win this way.This foul vote should never have happened. It will stain Canada forever. As the Toronto Star wrote in an editorial the other day:

"!t is difficult to imagine Parliament seriously questioning the constitutional right of women, visible minorities or the disabled to be treated equally under the law. The hard-won right of gays and lesbians to marry, which has been affirmed by courts across the country and by Parliament itself last year, should be given the same respect..."

But of course it wasn't...not only did they put our equality rights to a vote. They voted on them twice. But since the foul deed is done.... Stephane Dion should do the smart thing, instead of the right thing, and allow a free vote.

"If we have a party vote, he'll say that I muzzled my MPs and that if I had let them vote freely the motion would have passed," Dion said of Harper.

What's one more small humiliation? If we can still win the vote...and hurt Harper as well. But of course that's just cheap politics and our struggle is so much more than that....

The sinister ReformCons delayed the vote as long as they could. To give their religious bigot base the time to prepare their hate offensive. They even allowed them to dictate the motion. They fed these monsters the Status of Women and the Court Challenges programs. They let them tell our government what to do.. Even as these nutbars attacked gay children.

But we never gave up. The bigots said it was all about gay marriage. But we knew it was all about us. And about who we love.










The crazy wingnuts had all the money and the organizational strength, courtesy of the American right. While we had practically nothing. After so many struggles and court battles our brave fighting groups are battered, worn down and poor.

But we had this group and letters from gay teenagers like this one....

"I wonder if those fighting so hard against same-sex marriage ever consider how much it means to gays.

They can’t understand what it’s like to listen to your friends talk about how they hate queers and how they wish they were dead. You consider suicide, because you never want anyone to find out the truth about yourself; your shame is too great to bear.

And these people can’t understand the hope that filled my soul when I first found out that Canada was considering allowing same-sex marriage. This legislation goes so far beyond marriage. It is a symbol. It represents the hopes and dreams of gays for a better world. Now that I’m 18, I can finally admit to myself that I am gay and no longer feel the shame that almost drew me to suicide. At least now I have hope..."

And that was enough to never give up.... And now we are almost there... I wonder if straight people can imagine how it feels to fight so many years for the right to be equal. And to finally have victory in sight. To see the barriers and obstacles they put on our road to freedom not just going down. But crumbling to dust. It's such a deep and joyous feeling I couldn't even try to describe it...

Oh I know that bigots like the porker homophobe Charles McVety will never give up.

But he does homophobia for a living so what do you expect? And judging by how fat he is he must live really well.....But I don't want to badmouth the porker tonight. I want to be generous in victory.

So I just want to play this little video, in honour of the occasion. Where he gets to play the hippo. And I get to play the dog....




You see one good thing about fighting for so long. And suffering so much. And putting up with so much shit. About who you are and who you love. Is that when you finally win.

You don't just feel really really good. And so damm proud of your brothers and sisters.

You also get to celebrate early!!!!