Freedom to love: A new campaign

I'm starting to go public with a concept.  I'm dangling the carrot as it were to see if anything nibbles at it prompting me to go forward in what I'm sure will be both a positive and slightly controversial social movement.

It all started with the events over the last couple weeks.  First one suicide than another, than bullying resulting in suicide... Ellen's comments, the The Trevor Project's new campaign.  The tipping point was the words of the president of the Quorum of the LDS 12 apostles, Boyd K. Packer at the most recent LDS General Conference.  Those still connected to the Mormon dome are well aware of what a mess this has caused.  I heard yesterday there was another gay teen suicide in Utah... the protest around temple square.  I mean things have just gone sideways.  A storm is indeed gathering and its not just the one outside my window right now.

While waiting the hour to go off to work something popped in to my head.  I've always felt that the gay community and the equal rights movement within the LGBT community was a little scattered.  Perhaps we're all too busy or just a little to A.D.D,... oh look at the kitty....  Maybe its just me but it almost seems that since the loss of Harvey Milk things have been without a focus.  We know what we want and what we're after, but the ship seems adrift.  We need something to unify us in this cause of equality.  Usually that is a person, a leader, but I don't see one.  Or maybe there are so many spread across the country and the globe.  There isn't a single thing anymore that brings us together... maybe having something, a focus will get us over the hump of frustration, of continued denigration, alienation, and so many other things.

And then it hit me... why couldn't that thing be a song?  Within a matter of minutes, since that was all the time I had, the words and the music came together.  The rest of the idea took place over the next several hours.  If this is a song that will express everyone then they need to lend their voice to what is expressed.  With the number of musicaly inclined gays there are in the world, or just Mormondom if we want to be narrow focused, this should be quite a simple thing.

So the initial idea blossomed further... I have provided the chorus, lets open up the writing of the verses to the homo world at large.  A sort of contest.  All they get is the chord structures and associated rhythm - aka the accompaniment, (and the preproduced chorus) they get to provide the rest.  It seems like a good idea to give voice to what we are all feeling these days.  I have no personal desires to gain a thing from this other than getting true equality here a little faster.

There are far too many lives being lost to wait another day or waste more time debating what God thinks of gay people and whether or not good Christians or Mormons should allow them to be who they are or get married if they so choose.  An acquaintance told me, "wow, maybe you're the next Harvey Milk."  To which I quickly said, no I don't have half the leadership qualities of Harvey.  I have neither the face or poetic words to rally the troops... but I do have a song, and a vision.  I pray it is a good as it seems.