Donna Rose has been a good and supportive friend to me. Always positive in her feedback to me, and a hug from her is most welcome when I see her. A couple of years ago, the community was ecouraged by her appointment to the HRC Board of Directors. Maybe now we would get our voice in Washington. She fought bravely in the vicious arena of Washington politics, but when push came to shove, she was forced to make a choice, and she made the right choice. The choice to stand with her conscience, and with her sisters and brothers, her community.
Today, in the wake of HRC's betrayal of the transgender community in the struggle for an inclusive version of the Employment Non Discrimination Act, and her most valiant efforts to effect a positive result from the inside, Donna Rose, a true community advocate, tendered her resignation from the HRC Board of Directors. Her thoughts and her letter of resignation follow:
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
It's odd how things happen in your life to truly put things into
perspective. I have been dealing with the weight of what has been happening
with ENDA and made a call to a friend that I haven't heard from in a
while. She answered and we made some small-talk but I could tell from
the sound of her voice that there was something wrong. I asked if she
was really doing ok, and she thought for a second, and proceeded to tell
me that no, everything's not ok. She's a single parent of a 14-year
old daughter and she explained that she had spent the entire previous
night at the hospital in the Emergency Room because her daughter had
overdosed on Ritalin. Apparently, her daughter indicated that she was
trying to hurt herself, but as the effects of the overdose started to happen
she got scared and woke up her mom. When they got to the hospital she
was turning purple, was incoherent and couldn't move very well.&nbp; It
was too late to pump her stomach, so they hooked her up to IV's in an
attempt to flush her system and began other efforts to keep her from
slipping into a coma. She's going to be ok, but her mom is racked with
sadness, guilt, and confusion.
Somehow, big decisions seem small when compared to the realities we
face in life.
With that preface, it became easy for me to make a very difficult
decision. Yesterday morning I crafted a letter of resignation from the HRC
Board of Directors. It came from my heart, and somehow the words
seemed to flow in a way that I really can't explain. I sat on that letter,
wanting to be sure I was doing the right thing, weighing all the
seemingly complex factors that needed to be considered before truly deciding
what to do. But in the end, I realized that each of us needs to put
what we're feeling into action. The opening paragraph of my statement
truly captures the essence of what I beliee. And, knowing what I know
and feeling what I feel, the answer became clear.
You can read my full statement here
http://www.donnarose.com/[...]ity.htm
That being said, there may be other machines in motion. There may be
things at play that I don't know. In fact, I'd hope that were so. But
once I get past that the confusing conflict of emotion and reason to
truly put things in perspective I knew what I had to do. And I did it.
I hope I'm wrong. The thing I'd be happiest about is for whatever
strategy that Joe and the rest of the leadership at HRC are pursuing to
lead to a fully inclusive ENDA. I'd happily eat his "I told you so's"
until I was ready to explode. But the reality is that his efforts will
work or not work irregardless of what I do. An if I follow my heart
I'll know that at least this one conflicted person has done the right
thing.
The people at HRC have become like family to me. They're not simply a
cold, calculating political money-making machine as so many seem bent
on portraying them to be. They're people who come from all over the
country with the fire of making this world a better place for GLBT people
burning brightly in their eyes. They have embraced me and I have
embraced them right back. They have believed in me, trusted me, confided in
me, and made me feel as though I had found a safe haven from the
sometimes stormy seas of activism. Oddly, the same drive to follow my heart
and to support the organization when others accused me of selling-out,
of copping-out, and of being one of "them" is the same drive that has
driven me to do what I did this morning. None of us can be reproached
for doing what we feel is right. I want to believe that Joe,the
leadership at HRC, and the Board truly believes that. I know I do.
I hold no animosity, and in fact I see this as a family feud more than
a divorce. But there's a difference between being a worker bee, a foot
soldier, or a supportive resource and being in a position of
accountability for the leadership decisions of the organization. I can't speak
for anyone else, but I know I'm good with things. I suppose time will
tell if that sentiment is returned in kind.
What happens now is anyone's guess. I remain open to possibility and
opportunity. I don't believe that all is done yet. But that doesn't
change the fact that I'm letting the difficult reality of what I've done
soak in. And I'll figure out what to do next.
