Lt. Dan Choi, American Hero, Arrested at White House Protest

HRC President Joe Solmonese was in attendance, along with members of an LGBT rights organization called Get Equal.  Comedian Kathy Griffin appeared on the outdoor stage and cracked a few jokes.  She was there to shoot what Queerty called an "issues episode" for her upcoming season of Bravo's My Life on the D-List. Cameras were rolling, the Human Rights Campaign having given TV producers almost total control over the event.  Then Lieutenant Dan Choi addressed the crowd of demonstrators who had gathered at Freedom Plaza to support repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."  He was primed for action, glad-handing celebrities the last thing on his mind:  "Hello, my name is Lt. Dan Choi.  I am being discharged from the U.S. Army because I am gay and dared to say it out loud.  Today, I am here on a mission with Capt. Jim Pietrangelo, and we are asking you all to join us.  We're calling you to action because we are at a turning point -- a moment in time where talk is no longer enough, and action is required.  Equality is not going to happen by itself.  You have been told that the President has a plan. But Congressman Barney Frank confirmed to us this week that the President still is not fully committed to repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell this year.  And if we don't seize this moment it may not happen for a very long time.  Some may tell you that I am one of the lucky ones.  I have been welcomed back by my unit with open arms.  And it would be easy for me to stay quiet and hope that change will happen.  But what I was taught at West Point and learned in war is -- hope is not a strategy. As officers, James and I both find it a dereliction of our moral duty to remain silent while thousands of our brothers and sister are not allowed to serve openly and honestly.  Capt. Pietrangelo was honorably discharged under Don't Ask, Don't Tell in 2004 and I will be subject to the same shortly. As officers we are here today fighting for those in the ranks, and we need our Commander in Chief to do the same.  Our fight is not here at Freedom Plaza, it is at the White House. We are walking to the White House right now to send the President a message... Join us as, together, we make history."

As Joe Sudbay reported earlier, on AmericaBlog:  Then, he marched to the White House with Capt. Jim Pietrangelo and a crowd of several hundred. Kathy Griffin told Dan that she'd march with him, but didn't. This is a TV show for her, but for Dan, it's his life.  After delivering remarks, Dan and Capt. Pietrangelo handcuffed themselves to the fence in front of the White House. As of now, they are still there. Handcuffed to the fence in front of Barack Obama's White House to protest the President's failure to deliver on his promise to end DADT.

Lt. Choi was then taken into custody by police.  From DC Agenda:  Also arrested during the orchestrated protest that drew about 50 people was Capt. Jim Pietrangelo, who has challenged “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in the courts, and Robin McGehee, co-chair of GetEqual.org, which organized the event. Pietrangelo, like Choi, was arrested in uniform after chaining himself to the White House’s north fence.  About one hour after the protest began, people who appeared to be Secret Service agents freed Choi and Pietrangelo from their chains. Both men were then handcuffed, arrested and taken from the scene in a white van.  

A police spokesperson says Choi and Pietrangelo will have to stay in jail overnight.  They were denied bail after being charged with "failure to obey a lawful order."

Two Conflicting Reports from the D.C. DADT Rally

The Human Rights Campaign has released a statement, part of which reads:  "Lt. Choi in his speech called on the crowd to march on the White House. Joe Solmonese along with Eric Alva and others felt it was important to stay and engage those at the rally in ways they can continue building the pressure needed for repeal. This does nothing to diminish the actions taken by Lt. Choi and others. This is the nature of social change and everyone has a role to play."

John Aravosis disputes HRC's "official" account of events at the rally:  That is simply untrue. I was there, standing next to Dan, about 10 feet from Kathy Griffin and Solmonese. They were behind a rope line, to keep them from the rally attendees. They looked over at Dan when he asked them, for the second time, to come with him to the White House (mind you, they had no idea that he was planning to handcuff himself), and they just stared back at him. They were not helping engage the rally about how to build pressure. They were getting their pictures taken.  (Those of you who follow this blog will know which account I give the most credence.  Griffin is an entertainer first, an LGBT ally second.  And Solmonese never met a photo op he didn't like, as long as it didn't entail mussing up his suit or getting his hands dirty.  He loves throwing back cocktails with Washington insiders and writing mild letters of protest to lawmakers.  He and President Obama have about the same level of "fierceness" when it comes to substantive action on issues important to the gay community - which is to say, zero.)

The idea of civil disobedience is no doubt abhorrent to both Griffin and Solmonese.  But as I and many others have come to realize, civil disobedience may be the only way to achieve full equality for LGBT citizens. We were promised change, we donated tons of money to the Democratic Party and Obama's presidential campaign, and now we're being told, again and again and again, to wait. 

Most activists, pundits and bloggers insist that our movement is too diverse (and at times, fractured) for a single leader to emerge.  I'm not so sure this is true.  I'm starting to think that is exactly what we need at this moment in history.  A strong leader, brave and dedicated, smart and cunning, someone who has fought in the trenches. 

Could Lieutenant Dan Choi be the Harvey Milk for millennials?

ADDENDUM:  Pam Spaulding is now reporting that two separate sit-ins are underway at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's offices in San Francisco and Washington DC, to protest congressional inaction on ENDA.  The demonstrators have vowed not to leave until the Employment Non-Discrimination Act is passed - or until they're arrested.  Yes, they will soon be handcuffed and thrown in jail, just like Lt. Choi.  But their willingness to face jail time and pay fines in order to bring media attention to our common cause is duly noted and appreciated.

David Mixner writes:  Getting arrested in uniform is serious business with real consequences. These men give new definition to courage and bravery in our community. Dan could face a Court Martial and military prison. I am, at this time, not sure of Captain's Pietrangelo status. Having visited at length with Dan Choi on the phone before he made his fateful decision, I was totally comfortable that he understood the consequences and was willing to bear this burden on behalf of us. Anyone who belittles their sacrifice, even if they disagree with their tactics, belittle bravery and honor.  Not only was their message to the decision makers in Washington but it was to all of us as well. Hopefully their acts of sacrifice will inspire all of us to make greater efforts for our own freedom. Clearly what has been happening up to now is simply not enough.

Until equal rights are achieved for all of our citizens, the American Dream is not merely a fantasy... it is a lie. 

"As long as the world shall last there will be wrongs, and if no man objected and no man rebelled, those wrongs would last forever."  ~ Clarence Darrow 

Comments

[Trent]

Dan Choi is the real deal. I agree that he could be THE major voice of the LGBT movement. We NEED a leader. We should all be as aggressive as he is. Screw this begging and pleading for equal rights. Screw waiting, and screw the Dems. The squeaky wheel, etc.

[Bee Girl]

Rallies are great but we have to do more than preach to the choir. I can't believe Griffin wouldn't join Choi on his walk to the white house... well I can believe it but I don't want to believe it. Like Sudabay said, to her this is just a tv show. Nobody asked her to chain herself to the fence but she could have been there for moral support.

[Ames]

There's a certain comfort level in the U.S. for a specific kind of entertaining personality and flamboyance associated with gay men. Pure "tolerance" goes hand-in-hand with this comfort level, as long as things stay funny and entertaining. Kathy Griffin and others in showbiz have ridden that wave to have careers that would be impossible without it and they know they have to at least throw us a bone once in a while.

Of course Griffin wouldn't take a real stand and I'm very glad she didn't - it's a serious issue that is in danger of being belied even by her presence. People losing their hard-won careers in the military is not the stuff of flamboyant fun and naughtiness. We need allies who convey the seriousness of it or there will always be a divide in people's minds between those clever, cute guys on TV and what actual LGBT people experience.