Thank you for visiting Social Justice For All. Sadly, its author, Michael Hulshof-Schmidt, passed away on January 30, 2021, after a long battle with cancer. I am leaving up this blog — his thoughts, words, celebrations, struggles, and wishes — as a tribute to the way he lived his life and the impact he had on so many people around the world.
You can visit his memorial site for more information about his life and work.
With the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett, we see how hypocrisy and sociopathy prevail in the United States. Trump and McConnell did not even wait 24 hours after the passing of iconic hero Ruth Bader Ginsberg to announce they would rush through the appointment of a new justice.
Well, 8 days before the election and the diagnostic, sociopathic GOP appointed Barrett to fill RBG’s seat. Another slap in the face of Democracy and such bitter hypocrisy. In 2016, eight months before the election, President Obama tried to appoint Merrick Garland as a Supreme Court Justice, only to be blocked by the King of Hypocrisy, Mitch McConnell. McConnell stated that, “he would consider any appointment null and void.”
The people of the United States should be outraged as we witness this hypocrisy and the implications now of a right wing activist Supreme Court– a court that is supposed to be a part of a system of checks and balances. Sadly, we can not differentiate between the Senate and the Supreme Court who do the bidding of the quintessential sociopath, Trump.
We now see the opportunity to turn back civil rights back by 100 years. As a queer man, I worry for myself and husband; I worry of all immigrants; I worry for all women; I worry for all of us who need health care; I worry for all people with targeted identities, as this is the last grasp for white supremacy to ensure that white, heterosexual, cisgender, able bodied, Christian men sustain power and create an apartheid nation.
VOTE! Vote McConnell out. Vote Graham out. Vote Collins out. VOTE!
The Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival — popularly known as MichFest — is one of the oldest ongoing music events in the country. Founded in 1976 as a women-only camping and entertainment event, it has been in the same location since 1982, drawing thousands of women each year. Sadly, it is also driven by what founder and organizer Lisa Vogel refers to as “The Intention.” This policy declares that only “womyn born womyn” are allowed to attend, actively excluding any women not assigned female gender at birth.
This deplorable transphobia flies in the face of true feminism and dangerously ignores our need to stand in solidarity. By subscribing to a narrow binary of gender identity, Vogel tragically perpetuates the kind of marginalization that she maintains the festival was created to eliminate. Since Nancy Burkholder — a trans woman — was ejected from the festival in 1991 transgender activists have worked hard to raise awareness of “The Intention” and its harmful effects.
This year an actor and comedian has led an exodus from MichFest in protest to the policy. Lea DeLaria, a strong advocate for all of the LGBT community throughout her career, has gained recent attention starring in the Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black. After signing up to perform at MichFest she learned about The Intention from co-star Laverne Cox — one of the most visible transgender entertainers. Not content to just walk away, DeLaria issued a strong statement rebuking Vogel and MichFest for their shameful practices. She also noted some of the more dramatic protests mounted by activists outside the festival, including physical harassment and bomb threats.
After over 30 years of gay activism and as an out, proud member of the LGBTQ Community, I do not wish to be a party to infighting. We queers need to find a way to stop this fighting and work together towards our common goal. Both sides of the Michigan Women’s Music Festival dispute refuse to listen to each other. Due to their unyielding stance, I am withdrawing from the festival. I truly look forward to the time when all LGBTQ stand as one. Perhaps then we can collectively laugh at how fucked up is it when I’M the voice of reason.
Nicely done, Lea. Other performers have joined the boycott, including out folk duo Indigo Girls, poet Andrea Gibson, and rockers Hunter Valentine.
Thank you to my friend Jennifer for writing about poverty. Please read her article and I would recommend also reading about the current distribution of wealth.
This is quite lovely. Thank you Jennifer Carey for sharing this: Library of Congress Electronic Exhibit – African American Odyssey: A Quest for Full Citizenship
I Really Hate Gays, Women, Blacks, and Old People
We all know that John Boehner and his Republican controlled House of Representatives have NOT created any new jobs, nor have they done anything to help the American people. Â In fact, they held the American people hostage and blackmailed a deal to cut close to 40 billion in budget cuts, including cutting funding for Medicare, Planned Parenthood, and NPR. Â So if we are in such a severe budget crisis, why is Boehner allowed to sign a blank check for lawyers to defend DOMA and perpetuate discrimination. Are we to believe that preventing marriage equality is more important that Medicare or creating new jobs? I’m reminded of the W administration with its fear tactics. Rather than looking at an unjust war, or how W was behaving more like a King than a President, he and Cheney would do the whole fear trick: “Oh look over there, something shiny–the gays are taking over.” Â Really? Really? Is that same old tired trick going to work again? If you don’t want your tax dollars supporting discrimination, take action. Click here to watch the video.
Thanks, Jen Lockett for sharing this  video with me.  While I’m not a fan of Uncle Joe Lieberman, at least he is on the right side of history regarding DADT.  Please let the Senate do the right thing.  Show homophobic bigots like John McCain that he cannot stop civil rights!  Please watch this video and hope we stop discrimination in our armed forces.
In the wake of a disappointing and unfair admonishment from President Obama, this message from my friend Susan Stoltenberg is even more important. Â Please look at this message for ImpactNW.
Thank you, Bobby Belfry:Â “Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.”
Thank you Maria Khan for sharing this with me. Â We have only one earth that we all must share and we all must help one another.
Social Justice For All 