20230115 Report on the Counter Protest to Defend Dallas Drag: Updated1,2,3,4, 5
Invisible no support of the Stonewall Democrats. Who was with the LGBT and who was missing.
I can’t bypass the establishment without people sharing these posts.
The information for new scribers was removed since it is no longer needed.
This is the link to the Dallas Gay Liberation twitter.
https://twitter.com/dallasgaylibera
Please read the “PINK MAFIA” article at the end of this post.
I will provide a link to it at the end of the newsletter. Though it was published in 1996, it is unfortunately still descriptive of much of those who feel they are the “leadership” of the LGBT in Dallas.
Elm Fork John Brown G*n Club was the backbone of the counter-protest and is the defense of the LGBT community.
There wasn’t any other group visible at the Sat. Jan. 14, 2023 protest. The Stonewall Democrats talked a lot about defending the drag event online, but they weren’t visible at the protest. I am not seeing other LGBT groups involved in these drag protests.
Whatever you might think about the politics of the Elm Folk group, they are the only group involved in defending the Gay community in response to anti-drag protests.
If the scope of right-wing attacks expands to include Gay bars, Pride events, and other LGBT events, I think we will only have the Elm Fork people there.
I found them personable and friendly. I was a little apprehensive seeing the guns, but looking at the people leading the anti-drag protest I didn’t entirely mind. They also walked me to my car and helped carry my signs.
I was watching an East Asian Gay movie, I can’t remember which, but Gay people were getting beat up. Actually, it was several movies with Gay people being abused. I thought to myself, I am 68, it has been going on all my life, and, it simply has to stop.
I thought, we need to have tougher tactics. We need to stop hoping that sentimental talk and wishful thinking and being the nicest Gay people we can be, will somehow change things. I thought, we need to get tough and fight back.
I also was frustrated that Gays never have a militant armed group like other minorities do. Where is our radical groups? Instead, we hope maybe more episodes of a TV show where we adopt children and have a white picket fence will make people love us.
I realized, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2023, that after all these decades we finally do have a militant LBGT group. It is the Elm Fork John Brown Gun Club.
Some of you will be a little apprehensive, that is okay, what isn’t okay, is that you let it cause you to push away allies. Also, it isn’t okay just to fret and fidget without coming up with a plan.
The opposition that was present
This is a video I took early in the protest.
Kelly Neidert of Protect Texas Kids (PTK) is there along with the blue flag of the American Nationalist Initiative, which appears to be a fascist group. The following is their webpage.
https://www.americannationalistinitiative.com/
I will be doing a post on them and put a link to that post into a directory post. My goal is to have a single post where you can learn about all the actively anti-Gay individuals, groups, and organizations in the Dallas area.
Later, this group appeared, the New Columbia Movement.
https://newcolumbiamovement.org/
For them also I will do a post with background information.
I will put a link at the end of this newsletter a link to the directory post of anti-Gay groups.
I wore this t-shirt so they would know which side I was on.
Elected Representatives who showed.
City Council members Paul Ridley and Jesse Moreno were there because BuzzBrew was either in their district or was right next to it and were kind enough to make statements for my video recording. Also, Hon. Venton Jones, Texas Rep. District 100 was there and I recorded a video of his statement. This is a YouTube playlist. I also put individual videos on the Dallas Gay Liberation Twitter. Click on this link for the playlist of videos of the statements of Venton Jones, Paul Ridley, and Jesse Moreno.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAvx1QUO-hnFpUsxqa2bssL-BtIo4xTrK
A conservative reporter also recorded the speeches made by all three inside BuzzBrew.
This is the link to the Dallas Gay Liberation twitter.
https://twitter.com/dallasgaylibera
Final Update: It reached 19.6k views, upvote of 126, 15 total shares.
This is the link to the Reddit post.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Dallas/comments/10cafp6/statement_by_texas_state_rep_venton_jones_at/
Who didn’t show, or send a message, make a statement, or take any action.
Mayor Eric Johnson didn’t, and besides Ridley and Moreno, none of the other Dallas City Council people showed up, or sent a representative, or send a communication to me, or issued a public statement or took any action to show support. If I am wrong on this, please let me know. I will update this post.
Chad West and Omar Narvaez who will likely in an upcoming election tell us that they are Gay and champions for the LGBT, weren’t their and but for some reason didn’t have anything to say about this event.
None of the Dallas County Commissioners showed up, or sent a representative, or send a communication to me, or issued a public statement or took any action to show support. If I am wrong on this, please let me know.
For the above two groups, perhaps some communication is in the mail. If so, I will update this post.
Jasmine Crockett, U.S. Rep. 30th district doesn’t have a district office yet, but I contacted her Twitter, sent a message via her Congressional website, and contacted on Facebook. No reply. I am one of her constituents.
Unfortunately, I discovered that the United States Post Office can’t deliver mail in a timely fashion. Some of the certified letters sent to U.S. Congressional Rep.’s, Texas Representatives, and Texas Senators were still in transit as of 1/13/2023 even though they were mailed 1/6/2023 and were just going across town or less than 20 miles. A processing station in Coppell, Texas would hold the mail for four days in many instances.
Others were not delivered since many of the Texas Representatives offices would refuse to receive them.
