Organizers of "Day Without a Gay," scheduled to coincide with International Human Rights Day and modeled after similar work stoppages by Latino immigrants, are also encouraging people to perform volunteer work and refrain from spending money.
Sean Hetherington, a West Hollywood comedian and personal trainer, dreamed up the idea with his boyfriend, Aaron Hartzler, after reading online that a few angry gay-rights activists were calling for a daylong strike to protest California voters' passage last month of Proposition 8, which reversed this year's state Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage.
The couple thought it would be more effective and less divisive if people were asked to perform community service instead of staying home with their wallets shut. Dozens of nonprofit agencies, from the National Women's Law Center in Washington to a Methodist church in Fresno collecting food for the homeless, have posted opportunities for volunteers on the couple's website.
"We are all for a boycott if that is what brings about a sense of community for people," said Hetherington, 30, who plans to spend tomorrow volunteering at an inner-city school. "You can take away from the economy and give back in other ways."
Hetherington said that he has been getting 100 e-mails an hour from people looking to volunteer and that his "Day Without a Gay" website has received 100,000 hits since mid-November.
Despite the attempt by Hartzler and Hetherington to fashion a positive approach, some organizers of the street demonstrations that drew massive crowds in many cities last month have been reluctant to embrace the concept, saying that it could be at best impractical and at worst counterproductive to "call in gay."
"It's extra challenging for people to think about taking off work as a form of protest, given that we are talking about people who may not be out at work and given the current economic situation and job market," said Jules Graves, 38, coordinator of Colorado Queer Straight Alliance.
Graves's group nonetheless is arranging for interested participants to volunteer at the local African Community Center in Denver. The agency said it could find projects to keep 20 people busy, but so far only 10 have pledged to show up, said Graves.
Join The Impact - the online community that launched protests last month over passage of gay marriage bans in California, Florida, and Arizona - has urged people to withdraw $80 from their bank accounts tomorrow to demonstrate gays' spending power and do volunteer work.
Witeck-Combs Communications, a public relations firm in Washington that specializes in the gay and lesbian market, published a study this year that estimated gay and lesbian consumers spend $700 billion annually.
Bob Witeck, the firm's chief executive officer, said it would be difficult to measure the success of tomorrow's strike, since gay employees occupy so many fields. Supporters would have a bigger impact if they devoted their dollars to gay-friendly businesses year-round, Witeck said.
Hetherington has urged high school students not to skip classes and assured college students they will not be disloyal if they take their final exams. He also has listed opportunities for supporters who cannot miss work
No comments:
Post a Comment