Petrelis Files

Rostow, Bay Times:
Gays Queasy About Gays in Prop 8 Ads?

If you're following the propaganda effort by the No on Prop 8 campaign, you've got to read Ann Rostow's column, not all of which I agree with, especially related to the school kids, but which raises many issues that need addressing now, starting with why are we losing.

Why are gay couples and gay love missing from the No on 8 ads? Questions about the omission of gays from the ads, and the failing effort to defeat the measure, shouldn't be a one-way conversation.

We need the No on 8 leaders to show more respect to the out-of-the-closet community that would like to see ourselves in the ads and the campaign's outreach materials. Tell us why the image of gay and lesbian couples is so threatening to our side and can't be shown in the TV spots.

From Rostow's piece in the SF Bay Times today:

Throughout this campaign, we have once again hid the face of same-sex couples and given a free pass to those in the middle of the electorate who are uncomfortable with gay relationships. Instead of challenging that atavistic premise, we have nodded our collective heads and said something on the order of “Hey, we understand that gay couples make you a little queasy, but for God’s sake don’t write us out of the constitution.”

You know what that message actually means? It means that it’s just fine to feel queasy. It implies that we ourselves feel queasy in a way. We can see your point! It’s a losing strategy and it has lost us every same-sex marriage election, save one (Arizona 2004) that we’ve ever fought.