LGBT laws and drum corps?

[N.E. Brigand]

Any non-profit organization that does not adhere to their mission statement and goals (that allowed them to secure their particular non-profit status) are subject to lose said status.

In short, if (as example) a non-profit is not registered as being political, religious, etc. in nature and wanders outside the scope of their mission statement by privately or publicly "taking a stand" ............... they are toast.

There is lots of leeway available to non-profits in this regard. Many arts organizations now include the promotion of diversity (or the need to be "welcoming" to all artists and audiences) explicitly in their mission statements (often supplemented by a "vision" statement and a list of "core values"), which by no means have to remain unchanged from the date of founding or of n.f.p. status determination.

I've mentioned before how the League of Resident Theaters (eighty non-profits with annual budgets ranging approximately from $3 million to $20 million) wanted to move their 2010 conference from Tucson after Arizona passed its notorious immigration law that year (the one that basically said police could stop anyone simply for having a dark complexion)--but that would have meant leaving the host theater on the hook for guaranteed hotel rooms and so forth. So LORT wrote a letter to the governor making it clear that (1) the members were spending as few ancillary dollars in the state as possible and not staying longer than the conference itself, and (2) they wouldn't be coming back to Arizona (where they'd held their conference at least three times before) while the law remained on the books.

Last year during the Indiana fiasco, DCI issued a statement reaffirming its commitment to diversity. DCI could do so again, or take any number of steps, including canceling shows, and be perfectly within its rights. Whether that's the best approach is the whole point of this thread.

[N.E. Brigand]

The [- - - - -] has created a monster with it's recent extremist politics and hopefully this will be defeated

A small minority of radical extremists on the [- - - - -] are making a mountain out of a mole hill with their histrionics

Turnabout's fair play, so kudos for your phrasing there, but the primary impression I get from the rest of your post is that ten years from now, you'll probably regret having written it. Because 1. The law doesn't protect women. Think about it. Setting aside those who are transgendered, there are some women who are fairly masculine. If there's any attempt to enforce this law, those women are going to have their rights infringed when they and not other women have to prove their gender to police. As for embarrassment: women's restrooms almost always have stalls with doors, so nobody's seeing anybody else's privates in the first place. 2. The idea that a transgendered person has to be suffering from "sexual confusion" until they opt for surgery represents a point of view that is fading fast, but to the degree that some do, why add to their suffering? And 3. The use of the term "extremists" to describe civil rights advocates is, um, historically fraught, to say the least; I'm sure you know that the majority has been wrong so many times before.

But I don't want to seem smug. I think I'm on the right side of this issue and that history will bear me out, but who knows? These arguments can be healthy. Right now, we're working through a sort of tipping point on this subject. Opinions are changing rapidly. In just 15 years, public opinion on gay marriage has shifted from 57% against to 53% for. As I mentioned earlier, barely 25 years ago, a majority of my classmates were opposed to racial intermarriage. Even today, more than 35% of the U.S. population would not want someone from another race marrying into their family. People who still hold that opinion must really be spun around by this latest push towards equality for all.

As for drum corps, I agree with you that for practical purposes, this law is not a big deal. It's wrong, but not something DCI needs to do much about (some small statement avowing support once again for diversity and inclusion would be the most I would expect).

[C.Holland]

Turnabout's fair play, so kudos for your phrasing there, but the primary impression I get from the rest of your post is that ten years from now, you'll probably regret having written it. Because 1. The law doesn't protect women. Think about it. Setting aside those who are transgendered, there are some women who are fairly masculine. If there's any attempt to enforce this law, those women are going to have their rights infringed when they and not other women have to prove their gender to police. As for embarrassment: women's restrooms almost always have stalls with doors, so nobody's seeing anybody else's privates in the first place. 2. The idea that a transgendered person has to be suffering from "sexual confusion" until they opt for surgery represents a point of view that is fading fast, but to the degree that some do, why add to their suffering? And 3. The use of the term "extremists" to describe civil rights advocates is, um, historically fraught, to say the least; I'm sure you know that the majority has been wrong so many times before.