Given the USPS delays, I can’t say that the persons who did receive the correspondence had time to respond.
As for the foreign consuls, they are likely to be getting the mail next week or the week after, especially if it has to go through the USPS Coppell, Texas processing unit. I think the value is that these nations will at least think about their role as Human Rights Observers in the future. It is a long shot, but you don’t know unless you try.
In the future I am going to use Fed Ex. I believe the mailings did serve to get the counter protest known to the general LGBT community.
However, let’s not blame the post office. The Stonewall Democrats could have been calling asking for a statement. Some of the representatives did get the correspondence on time. The local Democrats could have helped.
What we should conclude is that in a crisis, we might not get much support. We have a developing political situation in Texas and we had three elected representatives take any action to express their support.
The antics of the Stonewall Democrats.
After I published the update on the status of the counter-protest on 20230107 the Stonewall Democrats came out on Twitter and on Facebook with a call for people to be there at the counter-protest. I was very encouraged that we were getting wider community involvement. I was looking forward to saying hello to them.
The President of the Stonewall Democrats was at the counter-protest. I asked her where was their banner was and I was told they didn’t bring it or any other sign. I was told they were attending as individuals. She was wearing a “No H8” and had no identification of being an officer or member of Stonewall Democrats.
They were there, how many I don’t’ know, because they weren’t visible as Stonewall Democrats at the counter-protest. I was only aware of the president being there when I started asking around if anyone knew if the Stonewall Democrats were there and she answered me that she was and was the president.
The Stonewall Democrats were playing it both ways. They didn’t want to be visible at the protest, but they wanted to claim they were supporting it.
Usually, when a group shows up in support, they want to be recognized as a group supporting an effort. However, the Stonewall Democrats didn’t want to be recognized. They were likely concerned at appearing to be involved with radicals and being perceived as troublemakers so they came up with this plan to show up as individuals so they can claim they were supporting the counter-protest, but as individuals, so they could avoid being identified with the protest, but tell people they were supportive if asked.
This type of behavior is that of an organization that isn’t going to ask for much.
For purposes of journalistic ethics, the Stonewall Democrats banned me from their Facebook group for saying they are vote harvestors for the LGBT.
Reddit
I did three posts. One was the counter protestors, one was the anti-drag protestors, and one was Hon. Venton Jone’s statement. The post of the anti-drag protestors was pulled as a duplicate The commenting on the post about the counter-protestors was stopped. Updated photo below. Numbers still rising.
Final Update: Generally, Reddit has been good for getting the word out. The above post has an upvote over 1.2k; total views of 68.0k, and 134 shares. It was started the morning of Jan. 15, 2023. The following is a link to the post.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Dallas/comments/10ca7d2/counterprotestors_defending_drag_show_in_lakewood/
There are lots of rules and methods. The moderators are getting overwhelmed with reported comments. I am still coming up to speed on this.
UPDATE: Other Reddit posts.
A person suggested that I post in the Socialist Rifle Association subreddit and the Liberalgunclub reddit.
Upvote for the post above was 1.5k, 27.7 views, 97% upvote rate and 27 shares. Really good.
Update: The final upvote was 3.7k, 145k views, 94 shares. So a lot of people ended up knowing about the protest. The upvote rate was 91%.
Getting the word out is, I think, important.
Some of the feedback from some socialists.
Dallas Express Coverage
Update 3: The Dallas Express did a report on the protest and counter-protest which came out early morning 1/18/2023.
https://dallasexpress.com/city/protests-rage-at-all-ages-drag-show
They had a link to this person’s reporting. They also mentioned that Bonnie Mathias, and an election team director for the Dallas County Democratic Party was there.
Nowhere in the report was it mentioned that the American Nationalist Initiative had members their and flying flags or the the New Columbia Movement was there in support. At the end of the Dallas Express report was links to the bill by Matt Shaheen requiring that drag shows be restricted to 18+.
Other Media Coverage
He used the article which was somewhat neutral in tone, to mention anti-drag show legislation by Matt Shaheen who represents parts of North Dallas and Plano.
I found this video at the Dallas Morning News but I am unable to find an article accompanying it.
Checking the Dallas Voice as of 1/15/2023, 7:26 pm, I see an article about animals at the Dallas Zoo escaping, but no news about the protest on Jan. 14th.
Protect Texas Kids
Protect Texas Kids (PTK) made a lot of claims which I doubt. Note that she was upset that elected representatives were present to defend the drag show. There was no grooming and it was just a drag show brunch and parents could bring along their kids if they wished.
PTK was able to intimidate and get a drag show made 18+ in Corinth, Texas.
Though drag was defended in Dallas, the PTK campaign is still going on and they are winning by getting some drag shows shut down.
Summary
The LGBT establishment is not going to be supporting counter-protests against anti-drag protestors. Again, read the “Pink Mafia” article.
We did some get support by some elected representatives, but only three.
We are going to have to set up our own channels of communication and rely on ourselves.
Subscriptions are free.
PINK MAFIA ARTICLE AT THIS LINK.
https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc947403/
When all the posts for the 1/14/2023 counter-protest are collected together there will be a link added here.
This is the link to a directory post of the anti-Gay groups.
I will be adding the New Columbia Movement to it and the American Nationalist Initiative posts to this directory post.
