It is time for Potter and I to go our separate ways. It has been an amazing 76 days together, but he has to head back to Boston now. Potter has been an incredibly important part of this project, and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without him. I urge you all to leave comments on this post wishing Potter a safe return and thanking him for all his hard work in advancing LGBT equality.
I’ll be on my own for the next 29 days. Let’s hope I don’t run into too much trouble. Although, as I’ve been saying this whole trip, conflict creates good footage.
We crossed Puget Sound and drove into Seattle this morning. It was a fun trip across the water, as we drove the Driving Equality van onto a ferry to make the 30 minute crossing. It was our first time on a vehicle ferry. I was very excited and have a short video to post later. Right now there are more important things going on.
We brought the footage of the antigay signature collector committing fraud to Equal Rights Washington. From there, our friends at ERW edited the video posted it online. Dan Savage’s local Seattle newspaper, the Stranger, picked up the story and posted the video to the paper’s blog. The “Slog” is extremely popular in Seattle and the video has now been seen by hundreds of people.
Truth Wins Out, an organization dedicated to “fighting right wing lies,” has also posted the video on their website. A few other national blogs, and some local sites, have also picked up the story and posted the footage. People are now seeing how these signatures are really being collected.
The referendum signatures are due tomorrow. I’m heading down to Olympia, the state capital, to record the scene. The antigay organization will be turning in their signatures while Equal Rights Washington makes a strong presence in favor of equality.
Unfortunately, fraudulent signature gathering is not illegal in Washington state. The mentality is that one should read and know what they are signing. Of course, in reality, many people who are stopped in a parking lot don’t read the entire petition, they believe what the signature gatherer is telling them.
We can use the footage expose the deceitful tactics used to collect the signatures, but there are no legal remedies for this wrong. Perhaps the legislature will seen the footage and hear enough complaints to change the signature gathering laws in the future. That would be the best outcome in this case.
If you like the work we are doing, please make a contribution to the project. We don’t yet have enough funds to complete the trip and make it home. Every bit helps. Thanks. You can donate online here, or mail a check made out to Driving Equality to:
Driving Equality
c/o Tom Mason
51 Peninsula Drive
Lunenburg, MA 01462
Today was an exciting day. We are in Washington state. There is a push by the anti-gay forces in the state to repeal the Domestic Partnership legislation recently passed by the Washington legislature. Anti-gay organizations are trying to collect enough signatures to bring Referendum 71 to the ballot. This referendum seeks to repeal the Domestic Partnership Expansion Law of 2009, passed by the legislature, that gives registered domestic partners wherever they live in Washington many of the rights and protections already enjoyed by legally married couples.
If the backers of Referendum 71 collect enough signatures to get it on the November ballot, then the question on the ballot will be: Should this bill be approve or rejected?
The anti-gay organizations are using paid signature gatherers in attempt to collect the required number of signatures needed to put the referendum on the ballot. The signatures are due this Saturday.
While in Port Angeles, Washington, we stopped at WalMart for a quick minute. (Interesting Fact: Port Angeles, WA is where the book and film “Twilight” takes place.) As I was walking into WalMart, I was stopped by a signature gatherer who asked my opinion on same-sex marriage. I told him that I am gay and we had a long conversation about equal rights.
After I bought some medicine at the pharmacy, I came back out to the van and grabbed my camera. I filmed the man collecting signatures for a bit, then I went over to talk with him. He was friendly and let me film him for a while.
We talked about his personal beliefs about same-sex marriage. He is in favor of equal marriage rights and would vote against the referendum if it gets on the ballot. He went on for a while about how gays deserve the same rights and that the church is wrong for trying to take those rights away. It was an interesting conversation.
Then it got even more interesting. He approached a woman and asked her if she supports same-sex marriage. When she said yes, he handed her the clipboard to sign the referendum. She though she was signing in favor of equal marriage. He tricked her, right in front of me, on camera. I called him out on it.
He said to her:
“Did you get a chance to sign our petition? We’re giving you an opportunity to decided whether or not you are in favor of giving homosexual couples legal marriage licenses. Not just the same rights as married people, but a marriage license too. Do you have an opinion on that? Yes? No? Or don’t Care?”
The woman said yes, that she will sign, and he handed her the clipboard. It was obvious to me that she was signing what she thought was a petition in favor or giving same-sex couples marriage licenses. So I asked her if she supports same-sex marriage. She said that she did.
