Shortly after Proposition 8 was passed in California, journalist Kevin Sessums interviewed several...

Shortly after Proposition 8 was passed in California, journalist?Kevin Sessums?interviewed several powerful, out gay men of Hollywood. In the article, ?Hollywood?s Gay Powerati Are Fuming,? the men gave their reactions. Here is the part in which Simon is interviewed:

I decided to ask Simon Halls?for words of advice about how to proceed. Halls is a gay father of three children and the CEO of PMKHBH, a top public relations office in Hollywood. He is also the personal publicist to some of the town?s biggest stars, including Annette Bening, Jude Law, and Helen Mirren, so I assumed he could offer a bit of strategic advice for the next time a same-sex marriage proposition comes up for a vote. How must such a leaderless community get ready for the next political battle? Many gays and lesbians are, in fact, angry at their political organizations, especially the Human Rights Campaign, which they say used Prop 8 as a mere means to enhance its donor rolls and e-mail lists.

?The day after we lost in the battle to defeat Prop 8, my initial reaction was overwhelmingly emotional,? says Halls. ?I felt like we had all been kicked in the collective gut. As a father, the notion of my kids thinking that our family?s rights are any less important than those of any other tax-paying family in the state made me sad and angry. And to see pictures of the YES on 8 organizers jumping up and down in celebration in all of the papers had me at a huge loss. Jumping up and down because they made an entire community feel terrible? Really? Aren?t we all supposed to have been created equal?

?On the practical side, though,? he continues, ?I do see this as a fascinating and strategic challenge. Pure and simple, they beat us at the marketing game. If we learned anything from President-elect Obama?s brilliant and victorious campaign, it?s all about your efforts on the ground. The new president and his team organized at the grassroots level. They honed a clear and focused message and they were incredibly disciplined.?

He wraps up his plan: ?So after a few more days where we rightfully protest and tell the country that we won?t stand for this, we need to pull up our bootstraps, get back on the horse, start devising an aggressive new strategy and realize that no civil rights movement achieved success without setbacks. It may take a few more election cycles. And our feelings may get hurt again, but eventually, we are going to prevail. Women did. African Americans have and we will, too. We have to. We owe it to our kids, to our partners, and we owe it to ourselves.?

Source: http://uninhabited-paradise.tumblr.com/post/30620490110

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