Integrity News

With all the political brouhaha going on lately, I’ve given a lot of thought to motivation in politics: Why this? Why that? And one of the questions I have been asked frequently and have thought about myself is, “Why are so many gay people Democrats?” So I thought I would share my thoughts with you on that topic.

First, a little about myself. I was a Democrat. I’m from West Virginia, where the majority of people are Democrats including almost my entire extended family. Some of my family have even been involved in the party and many of us have helped friends who have campaigned for political office as well.

A West Virginia Democrat is a little different than a New York or California Democrat, though, and I found myself at odds with the party over certain issues: taxation, welfare programs, and others. I started voting independently and was introduced to the Libertarian Party by a friend I served with in the Army. After a while, I joined the Libertarian Party because I believe it is the closest thing to what our Founding Fathers intended when they established our great nation.

Despite my new found party, I still vote independently and I honestly do a lot of research on candidates before I decide to vote one way or another. I also joined Log Cabin Republicans here in Dallas. I think Log Cabin has a lot of potential to advance gay issues. I also have experience as an interpreter/translator and I know that even within the same language there are subtle differences in the understanding of words. Being a member of Log Cabin has helped me to understand the thinking of gay Republicans and the Republican Party in general. Many members of our local chapter have also been supportive of my efforts in the fight against Don’t ask, Don’t tell. I am also fortunate to be friends with the president of the Dallas chapter of Stonewall Democrats, as well as a number of members of that organization.

Enough about me, back to the question at hand: Why are the gays Democrats?

It all boils down to family. Yes, family. Whether the pundits like it or not, family is just as important to gay people as it is to straight people. Love is what holds a family together, even when they won’t admit it. And, for whatever reason, gay people cannot resist falling in love with someone of the same sex. And when people fall in love, they often move in together and start their own family - no matter what their sexual orientation.

Yes, two people of the same sex living together can be considered a family. They rely on each other for support, don’t they? If one of them moves to another city for work, doesn’t the other one follow as frequently as opposite sex couples? If one of them has children, doesn’t the other help raise those children, even if they can’t be a second mom or dad in the eyes of the law? Roommates are temporary, but family is permanent. Even after a divorce or separation, there is still an emotional attachment to that person. (Hate is an emotion, too.)

Political parties adopt official positions through their platform. There are also a lot of pundits, and commentators, and average citizens out there who will make their political affiliation known and their views often become associated with their party. These are the two sources of most of our knowledge about the party’s beliefs.

It’s no secret that the Religious Right plays a big role in the Republican Party of today. It’s also not a secret that the Religious Right believes homosexuality is a choice and should be discourage if not outlawed completely. And there is our problem in the gay community.

I’ve talked to a lot of gay people who have said things like, “I like the economic positions of the Republican Party, but I just can’t vote for them,” or, “I support a strong military, too,” or even, “I used to be a Republican, but I just couldn’t stay in the party any more.”

So a number of gay people are predisposed to join the Republican Party, but they won’t. Why? Because the current belief system within the party is strongly supported by those who want to outlaw homosexuality. In other words, they want to outlaw the families of gay men and women. Some defenders of the Republican Party, including the Log Cabin, may point out that being gay isn’t the only thing about you, or that there are many important issues in addition to gay issues, but family is extremely important to the vast majority of Americans and most gay Americans view joining the Democratic Party as a way of protecting their family.

A lot of people don’t know everything their party’s platform says and they can’t talk for very long on most political subjects. But they do know one thing: family comes first. And not matter what they believe about anything else, they will make choices they believe are in the best interests of their family, and for many gay Americans, that means joining the Democratic Party.