That is not it. The bigger deal is that, to collect signatures, he is telling people that the referendum is to stop same-sex couples from getting marriage licenses. That is not true. He is telling folks that same-sex couples would still receive all the rights of marriage with Domestic Partnerships, when in fact, the referendum they are signing has nothing to do with marriage; it would repeal the Domestic Partnership law.
Unfortunately, at the time, I had no idea that he was lying about Referendum 71 being about marriage, not domestic partnerships. I just got into the state and knew nothing about the petition. I believed him when he said it was about marriage. It wasn’t until the next day, when I showed the footage to Equal Rights Washington that I learned he was even lying about the goals of the referendum.
I called my friend Josh, who is the Advocacy Director at Equal Rights Washington and told him about the footage. He was excited about it and asked me if he could use it on the campaign against the referendum. I am giving him a copy of the footage to expose the fraudulent signature gathering.
There is a lot more I could say about this interaction, but just watch the video. It is incredible.
If you like what we are doing, please help us continue the project by making a contribution.
We drove through Aberdeen, Washington today. Aberdeen is the hometown of Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain. I have been a huge fan of Kurt since I was 12 years old. It was interesting for me to see where he grew up. He was incredibly talented. It is awful to see what depression and addiction can do to people. I think that is why I am so touched by his music. I can relate to the feelings of depression and horrors or addiction. I wish he had found a way out. Unfortunately, so many people don’t find a way out. Since this is my soapbox, let me take a minute to talk about the lack of understanding and treatment concerning depression and addiction.
The two illnesses often go hand-in-hand. And yes, they are illnesses, the same as cancer or diabetes. These are not moral issues. Depression and addiction hit all different kinds of people. Too often in our society we look down on people who are suffering from depression or addiction. We judge them or blame them for their illness. Would we judge a caner patient the same way? I doubt it.
We must realize that depression and addiction is no different than any other illness. It is nothing to be ashamed of and should not be looked down upon. If you, or someone you know, is struggling with depression or addiction, don’t be afraid to ask for help. These are life-threatening diseases, but they are treatable.
I don’t normally disclose this information, but in the interest of helping others who might be suffering from depression or addiction, I will share than I deal with both issues. My family has a tough history of depression. I too am dealing with my own depression. The key is that I’m dealing with it. When I am proactive and doing what I need to do, I have no problem. I am loving life and having a blast.
I also deal with addiction. Almost everyone is touched by addiction in some way or another. Whether it be a family member, friend, or loved one; addiction is a prevalent disease in our society. Know that it is just that: a disease. Once it has a hold on you, it is incredibly difficult to break free. But it is possible. I’ve been sober for years. If you, or someone you know, is struggling with addiction, feel free to email me and we can talk.
That is my personal story. Now time for my rant (I’ll keep it short). We don’t have adequate treatment or understanding of depression or addiction. We need to take these diseases seriously and bring them out of the basement. We shouldn’t be ashamed to seek help or talk about these illnesses. Every family deals with depression and/or addiction in one way or another. Let’s bring these diseases out in the open and shed some light on the matter. That way we can start to seriously deal with what is wrong.
We need improved addiction services in this country. It is nearly impossible to find a bed in a detox or treatment center. Why is that? Why would we turn someone away who is seeking help? Treatment centers lack the funding needed to provide help for enough people. Why are we not adequately funding treatment centers? There are people dying from the disease of addiction everyday, yet we don’t have enough facilities to treat the people that are seeking help.
This is a disease that every family faces. A cousin, nephew, sister, father or spouse; every family is touched by addiction or depression. It is time we speak up and demand that our loved ones be treated with the respect they deserve and be given the care they need to recover. Drag these diseases out of the dark! Once we realize that we all have “one in our family”, then we can stop pretending and start to take down these diseases and save our loved ones.
We are in Mount Rainier National Park for the night. On the way here we checked out Mount Saint Helens. I’ve always wanted to see this volcano. It is amazing that you can still see the destruction caused by the eruption nearly 30 years ago. There are dead trees still lying in the path of the blast. The lake next to the volcano is also filled with dead trees. I never expected to see such remanence of the eruption. The mountain itself is beautiful. We could see the huge crater on the side of the mountain that was blown off.
