Money is a basic requirement to gaining political power within the system. Thus, working class gays and lesbians have few effective options in following Frank's advice. Class divisions within the gay community and the distinct interests of those economic classes must be acknowledged. For instance the Human Rights Campaign - a prominent, financially well-endowed, gay rights lobby - endorsed former Sen. Alphonse D'Amato for re-election in New York because he supported an anti-discrimination bill. But they ignored the fact that D'Amato had generally voted against policies that would help lower class Americans and therefore the majority of gay people. By disregarding the connection between gay equality and economic equality, the Campaign can hurt more gay people than it helps. Lobbying, the most effective form of political participation that Frank endorsed, excludes many if not most gay Americans.
Frank used another lobby, the National Rifle Association, as an example that gay political organizations should emulate. But no one on the Left should want to be like the NRA; it may not be possible anyway. The organization has the help of powerful gun companies. Perhaps gays and lesbians can get some gay magazines or rainbow sticker manufaturers to fund lobbying and contributions to political campaigns. But the interests of these companies are not as directly tied to gay rights as gun company interests are tied to the right to bear arms.
Profits at The Advocate are not necessarily affected by the fact that gays can be fired in most states because of their sexual orientation. But restrictions on gun sales definitely cut into the gun makers' bottom line.
Of course, if you don't have a lot of money, the next best thing is mass demonstration. Frank spoke against such direct action because he says it doesn't work anymore, but it isn't clear that he ever found it useful. In his book, Speaking Frankly, he shows outright hostility toward activists opposing the Vietnam War and those supporting racial equality. He refers to them as "looters, arsonists, draft dodgers and social misfits." In fact these so-called "misfits" were generally more enlightened than politicians believed the electorate to be. They knew that the political system did not work well for most Americans, and without resources or political capital the only route to justice was through the streets.
Frank claims that such activists do more harm than good because they are often more critical of Democrats than Republicans. But this is because Democrats' stated values are often not reflected in their actions. It's clear where the Republicans stand; they are generally pro-big business, for more prisons, anti-choice and anti-gay. But Democrats, despite their rhetoric and compassionate appeals, are not much different. President Clinton has probably dropped more bombs on foreign countries than any recent president. He has damaged the gay rights movement by signing the Defense of Marriage Act and approving the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy in the military. He has expanded the use of the death penalty and limited the rights of women to abortion. Activists on the Left often get a better deal with Republicans, because they are able to mobilize more pressure against "evil" conservatives than against "compassionate" liberal Democrats.
The name of Frank's talk, "Legislating Gay and Lesbian Rights," said it all. His message was that legislation and political brown-nosing is the only way to win gay rights. Imagine if Martin Luther King or Cesar Chavez devoted all of their energy to lobbying and letter-writing. If you have thousands of dollars to donate to campaigns, then perhaps Frank's speech was relevant. For the majority of gays and lesbians, though, direct action should continue to be a primary means toward achieving equality.
Villarreal is a sociology senior