WashBlade.com
On Aug. 9, The Human Rights Campaign and the Logo TV network hosted what was billed as the ?first GLBT forum? for the Democratic candidates. ?Forum?? What I saw that night looked more like gays and lesbians questioning the candidates on one thing and one thing only: marriage.
Yes, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act was mentioned, as was ?Don?t Ask, Don?t Tell,? the hate crimes bill, HIV, immigration, medicinal marijuana and the bark beetle. But, all combined, the time spent on those issues wasn?t anywhere near the time the panel spent badgering the candidates about the difference between marriage and civil unions.
I quickly noticed the lack of important transgender issues asked by the panel. I figured that Melissa Etheridge wouldn?t ask any trans-related questions and Jonathan Capehart has actually written articles stating that transgender people shouldn?t be included in any legislation.