A 2007 Gallup Poll suggested that 55 percent of Americans would vote for a gay nominee for president, just beating out an atheist, which garnered 45 percent. Looking through history, you'll even find a few former U.S. Presidents who have been rumored to be gay, tracing back to the longtime debate over the 16th President, Abraham Lincoln's relationship with Joshua Speed. Even George W. Bush himself has been absurdly rumored to have a fondness of all things "fabulous."
Beyond the rumors and debates, I doubt I will ever see an openly gay candidate for president in my lifetime, but it got me thinking - what if I, as a gay American, had the sole authority to decide who would be President of the United States? Not limiting myself to the actual nominees this year, would I choose an activist such as Larry Kramer or widely respected author and commentator Keith Boykin, who actually served as White House aid to President Bill Clinton? What about James McGreevey, former Governor of New Jersey, openly gay Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis. or Rep. Barnett "Barney" Frank, D-Mass.? Or would I, being completely superficial, just opt for that hot guy I saw at the mall last week?
As it turns out, a gay man just may pick the president this year, or at least have a pretty big voice in the selection. To top things off, he's only 21 years old, making him the youngest superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention. While most students at Marquette University in Wisconsin are getting phone calls about the kegger this weekend, Jason Rae is getting calls from the likes of former President Clinton and Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. He even sat down for breakfast with Chelsea Clinton last month before heading off to class.
Rae, who officially came out to The Advocate on Feb. 15, interned at The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund in 2006 and has been involved in politics since the age of 14. In 2004, his successful bid to become a member of the DNC automatically earned him a slot as one of the 794 superdelegate votes, whom many suggest will ultimately make the decision for the democratic nomination. As of press time, 240 of those are officially for Clinton and 197 are for Obama, leaving 357 unpledged. (Not including Michigan and Florida.) Unlike most delegates, the superdelegates can vote for any candidate they choose, regardless of their state's primary or caucus results and have therefore been fiercely lobbied for by both campaigns. It's looking as though neither Sen. Hillary Clinton nor Sen. Barack Obama could earn enough of the 2,025 pledged delegates needed to win the nomination, which will make those superdelegates' votes very important.
After a media frenzy surrounding this young man, Rae officially made his decision to support Sen. Obama on Feb. 21, just two days after the Wisconsin primary. In a statement on Sen. Obama's website Rae says "As a young member of the Democratic National Committee I know that I represent America's next generation of voters, and clearly my generation has chosen Senator Obama." CNN polls show that Obama carried 73 percent of Wisconsin voters aged 18-24 and 66 percent of those 25-29. "He has inspired a new generation of voters to get active and energized the political process," Rae continues.
It's unclear whether he will lead the pack of LGBT voters toward Sen. Obama or not. The vote seems to be in a dead heat. The aforementionedopenlygayCongressional Representatives Baldwin and Frank have both endorsed Clinton and she seems to be continuing to get the majority of support from the Human Rights Campaign, the largest civil rights organization working to achieve LGBT equality. Gay City News, America's largest circulated LGBT newspaper that serves the New York City area, has endorsed Obama. Obama's website even offers supporters a downloadable "Obama Pride Logo." It seems that there is a major age divide within the gay community. I've found that many of my older friends are pro-Clinton while younger voters are really turned on by Obama's energy and speeches of "change."
As for me - I can't say that I've made a definite decision in the matter. But I am starting to lead in the direction of a young college student in Wisconsin.
rainbow beach goes radio, radio
Six local young people from Rainbow Beach, the local LGBT youth program at The Center Project have hit the airwaves. The group recently got together to record a public service announcement in order to help raise public awareness and promote the program that meets weekly at TCP. The idea for the 60-second radio spot came from Gloria Williams, Youth Director for TCP. "We're always looking for fun things to do and the kids thought this sounded exciting," said Williams in a recent email to Weekly Surge. A copy of the PSA is being submitted to local radio stations.
Assisting Rainbow Beach in the recording was Lance Williams, producer at 10-34 Studios, which produces work in Ohio, Pennsylvania and central South Carolina. Williams has recorded numerous commercials and political campaign ads, as well as being the lead singer and songwriter for Darling Waste, a Clemson-based band whose music has been featured on several MTV shows. Lance Williams will also be assisting Rainbow Beach along with Brian L. Hollen of Evil Doll Pictures of Myrtle Beach with a similar commercial for local television broadcasts.
This type of potential exposure is very rare for LGBT youth programs in the country, especially those in smaller cities like our own. "The purpose, of course, is to reach out to other LGBT or questioning young people and their straight allies who live in the area or are here on vacation," continued Mrs. Williams. "Young people who may feel like they are all alone, (those) who might need some support or affirmation, or who just want to meet other young LGBT people their own age in a safe, supervised, alcohol and drug-free environment - we want to get the word out, that there is such a place in Myrtle Beach." To listen to the public service announcement or for more information on Rainbow Beach, visit www.myspace.com/rainbow_beach.
OUT & ABOUT
Friday, March 7 - The Gay Professionals Happy Hour will meet from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. March 7 at Tavern in the Forest located at the corner of River Oaks Blvd. and Carolina Forest Blvd., Myrtle Beach. GPHH meets the first Friday of every month at different locations along the Strand and is open to everyone. For more information email FirstFriday@GambleLivingston.com.
Friday, March 7 - Sunday, March 9 - CLAWS, Coastal Leather Allegiance to Wisdom and Service, will be celebrating its 8th anniversary with "Party Like a Rock Star Weekend." Events kick off with a "Glam Party" from 11 p.m. - 1 a.m. on Friday at Rainbow House located at 815 N. Kings Highway in Myrtle Beach. The Anniversary Dinner will take place from 7- 8 p.m. on Saturday at Hard Rock Cafe, Broadway at the Beach, followed by a "Rock Star Bar Night" featuring a variety show from 11 p.m. - 1 a.m. at Time Out, 520 8th Ave. N. in Myrtle Beach. It's too late to acquire tickets to the anniversary dinner, but all bar events are open to the public. For more information and a complete list of events, visit www.clawsllc.com.
Tuesday, March 11 - The local chapter of Parents, Families & Friends of Lesbians & Gays (PFLAG) will meet from 7-8 p.m. Tuesday at the The Center Project followed by a movie. TCP is located at 307 Highway 15 in Myrtle Beach. For more information call 626-4953 or visit www.thecenterproject.com
Saturday, March 15 - "Safe Sex, Pizza & A Movie." The Center Project's youth group, Rainbow Beach is having a pizza and movie party, plus a live condom demonstration and safe sex discussion starting at 2 p.m. March 15. Hosted by Careteam, the event will be an education session with a question/answer discussion, demonstrations and free goodies. The event is open to anyone younger than the age of 25. Rainbow Beach meets from 2 - 6 p.m. every Saturday at TCP, located at 307 Highway 15 in Myrtle Beach. For more information visit www.myspace.com/rainbow_beach or send an e-mail to youth@thecenterproject.com.
Until next week, have fun and be safe.
-Chris Rudisill, Weekly Surge