New year, new outlook

2009 is not a year for whiners.
With all the negative buzz lately surrounding the Rick Warren decision by Obama, the failure of the Matt's Safe Schools and the second parent adoption bills in Michigan and – lest we forget for even a second – the absolutely horrible economic situation facing every single American family, gay or straight, it would be easy to turn New Year parties into pity parties.
But with the changing of the calendars comes the cleaning out of our own spiritual closets and – hopefully – a burst of optimism and determination in Michigan's LGBT movement.
With the ringing in of the New Year and a lot of big changes in the local and national landscape for LGBT Americans, we at Between The Lines implore you to stop complaining and start moving.
Looking back at the past year, there have been few large successes in Michigan's LGBT rights movement. Three cities, Detroit, Kalamazoo and Hamtramck, passed anti-discrimination ordinances, but Hamtramck's was repealed in the Nov. 4 election. Several large donations were made to local organizations, including the Ruth Ellis Center and the Midwest AIDS Prevention Project, yet December has been a month for layoffs, mergers and downsizing within LGBT non-profits due to the poor economy. Many major successes, including the election of allies in important political seats, have been tempered by defeats in other areas.
Just in the past month, Michigan LGBTs saw the failure of two bills that many expected to be passed by the time we rang in 2009. But, alas, our schools and our families are still unsafe.
Many of the year's high notes have been microcosmic, such as the protests in Redford over the post of an anti-gay church sign, or several efforts that countered and effectively thwarted threats by the American Family Association to picket at high school and college events, including a production of "The Laramie Project."
In 2009, the challenge is to pool the efforts into protests, events and policy pushes that result in positive changes for the whole state. While it may seem harder to drive to Lansing for a day than to go protest at a local anti-gay church, the extra time and money spent will have a much larger effect on issues that impact the entire LGBT community in the state. While it's great to see activism in any capacity, combined efforts can result in 2009 being the year when we actually see Matt's Safe Schools and the second parent adoption bills pass.
We don't want to spend another year talking about what we want and lamenting what we don't end up with. This year, let's go out and get it. In a few short weeks, the new government will be in place and the odds will be in our favor. The coming years cannot be wasted, and every minute we spend grumbling about Rick Warren or Gary Glenn is a minute we're not spending doing work to make sure that no one else hears what they have to say. Instead, let them hear that we are organized, we are intelligent and we are a forward-moving force to be reckoned with.
2009 is not the year to talk about what's wrong – it's a year to change it to what we know to be right.