After much hand-wringing and having produced a 100-page report detailing problems within their party, including their failure to connect with minority groups, the Republican National Committee showed that it hasn't learned anything from the electoral drubbing it took in last year's presidential race. RNC members, at their spring meeting in Los Angeles last week, voted to reaffirm their opposition to same-sex marriage. The voice vote was recorded as unanimous, even though one gay member, Robert Kabel, told Yahoo News that he voted no. Regardless, the Republican Party showed its true colors as the party of "No," as in no equal rights for LGBT Americans. Maybe Kabel, who is chair of a GOP group in Washington, D.C., should take the useless report that RNC Chairman Reince Priebus commissioned and toss it in the trash.
Last week's Republican meeting was informative only in that it showed nothing has changed in the party. Republicans likely will learn some tough lessons in coming elections, when their anti-gay ways catch up with them. Public support for marriage equality will only increase and the GOP will be further marginalized; in California, where no Republican holds a statewide post, look for that trend to continue.
In comparison, Democrats, particularly senators, have been tripping over themselves to announce their support for marriage equality. The total is at 54 now (including two Republicans). Only three Democratic senators do not support same-sex marriage. Up until last week, it seemed like every time we checked our Facebook feed another politician had announced his or her support. Many made their statements on social media sites like Facebook or Twitter and were then shared and retweeted. The use of new media to promote social activism is where it's at these days. Having covered the marriage equality issue for years, it's just astonishing to see how normal it now is for a politician to support an issue that was recently considered taboo or ludicrous.
But just because political leaders support marriage equality doesn't mean that their work is over. Far from it. There's still the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which, last time we checked, was stalled in Congress. These 54 senators should extend their support for LGBT equality by bringing a vote on ENDA. With Republican control of the House, it's becoming evident that a bill must start in the Senate in order to pass. We see that with the gun and immigration proposals, and the same should happen with ENDA.
In the meantime, since we know passing ENDA will be a long slog, President Barack Obama should sign the executive order that would ban federal contractors from discriminating against LGBT workers. This has been on the administration's radar for a year now, but there is still no movement, as the Washington Blade reported this week. Locally, Out and Equal Workplace Advocates is one of several national organizations pushing for the order, which would be a small step – but at least a start – in preventing companies from firing employees because of who they are.
Regarding immigration, the reform bill that was unveiled this week does not include provisions for binational couples, which is awful. But, those senators who now support marriage equality should be willing to support an amendment that would allow binational couples to remain together in this country. The 54 senators who support marriage equality could push through such an amendment.
Politicians who support us can't stop at marriage equality. There are still too many other inequalities that affect our day-to-day lives. And maybe, just maybe, some of those GOPers who are dead set against LGBT issues will change their mind on immigration or employment laws. They have to change sometime, otherwise they risk irrelevance.