I am very sick today. Whatever illness I have has come back with full force. I thought I was feeling better, but today was pretty rough. I am nauseous, tired, achey, and generally sick. I hope I don’t have swine flu.
Today was our last day in Portland. We said goodbye to our friend Mike and headed to downtown to meet with Alejandro Juarez, the Communications Coordinator for Basic Rights Oregon (BRO). Alejandro talked with us about the incredible progress being made in Oregon. BRO was created in response to the constant attack of anti-LGBT ballot measures. In 2004 Oregon passed a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. But the next year BRO was able to pass domestic partnership legislation that gives same-sex couples all the same state rights as married heterosexual couples. Unfortunately, same-sex couples cannot receive federal marriage benefits, which make up 75% of the rights couples receive when married.
BRO has been proactive ever since the defeat of 2004. They have passed statewide employment and housing non-discrimination legislation that includes not only sexual orientation, but also gender identity. Just a few months ago they also passed statewide anti-bullying legislation that will protect queer youth. BRO is now working to gain support in order to go back to the ballot in 2012 and pass a constitutional amendment in favor or same-sex marriage.
It was excellent to hear about all the progress being made in Oregon!
If you like what we are doing, please help us continue the project by making a contribution.
(This video was taken with the ‘behind-the-scenes’ blog camera and is not the actual footage for the documentary.)
I met up with my friend, Mike Blake, and am staying at his place while in Portland. Mike and I have been friends since Middle School and Mike, Potter, and I all went to Lunenburg High School together. Mike is actually the very first person to know that I am gay. He was the first person I came out to. We were 14 years old. It was at a Halloween Party on October 26th, 1996. (You can read my coming out story here.) Mike’s total acceptance and love gave me the courage to come out to my other friends and my parents just a few months later.
Mike lives in a treehouse here in Portland. I’m going to make a video tour of the treehouse before I go. He is an incredible chef. The best food I have ever tasted has been created by Mike Blake. He is having a BBQ today and brought a live eel home from the market. He gave it a nice big tub to live in until it was time to cook. Here is a video of Mike carving up the live eel. Seriously, the guys an amazing chef.
Today was another driving day. I am still pretty sick, so it took all day to drive from Roseburg, OR to Portland. What should take less than three hours, took me nine hours to drive. Every hour I had to pull over and sleep in the back of the van for a few hours. It is good to be in Portland though. Time to rest.
Today was just a driving day. We drove from Redding, California to Roseburg, Oregon. It should have been an easy 250 mile drive, but I am sick with a cold or some kind of virus, so it took us all day. I tried to find someone who needed a ride to Portland that we could pick up and could drive the van while I slept in the back, but that didn’t pan out. I have a sore throat, achey muscles, and am feeling pretty groggy, so I only drove 250 miles before stopping to rest for the day.
Since nothing exciting or fun happened today, I will share with you a short video I made while I was at Yosemite National Park. It is the story behind my recent tattoo and the way I live my life. TODAY: It’s all we have.
We had an amazing day today. As I’ve mentioned before, I love history, especially queer history. So before we left San Francisco, I had to head over to the Castro and check out the exhibit at the GLBT Historical Society. We got a tour from Tom Burtch, who allowed us to film the collection.
The exhibit includes many treasures from San Francisco queer history. The most striking piece is the actual suit that Harvey Milk was wearing when he was shot. You can see the bullet holes in the suit. It is a touching tribute to our slain martyr.
Other great pieces of the collection include the shoe from a former Chief of Police that accompanied his men into the Castro to make sure there were not protests after the governor vetoed domestic partnership legislation. The gays came out of the bars and chased the police down the street and out of the Castro. While running away, the Police Chief lost his shoe. Someone picked it up and donated it to the Historical Society.
Another great item is the actual sewing machine used to sew the first gay pride flag. It is awesome that the Historical Society has all of these incredible pieces of our community’s past.
Check out the video below. It is a behind-the-scenes look at our shoot at the GLBT Historical Society. You can watch the tour and see some of the amazing items. You can also see the photos from the GLBT Historical Society here.
Special shout out to my new friend Luke, who showed me around the city and accompanied me to Pixar Animation Studios. We got an incredible tour of Pixar Studios. My Uncle, Dan, is an animator for Pixar and took us on a behind-the-scenes tour of the studio. I’m not allowed to talk about anything I saw, but it was incredible.