I'm supposed to be in Washington tomorrow to attend Business Council
meetings and I'm really going to try to mke that happen. Besides all of
this I actually have a job to do and this is a critical week for my
project. I've got fires burning on all sides and I'm trying manage
communication, deal with escalation, coordinate resources, and generally
keep the boat floating and moving. As I say, with all of the churn around
all this stuff happening so far away, life still happens. I wouldn't
have it any other way.
==
DONNA ROSE'S FULL STATEMENT
October 3, 2007
My statement in response to the recently announced Human Rights
Campaign position on ENDA:
Community. Integrity. Leadership. Vision. These are the
foundational pillars of Equality. These are the values that draw many of us into
advocacy roles. Those tenets provide a clear roadmap when things like
politics, expediency, agenda, and power cloud the picture as they so
often do. Thy pave the way to the moral high-ground, and those who
follow them with trust and patience will ultimately find their efforts
rewarded.
My name is Donna Rose, and I am the first and only openly transgender
member of the Board of Directors of the Human Rights Campaign. I am the
national co-chair for Diversity. I am the co-chair appointee-elect
for the Business Council. I have spoken at events around the country on
behalf of the organization, and I am a respected advocate for the
transgender community.
My participation on the HRC Board has been a heavy burden. The
relationship between HRC and the transgender community is one scarred by
betrayal, distrust, and anger. I have become a focal point for much of that
frustration and I accepted that responsibility with the hope that I
could help to change it. In some very real ways I think I have been able
to do that, or at least to help make that happen, and am tremendously
prod of all we have achieved.
HRC has done some wonderful work to support the transgender community.
Workplaces around the country are recognizing the unique challenges
faced by transgender employees and are moving in record numbers to
protect them as valued members of an inclusive workforce. Educational tools
to help demystify our lives and to provide a human perspective have
paved to way to a better understanding of who we are and our challenges.
We have set high standards and we have held others accountable to
them. The question at hand is whether we, as an organization, hold
ourselves accountable to those same high expectations.
Transgender is not simply the `T' in GLBT. It is people who, for
one reason or another, may not express their gender in ways that conform
to traditional gender norms or expectations. That covers everyone
from transsexuals, to queer youth, to feminine acting men, to masculine
appearing women.&nbs; It is a broad label that cannot be confined to a
specific silo of people. It is anyone who chooses to live authentically. To
think that the work that we are doing on behalf of the entire GLBT
community simply benefits or protects part of us is to choose a simplistic
view of a complex community. In a very real way, the T is anyone who
expresses themselves differently. To some it is about gender. To me,
it is about freedom.
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) is a core piece of
legislation. It would guarantee that GLBT people will not get fired from
their jobs because of discrimination and prejudice. It makes a strong
statement that discrimination of any kind is unacceptable, and it
recognizes the critical role of employment and career as something more than
simply a paycheck. It is a source of pride, of achievement, of belonging,
of security, and in a very real way it is a validation of person-hood.
Uemployment and under-employment is the single most significant issue
facing transgender people today. The high-profile case of Susan
Stanton, city manager from Largo, FL who was fired early this year after an
exemplary 17-year career there simply because she was outed as being
transgender, demonstrates the continuing experience that many of us
continue to face each and every day in workplaces around this country.
Although workplaces have made tremendous strides in enacting supportive
policy, bad things still happen and the overall message being sent is that
we're somehow expendable. In years past these things happened
quietly, going unnoticed. Those days are numbered.
That's why ENDA is so important. It is more than simply a statement
that it's not ok to fire GLBT people for reasons unrelated to work
performance. It's a statement that we are a commuity. It's
recognition of people who may not express their gender in traditional ways
does not affect a person's ability to contribute as simply another part
of a diverse workforce. It's a validation of those foundational
pillars that line the moral high ground. And, it's recognition that each
of us has value, and none of us will be left behind.
The current situation regarding ENDA is nothing short of a politically
misguided tragedy. A tool that could and should be a unifying beacon
on the heels of the historic passage of fully inclusive Hate Crime
legislation has been split. Transgender brothers and sisters again find
themselves separated, isolated, and disempowered. People in positions of
power have decided that their personal legacy and the promise of
political expediency are more important than protecting our entire beautiful
community. The time is here to make a strong statement to demonstrate
to them that they are wong.
