RENWL

Action Plan For Local Anti Marriage Equality City Council Candidate Steven Neal

Okay Folks. We promised we wouldn’t drop the ball on this one and we haven’t.  This morning we posted a story on Long Beach City Council candidate Steven Neal. For those of you not in the know Mr. Neal made local headlines regarding anti-gay marriage statements he made in a local publication.

See here: Local Black Candidate Called Out On Same Sex Marriage Remarks

After consulting with some of more politically and protest savvy friends and advisors, we’ve decided the best action to take is to first contact Mr. Neal’s office and ask for some clarification regarding his statements about same-sex marriage and LGBT lifestyle being a choice.

Based on advice we agree that it is only fair and proper that Mr. Neal be given the chance to clarify his statements before anymore action is to be made on our behalf. If in fact Mr. Neal does satisfactorily clarify his statement in regards to same-sex marriage then BAM. It’s over. Job done. Everybody happy.

However, if Mr. Neal does not clarify his statements in a satisfactory manner or even worse, refuses to respond to our request our next line of action will be to contact those public officials who are on record as endorsing Steven Neal for the City Council in Long Beach 9th District. Those public officials include:

Former Assembly Speaker Karen Bass

Senator Curran Price

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Thomas-Ridley

Senator Gloria Molino

In contacting these public officials—-all of whom are on record in supporting same-sex marriage and opposing Proposition 8, we will ask them to withdraw their support of City Council candidate Steven Neal for his views on marriage equality and LGBT lifestyle as a matter of choice.

But first, tomorrow (Wednesday) we’re going to contact him and give him the opportunity to explain his views. And if he does so then we will post that response here on RENWL.org and let you be the judge on whether we should pursue the matter further.

This action that we’re taking——feeling alone as we do—-is a very important and very necessary action that must be taken by an African American LGBT citizen of this city. We can no longer sit by in silence and not call those individuals in our own community out for their bigoted and homophobic beliefs. The time has come to stand up, be seen and be heard. The time has come to let our African American brothers and sisters who oppose our equality and freedom—-the time has come to let them know just who they are hurting and why we can no longer stand for it.

Hopefully in taking this action—-in contacting Steven Neal’s office and letting him know who we are and why we’re calling—–maybe that might make the difference that’s needed to be made. But we’ll never know unless we act.

Our deepest hope is that our fellow African American LGBT brothers and sisters, as well as our friends and allies—–join us if this phone call to Mr. Stevens office does not deliver satisfactory results and move to the next line of action. And the next and the one after that if necessary.

Black LGBT Angelenos—time to stand and deliver. We will follow this up with a report on our progress with Long Beach City Council candidate Steven Neal tomorrow.

In solidarity.