This has been a challenging election season. The result was not what many of us had hoped. LGBTQ+ people across the nation are rightfully fearful of the impact the next presidency and a Republican-controlled Congress could have on our community and the country as a whole. It’s a lot to process.
It’s essential to be there for each other, express our anger, fear, exhaustion, and disappointment, and take solace in the fact we are not alone. Then we will dust ourselves off and get right back to the fight. This is what we have always done.
To paraphrase Human Rights Campaign’s executive director Kelley Robinson, who spoke at a roundtable hosted by LGBTQ Nation last month: I wouldn’t want to go back in a time machine. There is no better time in our history to be a queer person than right now. We can live more openly and enjoy more rights than ever.
Of course, those rights can be fragile, and we will no doubt again be called upon to defend them while pushing for more. Our community has a deep history of advocating for and attaining change. From the Mattachine Society to the Stonewall riots to the HIV/AIDS crisis to Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell to the Bush administration’s opposition to marriage equality, we have demonstrated fortitude and resilience in the face of attacks.
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Over these decades of resistance and progress, we have gained millions of allies nationwide, from moms to religious leaders to athletes to Republicans. Even as some politicians use us, particularly the trans community, as a wedge issue to divide voters, LGBTQ+ people are more accepted than during any other time in history. A supermajority (76%) of Americans favor laws that protect LGBTQ+ people against discrimination.
Here at Q.Digital (LGBTQ Nation, Queerty, INTO, GayCities, and Outsports), our mission remains unchanged. Together, we are creating a world where everyone is free to be themselves and live life to the fullest. This election doesn’t change our work. We will still entertain and enlighten LGBTQ+ people, amplify their voices, and inspire action. No matter who is in the Oval Office or what party controls Congress, this is our work, and we are committed to doing it.
The road to equality has always been difficult, but there’s only one direction: forward.
Scott Gatz is the founder and CEO of Q.Digital, the LGBTQ-owned and operated parent company of LGBTQ Nation.
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