..::Nebraska Democratic GLBT Caucus

Now that we've all honored our mothers and patted ourselves on the back for enduring one of the nastiest local election cycles in recent memory, I'd like to take a few moments to reflect on both events.

Many people equate American patriotism with Mom, baseball and apple pie. While by itself, in a generic sense, this is a benign sentiment, there are those who have hijacked the definition of patriotism, motherhood and the American pastime into a grotesque mockery of what defines American democracy: Equality before the law.

Patriotism used to mean that one defended another's right to their own views even if they disagreed vehemently with them and "Mother" used to typify the faith and values of a loving, caring family, but the reality of these values doesn't sell advertising in today's "market." The laid-back fun of a friendly game of sandlot ball has been replaced with the "roid rage" of pro football, the meaner the more profitable. Oh, and the apple pie, in case you're wondering, has been fake-baked by Mrs. Smith, replete with maltodextrin, propylene glycol and corn syrup solids.

This mean-spirited soullessness, as we've witnessed firsthand in the local elections, has been insinuated into every aspect of our lives. Issues and candidate platforms based on well-reasoned assessments of the problems facing our community matter little for these folks who follow the natural inclination of the self-righteous to sanctimoniously take up the tar brush of I'm-Better-Than-You.

It is not unexpected that we have again sunk to the lows of the Cold War and red scare of the '50s, for the stakes are similar. Tactics of suppression and fear learned from masters of the red scare, Sen. Joseph McCarthy and Nebraska's own Kenneth Wherry, have been dusted off and trotted out under new monikers such as the defense of marriage and the war on terror. America overcame its baser instincts in the '50s by embracing diversity and forging ahead with civil rights legislation at the cost of increasing the corporate bottom line by allowing all citizens the opportunity to make equal pay for equal work regardless of their color.

Today's corporate bottom line is ever so much bigger than the last wave of hate it produced that giving in to the total abandonment of scruples in favor of the power of raw cash has now become a moral value. Though the name-calling has gotten more refined and the approach smoother, anyone caught not agreeing with policies or practices that might threaten the corporate system even slightly is suspected of being a traitor in cahoots with terrorists, worse yet, of being a demon homosexual bent on bringing down the whole country.

Which brings us back to the American way of life we learned at our mothers' knees. A republic of the people, by the people and for the people, as Abraham Lincoln said. All the people, not just those who have to worry about which car to drive to church to make the best impression or even those who are so wealthy they have to decide which private island they will fly their friends to on corporate funds for a birthday party.

How many of us will ever have to have those worries? Not many. Certainly not me. Then why, when confronted with the message that learning another language besides English is un-American do we nervously giggle and go along with the hatred of those who laugh at the suffering of immigrants who speak three and four languages in addition to English in their struggles to get to this land of the free? Why do we silently support institutions that preach homosexuals have no place as equal citizens?

We are afraid that we too will be accused of sympathizing with the enemy or of being gay, causing us to lose everything we have worked so hard for, job, family, home, trusting we shouldn't have to take the truly moral stance of defending those who are under attack.

But freedom isn't easy. Citizenship comes with the responsibility that, in our democracy, we must make room for everyone so that we all can live in a place where we can worship, live and work together without infringing on each other's rights to do the same.

To stay free, we must hold our leaders accountable to give us real responses to the real issues about how we maintain freedom for all. Candidates and ad campaigns that rant negative slogans need to be examined for the expensive, opportunistic attacks they are. This won't be accomplished by simply turning off the media running the tripe, but by getting involved, asking thoughtful questions, and above all, by voting for candidates that will keep the trust of democracy safe for all.

Go on, make your mother proud!

Lin Quenzer lives in Lincoln with her partner of 17 years and their son.
First published in the Lincoln Journal Star, May 14, 2005.