If you like what we are doing, please help us continue the project by making a contribution.
(This video was taken with the ‘behind-the-scenes’ blog camera and is not the actual footage for the documentary.)
The suit Harvey Milk was wearing the day he was shot
The plaque in the sidewalk in front of Harvey Milk’s old camera store
The sewing machine used to sew the first gay pride flag
Luke and Chris in front of Harvey Milk’s old camera store
Chris and his uncle Dan at Pixar Animation Studios
If you have been following us from the beginning of this trip then you know that we’ve been having problems with the breaks. We first discovered the problem in Virginia, while driving through the Appalacian Mountains. After a while, the van shakes violently when I apply the breaks going down hill. I think the problem occurs when they brakes heat up. So I have been putting the van into lower gears when going down mounatins. This works well, and has certainly saved our lives, but the brakes are getting worse. Coming over the Sierra Nevada Mountains into San Francisco was scary.
I had the van in third gear and then in second gear, but still needed to use the brakes. The shaking was awful and the smell was terrible. The steering wheel shook so bad that I almost went off the road and over the cliff. I am never afraid while driving, but these brakes are starting to terrify me. I have been hoping to ride it out and make it home without repairing them. We don’t yet have the funds to complete the trip, nevermind fix the brakes. But after the last near-death incident, I decided to get the brakes fixed. I don’t want to die on some random road in Idaho. That would be pointless. So today the van is in the shop.
I need your help. I cannot afford to fix the brakes. If I could, I would have done it a while ago. My good friend, Marc, has offered to pitch in for the repair costs. I’m not sure yet how much it will be, but I will know by the end of the day. Can you help out? We are going to continue this journey across the country safely, but need your help to do it. I don’t usually ask for help so forwardly, but this time we really need it. If you can help, please send me an email or make a donation to the Driving Equality Brake Fund.
Thank you!
UPDATE:
The brakes repair cost $504.00. The rotors were warped and the brake pads needed to be replaced as well. The mechanic showed me the rotors and pads, then threw them in the trash. I asked him if I could keep the brake pads as a souvenir for my trip. He looked at me kind of strange, but put the pads in a bag for me. Here they are:
We had a great interview today with queer activist, Mark Snyder. Mark is the founder of the online queer forum and activism powerhouse, QueerToday.com. He started QueerToday nine years ago, in 2000, when few organizers were utilizing online tools. Mark’s work focuses on coalition building and liberation of all oppressed people.
Mark is kind of a personal hero of mine. I’ve known him for about five years. He lived in Boston before moving to San Francisco last year. While Mark and I have not always agreed on every issue, I have learned a great deal from him and his writings on QueerToday.com. Conversations with Mark helped me form my own ideas about the importance of a queer movement with a broader focus than just marriage for gays and lesbians. Mark has always spoken up when he sees something that is wrong. That is what I admire most about him. He sometimes takes criticism for speaking out, but no matter what, he is always there, saying what needs to be said.
Mark sees the queer movement as more than just the fight for marriage equality. It is a fight for queer youth being bullied in schools and kicked out of their homes, for employment and housing protections, for fair and humane treatment of immigrants, for health care, and of course also for equal relationship recognition. All of these issues affect members of our community. He sees the movement as something larger than just acceptance for LGBT people. He is constantly teaching me the difference between liberation and assimilation. Mark is a great teacher and an important part of our movement.
If you like what we are doing, please help us continue the project by making a contribution.
(This video was taken with the ‘behind-the-scenes’ blog camera and is not the actual footage for the documentary.)
Today was one of the most incredible days of my life. We interview Dan Nicoletta. If you have seen the film, Milk, then you will remember “Danny” Nicoletta as the young guy working in Harvey’s camera shop. Dan was played by the actor Lucas Grabeel. He has been photographing the queer community for over 30 years. Dan started working in Harvey Milk’s camera shop on Castro Street in 1975. We talked with Dan about his friendship with Harvey and about his life documenting queer history.
I have looked up to Harvey Milk as a role model since I came out in 1996. I was 14 at the time and hung a quote from Harvey Milk’s “Hope Speech” on my wall. In 2008, when the film Milk opened, I organized a candlelight vigil to remember Harvey. Folks from all over came to the vigil and then to the opening of Milk at Kendall Cinema in Cambridge, MA.
