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alternatives, that we also had a responsibility to help other
agencies respond positively to the Gay community. Many
people had reservations, but we soon founcl out that when
people were saying "They are oppressive, we should have
nothing to do with them," they were often really saying
"I'm frightened they'll rejl.!ct m\;.." If Gay Power and Pride
is to have any meaning, it must be found in our willingness
to risk hurt or rejection and to rc..ct
as
strong people
willing to deal with actio11s which are just as much rooted
in oppression as the pain of our identity-seeking process.
Whatever we might think about capitalistic structures,
the institutional church, counselling professions, etc., they
do
exist, they
are
powerful and
we
have the power to affect
change in them. The most important fact about these
groups to me is that they deal with Gay people continually,
and if we won't help them do it well, then no one else will.
Every time one of us approached another alternative
culture agency, a psychologist, a clergy person, or a
personnel director from a position of strength and integrity,
we were convinced that the next time a weaker Gay person
came into contact with these people, he or she would be
dealt with with less hysteria and more humanness. If the
situation proved so totally oppressive that action was called
for, we have never shrunk from that action, but much to
the surprise of some we found allies. We helped form the
Youth Service Coalition in alliance with other alternative
culture groups in Minneapolis and St. Paul and have been
able to call on these groups for support and action
whenever we felt the need. (Interestingly, the most
vehement opposition to all our activities has come from the
old left - especially college-oriented Marxist-Leninist
groups playing with revolution.)
One important factor in the development of Gay House
and the Gay movement in Minnesota has been the evolution
of strong leadership among the men and the women and the
support of the leadership by the Gay community. It is not,
I believe, a case of messianic cults or of blind ego trips.
Most often, it is not a question of anyone taking control of
a Gay group - that's not the form of leadership I mean–
rather, it's a question of someone like Jack Baker winning
the presidency of the Minnesota Student Association, or
Mike McConnell fighting his job case, or the others of us
being willing to take public stands and willing to encounter
the rest of the society with integrity.
Often this "leadership" functions as
~
vicarious exper·
ience. ("I wish I had the guts to do what you're doing.")
Soon it becomes an example. If I can take what looks like a
major exposure by appearing on television without fear,
then another could take an apparently smaller risk of no
longer presenting a false front to an employer. We have
been, and I am sure will continue
to
be, attacked by some
for taking ego trips, but the impact of our models does not
give me so much the fc:i:ling of power (the dirty word of
radical rhetoric) as it does the awe of responsibility. I can
imagine no worse misuse of power than for a Gay person
not to recognize the reponsibility of using all means
available to present pos1tivc alternatives to America's
oppressive sex roles.
A
gain, it is
a
question of
prc~enting
positive models
instead of just negative reactions. It is far more
effective for me to present other options to
people instead of attacking her or his position. It
seems that the usc of such phrases as "smashing mono–
gamy" when used on a less-aware person is not in any way
1972
aimed at change or communication; few people can hear
those messages when they are so threatened. What then is
the purpose? I am afraid that all too often Gay people and
our movements take on the American characteristic of
totalitarianism. All too often we feel that if a life style is
the most valid for us then it must be accepted by all others
and whoever does not accept 1t must be at fault - never
have we to examine our positions? Such mind sets are
frightening. It is obvious to me that we have to have
alternative approaches to our thought processes if we are to
achieve change.
We have accomplished change in Minnesota on
many levels through Gay House, FREE, through our two
newspapers, through continuing expanding programs of
community organization and education. In doing so, we
soon found out that change was not going to happen
through confrontation alone, but to some extent we had to
be willing to confront with an openness for dialog and a
large measure of love. I understand and feel the pain of
those who turn off to Am<!rican society; I too hurt from
13