Alabama Rep. Patricia Todd (D-Jefferson), who is openly lesbian, said a stealth campaign led to passage of two gay-inclusive bills in the Alabama House of Representatives last week. (Photo courtesy Victory Fund)
Quiet campaign helps two pro-gay bills pass Ala. House GOP defector helps add sexual orientation to hate crimes law
In what some activists consider a bellwether moment for gay rights in the U.S., the Alabama House of Representative passed a pair of gay-inclusive bills in the same day earlier this month. Legislators voted 46-44 to amend the state’s hate crimes law to include sexual orientation, and unanimously passed a measure aimed at reducing bullying in schools.
“The trends we are seeing around the country are seen here in Alabama, too, it’s just not happening overnight,” Danny Upton, executive director of Equality Alabama, said of the May 6 votes. “Alabama is not immune to those sort of positive cultural changes.”
The Alabama Senate is scheduled to vote on the hate crimes legislation during the final day of the legislative session on May 19, but it remains unclear whether the school bullying bill will make it onto the Senate calendar before the session ends. Similar measures failed in the Georgia General Assembly this spring.
“This is really the first time in our history that we have had two gay-positive bills passed by the House of Representatives, and to have them passed on the same day is really spectacular,” said Upton, who hopes both bills get a shot at passing the Senate.
“Even if it’s a vote that we lose, we’ll still have all those senators on record,” Upton said. “It shows where we need to build bridges and cultivate relationships so next time we can change votes.”
As the gay rights movement makes headway in Dixie, gay leaders in Alabama hope national organizations recognize that success can’t be achieved with one-size-fits-all strategies.
“What works in New York or San Francisco doesn’t work in Birmingham or other southern states,” said state Rep. Patricia Todd (D-Jefferson), Alabama’s only openly gay state lawmaker.
STEALTH STRATEGY
Todd and gay activists conducted a mostly stealth campaign to pass both bills, “depending on the relationships we’ve built in the legislature the last couple of years,” said Todd, who was elected in 2006.
“When [the hate crimes bill] came up in the House, nobody spoke,” Todd said. The bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Alvin Holmes (D-Montgomery), waited until just before the bill was introduced to alert his key supporters that it was pending with the hopes of preventing conservatives from rallying against the bill, Todd said.
Opting for a quiet strategy over media campaigns and constituent mobilization allows gay rights proponents to make progress without conservative lawmakers enduring serious political pressure in their districts, Todd said.
“I think most lawmakers are not strongly opposed to [the hate crimes] bill — they just don’t want to be called out on it,” Todd said. “I hope the national groups will step back and take a look at how we’re operating, and be open to having a little bit more ammunition in our arsenal.”
Another historic element of the hate crimes bill was the first piece of specifically gay-supportive legislation to attract Republican support. State Rep. Pat Moore (R-Jefferson), who sits behind Todd in the House chamber, broke party lines and voted to add sexual orientation to the hate crimes law.
“She’s very open-minded and is not someone who always votes along party lines, and I don’t either,” said Todd, who called Moore a friend but said she wasn’t sure their friendship influence Moore’s vote.
“I didn’t know how she was going to vote,” Todd said. “She just voted her conscience.”
Repeated attempts to reach Moore for comment were unsuccessful.
Upton, from Equality Alabama, credited Todd with helping turn the tide for gay rights legislation in the state legislature.
“Her very presence has been transformative,” said Upton, who also stressed the need to employ stealth strategies.
“We’ve been more low-key in our approach this year and it’s yielded positive results,” Upton said. “That hasn’t happened in the past, and I think it gives us an opportunity to advance or legislative priorities without really mobilizing the anti-gay industry.”
The
following comments were posted by our readers and were
not edited by SOVO. We ask that you
treat others with respect; any post deemed offensive will
be removed.
