"Last week, Howard Dean gave a rousing speech at a Democratic National Committee fund-raiser in New York City, but the new party chairman didn’t talk about money. He spoke about messaging. Dean’s promising attempt to frame a winning agenda for the moribund Democrats is comparable to the place where the gay rights movement finds itself at present—moving in the right direction, but nowhere near the final destination. The larger context of a polarized American electorate that dogs the Democratic Party today provides insight as to how the gay rights movement needs to maneuver in the near future. Two buzzwords—messaging and framing—have become crucial in the lexicon of political operatives seeking to woo the valuable middle ground of the electorate. In his speech, Dean spoke of the attitudes of Republican and independent voters who could be persuaded to vote for Democrats. One portion of that group is traditional Democrats who have shifted party allegiance out of some mechanism that might be thought of as backlash. These voters, the former Vermont governor said, have such a high level of “economic anxiety,” that it is “off-the charts.” He stressed the need for Democrats to stress the compassion at the heart of their economic thinking, but all he could do was state the problem, he couldn’t show the compassion. In other words, Dean understands the problem, but has no immediate solution. My point isn’t to criticize but to suggest the movement for equal rights for lesbians, gays, and bisexual and transgendered people is in a similar place. We are learning what has to be done, but we are not yet able to accomplish it—though I am confident we can."-from the article in Gay City News.
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