When I was planning this trip, I was looking for people to interview. A friend told me that he knew Dan Nicoletta and that I should contact him. Dan was actually the very first interview I scheduled for the Driving Equality project. It was an honor to meet him and learn a little about his life.
You should check out some of Dan’s photography here. There are some great photos of Harvey Milk that I’m sure you’ve never seen before.
Dan also took these famous photos of Harvey that I’m sure you have seen. This first photo of Harvey has been used in countless ways by a number of different people. Dan helped get a memorial statue of Harvey Milk in San Francisco City Hall. The statue is based off of this photograph. Even I used this iconic photo on the Harvey Milk buttons that I designed. It is interesting to me that I used Dan’s photo on buttons that I sold to raise money for Driving Equality in order to interview people like Dan across the country, and in interviewing Dan I learned that Dan actually took the photo on the buttons. I sold the buttons at rallies and activist events in the year leading up to the drive. Since Dan took the photo that I used on the buttons, which raised about $500, I am now listing him as a National Sponsor.
I love history, and I especially love queer history. For me to sit down with Dan Nicoletta and ask him questions and see old photographs was like winning the big gay lottery. I was high on life and queer history after this interview. Check out the clips below. There are three parts to this interview, but it is only a small portion of our discussion with Dan.
After our interview with Dan, with hurried over to San Francisco City Hall to meet with Stuart Gaffney and John Lewis. This was another incredible interview! Stuart and John were plaintiffs in the California case for marriage equality, decided by the California Supreme Court in 2008. They were first married in San Francisco City Hall the day that Mayor Gavin Newsom opened the doors to same-sex couples back in 2004. Those marriages were later found invalid by the California Supreme Court. But Stuart and John took their case to court and won marriage equality in the state of California. After 22 years together, they legally married on June 17, 2008.
Stuart and John have been activists for a long time. They were both fighting the fight back in the 80’s, so when the marriage issue heated up in California, they were right there to lead the way. It was great to hear about their excitement when the court ruled in favor of marriage equality. But it was hard to talk about their disappointment with the passage of Prop 8. They have been on a marriage equality roller coaster for five years. It is not easy being a couple in the spotlight during the ups and downs of this fight. I applaud them both for their courage and activism.
After an interview outside in front of City Hall, we went in and they showed me where they first rushed to get their marriage license in 2004, and then where they were legally married in 2008. It is interesting to note that Stuart and John were married at the top of the steps in City Hall, right next to the new Harvey Milk statue. The same statue that Dan Nicoletta fought so hard to bring to City Hall. In fact, hundreds of gay and lesbian couples were married with Harvey Milk looking over them.
These were two beautiful interviews that came together so well. Stuart and John were one of the first legally married couples in California, and they were married in front of the statue of Harvey Milk that was sculpted using a photo by Dan Nicoletta. How amazing is that!? I am still in awe of this incredible day.
If you like what we are doing, please help us continue the project by making a contribution.
(This video was taken with the ‘behind-the-scenes’ blog camera and is not the actual footage for the documentary.)
I left Yosemite this morning and made my way to San Francisco. I’m staying with my Uncle Dan and Aunt Michele. They are both incredible people. I don’t often stop and think about how lucky I am to have the family that I do…but it is true. I am truly grateful to have such an accepting, caring, kind, and cool family.
It feels great to be back in San Francisco. I love this place. It is definitely one of my favorite cities. The culture, atmosphere, and landscape all come together to create the perfect place. I hung out in the Castro tonight and caught up with my friend David. It’s exciting to be in the place where Harvey Milk was fighting the fight. It feels like home to me.
Tomorrow will be a busy day. We’ve got some great interviews lined up. I feel good and am ready to go!
I am in love with Yosemite. I did a four hour “strenuous” hike today to the top of a waterfall. It feels so great to be out here, immersed in the heart of nature. My mind is overwhelmed with the beauty that surrounds me…and it feels spectacular.
After the hike, I walked through the grove of Giant Sequoias. These are the largest trees in the country. I saw a tree bigger than I could imagine. It doesn’t seem real. Yosemite just happens to be the perfect place for me to rest and recharge. I feel great, full of energy, and I’m excited to get back on the road and interview more activists, advocates, and allies!
Posted by Chris Mason 
Driving Equality 