Jun 05, 2009  |  By: Christopher Barron  | COMMENTS     

THIS WEEK, FORMER Vice President Dick Cheney spoke out courageously on the question of same-sex marriage. With the exception of the gay conservative group GOProud, no other gay organization spoke up in support of the former vice president.
 
Neither the supposedly bipartisan Human Rights Campaign nor the Log Cabin Republicans issued statements praising Cheney — even though Cheney’s position on marriage equality is now clearly more progressive than that of President Obama or Vice President Biden. This silence is utterly shameful and shows that much of our so-called gay leadership is little more than an appendage of the Democratic National Committee and the tools of a handful of high profile liberal donors.

Cheney’s remarks, delivered during a speech at the National Press Club are historic and provide the gay community with an opportunity to build bridges to conservatives. In response to a question about whether gay marriage is inevitable, Cheney said, “I think freedom means freedom for everyone. As many of you know, one of my daughters is gay and it is something we have lived with for a long time in our family. I think people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish. Any kind of arrangement they wish. The question of whether or not there ought to be a federal statute to protect this, I don’t support.”

CHENEY WENT ON to offer his support for states allowing marriage for same-sex couples, “I do believe that historically the way marriage has been regulated is at the state level. It has always been a state issue and I think that is the way it ought to be handled, on a state-by-state basis. Different states will make different decisions, and I don’t have a problem with that. People ought to be able to have a shot at that.”

Make no mistake about it, Cheney is no Meghan McCain or Lincoln Chafee. Dick Cheney’s conservative credentials are beyond reproach and his courageous stance cannot easily be brushed off or ignored by conservatives. Cheney’s words can and should resonate with conservatives all across the country — many of whom may not yet support marriage equality.

If we are truly interested in working for marriage equality, then we must recognize the need to engage our opponents in a thoughtful and respectful way, and to embrace our allies, no matter their partisan political affiliation or their position on any other issue.

SADLY, BEFORE WE can engage our opponents and begin the hard work of changing hearts and minds, we must engage those in our community who would stand in the way of this work. The “gentleman’s agreement” among many of the national gay groups to refrain from criticizing each other is a failure. It’s a policy that protects the gay leadership at the expense of gay and lesbian Americans. For far too long, the leadership of the national gay organizations have enjoyed immunity from criticism and we have been expected to treat their missives on the “priorities” of the gay community as though they had been brought down the mountain by Moses himself.

Debate, discussion and dissent are healthy. Debate, discussion and dissent allow a group to make rational selections about priorities and, probably more importantly, allow a group to learn from its mistakes.

The failure to praise Cheney for his stance on marriage is a mistake. Blinded by their hatred for Cheney, the gay left is missing an important opportunity to move the marriage debate forward. No matter how else one might feel about the former vice president, his voice is one that could go a long way in changing hearts and minds. This mistake should be rectified; not only should the national gay organizations praise Cheney, they should embrace him — and his family — as part of the diverse coalition of voices willing to speak up for us and for our families.