The police riot at the Rainbow Lounge is not going away. About 150 people gathered last Sunday in Sundance Square in Ft. Worth, Texas to make sure that didn't happen.
It was a patriotic event worthy of the 4th of July weekend. Free speech is a founding principal of our country and that is what the Milk Box actions, named after gay activist Harvey Milk, are about.
Speakers included an eyewittness to the police and TABC actions that night. He assured the crowd that excessive force was used and that the injuries sustained by Chad Gibson were a result of excessive force from the TABC.
Keeping this event in the media and minds of elected officials has resutlted in some action. Investigations are being called fro by not only the Ft. Worth police but by the Mayor and other officials. Protests do work!
Of course the whole scene was a bit strange. A real protest for sure, but the strains of piano bar music drifting through Sundance Square gave it a surrealistic edge. I chalk that up to it being in Fort Worth. Cowtown has always had a special sense of culture and style!
Next Sunday, another protest is planned for the steps of the Tarrant County Courthouse. The event will start at 7:00pm and should be even beter attended than the last. Be there!
(Photo Courtesy of Neko and Oblivion Images)
Posts
4 comments:
Have at'em Hardy! I don't know if you'd heard, but PA is about to introduce pro-Gay Marriage Legislation. That happened after a dumass republican was fool enough to comment that "we allow them (gays) to exist," so what more could we want? Multiple protests ensued...
My late mother, Shirley Johnson was always a friend of the gay community - and quite active about it after I came out in the mid-80's. She always told me "words have power - be thoughtful and careful what you say." I agree and I want to point out that there is no cause that I have seen or heard of to cause this a "riot" on either the part of the police or the bar patrons. That language is deliberately inflamatory. Protest is good - it is the American way and is largely responsible for the attention this incident has been given. It needs that attention and we need that attention as a community. The police have objected to the use of the term "raid," and I can accept that maybe it wasn't planned as a "raid," but it sure appears to have been carried out as one. The incident was bad enough without distortions. If we distort we will lose the respect of thinking people. Please be careful with your words.
I characterized the actions of the TABC at the Rainbow Lounge as a police riot because of what eyewitnesses are saying. The officers arrived apparently ready to make arrests and bust heads. A 150 lb. guy who was not resisting arrest being thrown into the wall and then smashed to the ground is not standard police procedure. The Chief knows it, and the TABC knows it. They were out of control.
I am framing the issue for what it was. The police would like to frame it as "standard procedure" but from everything being said, it wasn't.
I don't use "raid" because it certainly wasn't that either, it was intended to terrify the patrons. If you believe it was coincidence that it happened on the anniversary of Stonewall, be my guest, but I don't buy it and I am calling it like I see it.
When I write here, it is my opinion and I reserve the right to frame the issues as I see them.
I sincerely hope the investigations get to the bottom of the whole business. I love Fort Worth, and know it has often been more gay friendly than Dallas. I would hate to see a few out of control TABC agents tarnish the city's image.
Hardy,
FYI, the Dallas Eagle was raided last night (July 10, 2009) because their license was not up to date. But they were having their grand opening in the new building, which has been held up for many months. My partner and I were considering attending briefly, but due to other issues decided not to drive all the way to Dallas for the evening.
Read more here:
http://www.dallasvoice.com/instant-tea/2009/07/11/in-re-the-dallas-eagle/
Richard H.
Fort Worth, Texas, USA
Post a Comment