In 2004 the HRC Board voted to support only fully-inclusive Federal
legislation. That decision paved the way to my participation with the
organization, and was a significant step in the healing process. Since
that time we have worked together tirelessly towards a goal of Equality
for all. Less than a month ago HRC President Joe Solmonese stood before
almost 900 transgender people at the Southern Comfort Conference in
Atlanta to pledge ongoing support and solidarity. In his keynote address
he indicated that not only would HRC support only a fully inclusive
ENDA, but that it would actively oppose anything less. That single
pledge changed hearts and minds that day, and the ripple affect throughout
the transgender community was that we finally were one single GLBT
community working together. Sadly, recent events indicate that those
promiseswere hollow.
An impressive coalition of local and national organizations has lined
up to actively oppose the divisive strategy that would leave some of our
brothers and sisters without workplace protections. This effort has
galvanized community spirit and commitment in ways few could have
imagined, and it has demonstrated to those who would divide us that anything
less than full inclusion is unacceptable Organization after
organization has seized the moral high ground knowing that this is a historic
opportunity that cannot be squandered, and that it is our moral obligation
to ourselves and to generations that will follow to make a loud,
clear, unmistakable statement that we are a community and we will not be
divided. There is a single significant organization glaringly missing
from that list. The Human Rights Campaign has chosen not to be there.
It is impossible to remove passion and emotion from what has happened.
Indeed, thos are the fuels that propel us. That being said please
know that this entire situation has affected me deeply and profoundly.
Still, I will not sling mud at the organization to who I have given my
heart, my energies, and my trust. I will not give in to my frustration
and disappointment that Joe's words of less than a month ago have
proven to be hollow promises. This unfortunate turn of events has forced
me to make some very difficult personal decisions about integrity,
character, community, and leadership. Although I can find any number of
logical and personal reasons to continue in my capacity as a board
member, I cannot escape the moral implications of the decision before me.
Using that as my guide, as difficult as it is for me to make, the
decision is an obvious one.
I hereby submit my resignation from my post on the Board of the Human
Rights Campaign effective Monday Oct. 8, 2007. I call on other
like-minded board members steering committee leaders, donors, corporate
sponsors, and volunteers to think long and hard about whether this
organization still stands for your values and to take decisive action as well.
More than simply a question of organization policy, this is a test of
principle and integrity and although it pains me greatly to see what has
happened it is clear to me that there can only be one path. Character
is not for compromise. I cannot align myself with an organization that
I can't trust to stand-up for all of us. More than that, I cannot
give half-hearted support to an organization that has now chosen to
forsake the tenets that have guided my efforts from day one.
I align myself and my energies with the groundswell of community
sentiment that has universally stood to oppose this divisive strategy. I
wish my friends and colleagues from the Human Rights Campaign the best,
and I expect that time will prove their decision to take a neutra stance
and to fracture our community to be short-sighted and misguided. I
accept the notion that we all want the same thing. It's just that I
couldn't disagree more with this destructive strategy to get there. I
urge the board and the leadership to reconsider their position and the
join a unified community that supports a single all-inclusive bill.
History teaches painful lessons. Any celebration of rights gained at
the expense of others is not a celebration. It is a failure of
effective leadership. It is to offer the promise of a tomorrow that you know
in your heart will never come. It is to choose to turn your back on
those who need you most, who do not have the voice or the stature to speak
for themselves.
The time is here for leaders to lead, for those who say they stand for
community to act forcefully and with purpose. Anything less is to
forsake the pillars of Equality for the empty promise of somethingless.
The word that we have for that in our language is "Courage". It's
the kind of courage it takes for GLBT people to show up for work each
and every day, living authentically, wondering if that will be their
last day. I call on my brothers and sisters at the Human Rights Campaign,
for Speaker Pelosi and Congressman Frank, and for equality-minded
leaders everywhere to lead by example and to do the right thing.
In Solidarity for Equality,
Donna Rose
==
http://www.donnarose.com/Blog.htm
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