Recently,Steve Grossman called out Charlie Baker for his use offensive language in 2010 on the Transgender Equal Rights Bill.
While I applaud Steve Grossman for his support of marriage, which happened 10 years ago now, where were you Steve when Charlie Baker, as well as most of the Republican legislators, were using the same mean spirited language about transgender youth, adults and families in 2010 and 2011? You cannot re-write history by calling him out now on his transphobia. Your voice was silent on challenging the hurtful myths and stereotypes about equal rights and equal access for transgender people in public accommodations back then.
Where is your voice and your record today on supporting and actively advocating for An Act Relative to Equal Access in Hospitals, Public Transportation, Nursing Homes, Supermarkets, Retail Establishments, and all other places open to the public (House Bill 1589/Senate Bill 643)?
How about your record on same-sex domestic violence funding? What about LGBTQ youth dealing with homelessness and respectful treatment in foster care? What about our LGBTQ elders, where is your record on that? How about discrimination against LGBTQ workers? What about equal access to and respectful treatment in healthcare? What about violence and hate crimes against LGBTQ youth and adults?
The LGBTQ community is so much more than marriage and just the gay and lesbian part of the community,and on Steve’s own campaign site LGBT issues are invisible and especially the need for equal access for transgender youth and adults.
There is a clear choice for Governor and who is there for the LGBTQ community on every issue, Martha Coakely.
When I met her in 2000, Martha was the Middlesex District Attorney (1999-2006) and she was standing up for victims of same-sex domestic violence, when only a handful of public officials were even talking about the issue of domestic violence in the LGBTQ community at that time.
Since going on to be our Attorney General, she was the first to follow the lead of the Governor in banning anti-transgender discrimination in her office.
She has been an advocate and vocal supporter of the Transgender Equal Rights bill since 2007. She testified in person before the Massachusetts Legislature in support the non-discrimination legislation. She lobbied aggressively every year alongside the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition (MTPC), MassEquality and other members of the Transgender Equal Rights Coalition to successfully secure passage of the Transgender Equal Rights Bill in 2011.
She authored, championed and lobbied successfully for the passage of one of our country’s strongest anti-bullying laws for LGBTQ youth. She has been proactive in training law enforcement on investigating and prosecuting sexual orientation and gender identity hate crimes in the Commonwealth.
As for equal marriage, not only has she supported it, she sued the federal government for marriage equality – the first and only Attorney General in the country to do so – and won, winning the nation’s first court decision striking down the Defense of Marriage Act. Because of that lawsuit, same-sex marriages across the country are now honored by the federal government.
LGBTQ youth, adults, and our families need someone who is going to fight for them on every issue, today and tomorrow. Martha Coakley’s record clearly shows that as Governor of Massachusetts she will stand up for LGBTQ people and is not afraid to go first.
Christopher says
However, can you come up with some stronger evidence that makes you think he is not good on these issues? I’ve known him since he was DNC chair and he has always spoken passionately and progressively on the matter. What you basically seem to be saying is Coakley has a longer record because she has been in public office longer. Grossman’s current office is the first elected position he has ever held. Should I speak out publicly now about an issue that’s going to evolve immensely in 20 years just in case I run for office 20 years from now? That seems an unreasonable expectation.
judy-meredith says
Yes. Everyone should stand up and be counted as a human being as a neighbor, as a community resident. Especially if they are never going to run for office. Public will is the power that fuels change and finally convinces elected officials to change public policy..
Christopher says
…but there are plenty of other issues that we have no idea how will be framed or how significant will be in 20 years so I’m leery of judging a candidate today on what he didn’t have any comment on 20 years ago as a general matter.
gendercrash says
It is not unreasonable to expect something, when you are asked to speak out on it, as he did for marriage, when he was not in office, and as he has put himself out there over the years on these issues. He touts his lesbian and gay record as marriage.
From his own press release
http://stevegrossman.com/565/
“Long before he was an elected official, Steve has supported the fundamental values that shape the LGBTQ community’s fight for social justice, including the battle for marriage equality.
As chairman of the DNC from 1997-1999, Steve re-established the DNC’s gay and lesbian caucus and hired the DNC’s first full-time director of gay and lesbian outreach.
In 2012, at the request of former MassEquality Executive Director Marc Solomon, Steve reached out to former chairs of the DNC in a successful effort to change the 2012 Democratic Party platform in support of marriage equality.
Steve and his wife Barbara, the first straight member of the MassEquality Board, provided significant initial funding through GLAD for the legal team that began the fight to overturn DOMA.
Grossman Marketing Group has provided domestic partner benefits for many years. Last year, the company served as one of the amici curiae in United States v. Windsor (2013), arguing that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) “forces us to treat one class of our lawfully married employees differently than another, when our success depends upon the welfare and morale of all employees.”
As Treasurer, Steve joined others in the investment community calling on large corporate sponsors of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia to speak out against laws in the country that discriminate against the LGBT community. He believes we can’t stand idly by when foreign governments seek to deny their citizens fundamental human freedoms.”
Christopher says
Now I’m really confused about why you posted this diary.
sue-kennedy says
It took a couple seconds to google and find an article in Baywindows from 2012 of Steve Grossman’s oublic support of the Transgender Bill. I’m not going to wast my time finding the rest just to satisfy a misguided attempt to rip a long time supporter of civil rights and equality.
Yes, I’m sure you can show the AG has more quotes published on the legal questions, big surprise, but it proves ????
Would it have been to difficult to write a post on your support for Martha Coakley? She has a strong record to be proud of on LGBT issues.
I love that Steve Grossman not only talked the talk, but lead the way in his own private business. Go Steve!!
Steve didn’t just address issues that came along, he lead and pushed them to the forefront.
It’s easy to be for something that is now popular. How about a little respect for 2 good people who lead the way for that acceptance. Otherwise it might look like ingratitude.
jconway says
This is now the second instance of an LGBT ally of Coakley’s attacking the record of her opponents on this issue and insisting that Martha is ‘the only candidate” who will fight for LGBT rights. I am really sick of this. All of our candidates have a strong commitment to this fight, all of them have spoken passionately about this issue, and all of them are committed to full human rights that starts rather than ends with marriage equality. Better to go after the Dems nationally like Manchin or Landrieu who are uncommitted or Dems like Bredesen and Pryor who actually voted for bans. I am sick of the implication by this candidate and her LGBT supporters and allies that she is the only candidate who cares. It is simply untrue and unnecessarily pits activists against one another.
Let us instead celebrate that our Commonwealth is ahead of the curve while recognizing that whomever wins this race will have to beat a ticket of people committed to equality on paper and not in practice. That’s the real fight.
To attack Grossman for not having positions 20 years ago no Democratic presidential candidate had 6 years ago is the height of hypocrisy. Steve, since he started running his business and in every facet of his public life has been a leader on this front. As has Don Berwick in his business and his public commitments. As has Juliette Kayyem as an attorney who signed briefs backing equality. As has Martha Coakley-even this critic of hers does not doubt her longstanding commitment to this issue and her achievements here. Time to move on.
gendercrash says
The Transgender Equal Rights Bill passed in 2011 November to be exact and the Equal Access Bill was not introduced until 2013…