Thousands of people converged on the West Lawn of the Capitol Oct. 11, decked out in everything from rainbow flags and glitter to chicken costumes — calling for equal rights for the gay community.
The crowd participating in the National Equality March congregated at 15 and E Streets and then marched to the Capitol for a rally. Several diverse representatives of the gay community spoke at the rally, including activist David Mixner and Judy Shepard, who lost her son, Matthew Shepard, to anti-gay violence in 1998.
| JORDAN COUGHENOUR / THE EAGLE |
“This is how you do it,” McGehee said.
“Grass roots!” Williams added.
The pair rallied the crowd, congratulating everyone on the huge numbers that showed up to the march. The lines of people flocking toward the Capitol lawn during the speech were seven blocks deep, McGehee said.
McGehee then discredited Rep. Barney Frank’s, D-Mass., statement that the march would not make a difference.
Frank had previously said that the march was a “waste of time” and that gay and lesbian activists should petition their elected representatives instead of participating in protests, according to The Associated Press.
The amount of people that showed up to the march proves that Frank is out of touch, McGehee said.
“We’re here because we believe we can cause this change,” she said.
As McGehee and Williams spoke, continuous streams of people still completing the march swarmed into the Capitol lawn. Those in the crowd included drag queens, girls in belly shirts and face paint, elderly couples, dogs in rainbow bandanas and parents pushing small children in strollers.
| KELLY BARRETT / THE EAGLE |
McGehee and Williams passed the microphone to members of the audience, who gave their name and where they were from. Answers ranged from as far as California, Ohio and Texas.
Several participants were speaking foreign languages.
Dani Libsman, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs, attended the protest because she said she believes in marriage equality and wanted to do something to take advantage of her location in D.C.
“I feel like I live in D.C. now. I’m from Kansas, where [a demonstration like this] isn’t even [a possibility],” she said. “It came up two years ago, and it was immediately stricken down.”
Libsman thinks events like the National Equality March will make a difference in the long run.
“I believe in it,” she said. “I’m here.”
Eric Oliver, a sophomore in the School of International Service, said he was impressed by the atmosphere created by such a large turnout of people.
“I think it’s really cool because I agree with it a lot,” Oliver said. “I saw a sign that said, ‘I can’t believe we still have to protest this crap.’ I think that’s an awesome sign, because I can’t believe this is even still a problem in today’s world. So it’s awesome to see so many people are on the same page like that.”
He said that while it may take a while for all 50 states to legalize gay marriage, it will probably happen in the near future.
“I mean, look at the progress that’s been made in the past ten years,” Oliver said.
You can reach this staff writer at mkendall@theeagleonline.com.
