Scott Gortikov, MassEquality Executive Director, Snubs and Slinks Past Fellow LGBT Protesters to Attend DNC Fundraiser
Boston, MA June 23, 2009 What seemed right out of the movie Dr. Zhivago, in the scene where on the eve of Revolution, protesters crying out for rights were snubbed and ridiculed by the elite , so there was the Join the Impact protest rally today outside of Fenway Park. Organized by Paul Sousa of Join the Impact/MA the protest rally at this DNC Fundraiser with Vice President Joe Biden was meant to tell the Democrats and the Obama Administration that the time has come to pass some substantive LGBT Rights Measures. No longer will LGBT continue to write checks to, volunteer on campaigns for, or vote for Democrats until this national embarrassment of segregation and inequality ends.
This protest certainly made party goers uncomfortable. Many did not know what to make of this LGBT demographic that most always voted Democrat in exchange for open-ended promises and some "yet to be determined" rights. Lt. Governor Tim Murray was one of the first to show up, who though standing 15 feet away from protestors, could not even turn to look at us. Next came Mayor, I Love the Gays, Menino who stepped out of his car with his entourage, purposefully stood with his back to us while we chanted his name and begged him to look at us. What seemed like many minutes he would not look or even turn his head.
But the most disturbing of all was MassEquality's Executive Director Scott Gortikov, who walked straight into this $250 to $5000 a head event, again as we called his name he put a cell phone to his ear and feigned ignorance of his fellow LGBT, arrogantly looking straight toward us, yet looking through us. Gortikov's disgusting display of indifference creating an "us and them" division left gay protestors speechless and angry.
I thought long and hard driving back to the Northshore thinking why MassEquality would even have been at this DNC event. Of course Gortikov knew Join the Impact was going to protest. It was even endorsed by Pam Spaulding's Pam's House Blend as well as Sue O'Connell's One in Ten. Some might say that MassEquality should have been inside, "talking to Democrats about the plight of LGBT." Then why the embarrassment in acknowledging fellow LGBT who were doing the right thing in a respectful way? Why did Gortikov not come over to the protesters and say, "thank you for being here today, let me tell you what I am going to do inside this fundraiser. I am going to be advocating for us all..." Why? Because Gortikov was NOT attending this event to do the job he was hired to do, nor does he feel he is obliged to explain anything to us--the ones who pay his salary. We were truly a liability for him, a distraction, an embarrassing display. And in his mind it was better to sleeze into this event on pretense that somehow he missed us. I have a question for him though. Scott Gortikov, did you attend this event for free, did you pay for the ticket out of your own pocket or did you use LGBT Community PAC money to hobnob with Biden while giving us the bird?
This is not the first time that high profile LGBT leaders in Massachusetts have been held to question. It was KnowThyNeighbor.org who called out MassEquality Board Chair Ellen Zucker for being on a Hillary Clinton Host Committee back in 2007 and Goodridge Decision plaintiff couple David Wilson for also publicly taking a side for a candidate who, like Barack Obama believed marriage to be between a man and a woman. The group that joined other LGBT in crucifying Kerry Healey during her run for Governor for being pro-civil unions continue to deify Presidential candidates for the exact same stand. And for what? Power of course. Muzzling up to power, star fucking...and all on the LGBT community's dime.
I think it was pretty clear to all who attended the Join the Impact, Money Talks Protest tonight, that there are two types of LGBT--those who are "connected" and those who are not. A two class system within our ranks. One that is fighting for the right to live equally in this country and the other class which has joined the ranks of the oppressors. Bought off, cheaply. LGBT are finally realizing that we can blame the Republicans, we can blame the Democrats, but the truth behind it all is that we need not look too far from home to see who is really keeping us from accessing our Equal Rights.
Painfully,
Tom Lang, Director