Gay Republicans push for equality

Gays and lesbians had a big impact a week ago at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, which included nearly 400 GLBT delegates.

The number is much smaller at this week’s Republican National Convention. About two dozen of the delegates are openly gay, but one group is pushing for equality from within the Republican Party.

They are called Log Cabin Republicans. The group is made of gays and lesbians who agree with Republicans on many issues, like the economy.

The name comes from Republican President Abraham Lincoln, who was born in a log cabin and pushed for equality during the Civil War.

“Gay voters are just like everybody else,” says Log Cabin president Patrick Sammon. “They make their decision based on more than one issue.”

Sammon says gays and lesbians need to be active in both major political parties in order to achieve equality.

But they know it’s a tough road. Just last week a group of RNC visitors from Virginia cancelled an order for 150 Twin Cities guidebooks because the guide has a six-page GLBT section.

“Having a section dedicated solely to GLBT will be a BIG problem for many of our folks,” the cancellation e-mail said. “We simply can’t hand them out.”

On a larger scale, the Republican platform strongly opposes same-sex marriage.

“Marriage is something that is sacred between a man and a woman, and it should be,” says Texas Republican delegate Larry Jeffus. “For me, that’s important.”

Jeffus says he has gay and lesbian friends who are Log Cabin Republicans.

Senator John McCain also opposes same-sex marriage, but Log Cabin Republicans still endorsed him this week. They say McCain spoke out against the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would’ve banned same-sex marriage nationwide.

“John McCain stood with us, now we stand with him,” Sammon told a group of about 200 Log Cabin Republicans Tuesday in downtown St. Paul.

Log Cabin Republicans feel McCain would be inclusive. Former Rep. Jim Kolbe (R - Arizona) told the group that McCain was the first politician he came out to.

“And he said, ‘Jim, it doesn’t make any difference,’” Kolbe recalls.

But many gay Democrats just don’t see it.

“I don’t quite understand gay Republicans,” says Del Jenkins, a member of the Stonewall Democrats. “It’s a lot like calculus. I just don’t get it.”

Jenkins feels Senator Barack Obama is a far better choice for GLBT issues. Obama opposes gay marriage but supports civil unions. He also favors many other laws supported by GLBT groups.

Obama mentioned gays and lesbians during his acceptance speech in Denver.

“I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers deserve to visit the person they love in a hospital and to live lives free of discrimination,” Obama said to thunderous applause.

But many Log Cabin Republicans feel Democrats haven’t done enough.

“They have a long record of saying nice things about the LGBT community, but their record of actually delivering is pretty thin,” Sammon told KARE 11. “People talk about how inclusive Bill Clinton was on these issues, but he signed the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy and the Defense of Marriage Act.”

Both gay Democrats and Republicans are working to prevent the passage this year of state amendments that would ban same-sex marriage in Florida, Arizona and California.