Walk the Walk

I saw today that New Mexico governor Bill Richardson is endorsing Obama, which reminded me of something I thought a long time ago but never got around to saying on here.

Richardson took a lot of heat in the GLBTQ community for his appearance on the HRC/Logo presidential candidate debate last year. He fumbled when asked if he thought being gay was a choice, and he just looked very clearly uncomfortable. Folks jumped all over him, saying he clearly had a personal problem with GLBTQ people, he was defensive, we won't support someone who clearly has a problem with us, etc. etc.

It's true...he did come across as having personal issues related to accepting people of different sexual orientations, he did fumble the choice question, and he did get defensive (probably because he knew things weren't going well at all). But the truth is also that the guy has the track record. He has consistently pushed New Mexico to recognize greater equality for people of all orientations and identities, including hate crime laws, increased civil protections, and I think he even called the state legislature into a special session to address domestic partnerships.

My point is that even if he does have personal reservations about the GLBTQ community, he knows that despite those we still deserve equal opportunity under the law, and has pushed for that consistently. People are human, and people are flawed. Would it be nice if he openly and completely embraced all aspects of our community to the core of his being? Absolutely. But personally, I think it's very admirable for him to recognize that while his gut reaction might be discomfort, that gut reaction is flawed, and even if he can't change it, he still overcomes it to do what's right when push comes to shove. That kind of commitment to doing what's right, perhaps even at the expense of what you've been taught your whole life, is admirable and impressive.

In politics, you can't afford to be overly idealistic about your allies. To a certain extent, you need to embrace the people who are willing to help you, even if you don't like everything about them. Talking the talk is nice, but for the parents who want to adopt, for the partners who want to be able to care for and protect one another, walking the walk is far more important. It would be a shame for the GLBTQ community to disregard Bill Richardson on the basis of one clumsy interview.