But I don't want to seem smug. I think I'm on the right side of this issue and that history will bear me out, but who knows? These arguments can be healthy. Right now, we're working through a sort of tipping point on this subject. Opinions are changing rapidly. In just 15 years, public opinion on gay marriage has shifted from 57% against to 53% for. As I mentioned earlier, barely 25 years ago, a majority of my classmates were opposed to racial intermarriage. Even today, more than 35% of the U.S. population would not want someone from another race marrying into their family. People who still hold that opinion must really be spun around by this latest push towards equality for all.

As for drum corps, I agree with you that for practical purposes, this law is not a big deal. It's wrong, but not something DCI needs to do much about (some small statement avowing support once again for diversity and inclusion would be the most I would expect).

well said. I think that until it becomes a concern for DCI, that the more important mission is to support the few drum corps of the Carolinas. It would do more harm than good to pull out of shows hosted by Crown and Carolina Gold. If that becomes a concern where local businesses, schools, churches, etc have made it a hardship on the corps to function (and they're really in their own bubble when on tour as showers and bathrooms at sites are often only for their usage as it is) or housing sites won't allow the corps to rent them or utilize them anymore, then DCI needs to support the good of the activity and its corps by then moving shows out of the state.

[BRASSO]

But I don't want to seem smug. I think I'm on the right side of this issue and that history will bear me out, but who knows? These arguments can be healthy. Right now, we're working through a sort of tipping point on this subject. Opinions are changing rapidly. In just 15 years, public opinion on gay marriage has shifted from 57% against to 53% for. As I mentioned earlier, barely 25 years ago, a majority of my classmates were opposed to racial intermarriage.

You comment in a balanced way on this issue, imo. However, to inject gay marriage into this, or racial intermarriage is unfortunate. These 2 issues are unrelated to what is essentially a bathroom ( and locker room law) in North Carolina.

It would be like saying that because much of the the Radical Left was against Nuclear Energy and Nuclear Power Plants construction in the 70's, that the fact that most people today... 35 years later... readily accept Nuclear Energy, Nuclear Power Plants, is the reason we should now readily accept most things supported by Corporate America, would be wrong. The Radical Left has essentially abandoned ( for the most part ) their histrionics and sometimes violent protests and demonstrations on the "badness " of Nuclear Power Plants, especially now that they have embraced Global Warming as their current Issue Du Jour, and everyone agrees now, Nuclear Energy is essentially what is commonly referred to as clean energy and does not effect the carbon emissions of the atmosphere, and so on and so forth. So it would be folly to believe that what the Left thinks is unacceptable to them today, will be unacceptable to both these extremists as well as mainstream Americans in 20, 30 years. Sometimes the Left DOES learn in time that what they believed to be " good public policy " 35 years ago, is no longer even shared as a belief by even the majority of the Left anymore. Just sayin'.

Edited April 18, 2016 by BRASSO

[Fish]

I really think this thread needs to be closed. I won't go into to specifics because what has become apparent today and before is that this will become political.

It will not be resolved no matter the arguments. Already the slights are becoming apparent.

DCP - please close the thread. It will not solve anything to keep the thread open and to have the moderators involved will do nothing but to keep current politic battles alive with consistent reminders to follow the rules which are constantly bent.

We have enough challenges in drum corps.

Edited April 18, 2016 by Fish

[BRASSO]

well said. I think that until it becomes a concern for DCI, that the more important mission is to support the few drum corps of the Carolinas. It would do more harm than good to pull out of shows

The whole idea of " boycotts " seems rife with hyprocrisy too. Cirque De Soleil announced they have cancelled their scheduled shows in North Carolina... but apparently have not done so for their upcoming scheduled shows in Saudi Arabia ( and Dubai ). For contest, in Saudi Arabia, at the moment there is no such thing as " Gay rights " . Gays have no rights. They are persecuted, tortured, imprisoned, and even murdered for even admitting that they are Gay. But much the American based Left really does not care about any of that repressive and discriminatory practices and persecution of Gays in Saudi Arabia... nor the rest of the Arab World for that matter. If they did, these Leftist groups would likewise petition most other music ensembles to cancel their shows in these venues that are far, FAR more hostile to Gays than anything today taking place in the state of North Carolina... and about to be followed with the enaction of a similar non controversial to most bathroom law in perhaps a dozen or more of other US States in the coming months.

Edited April 18, 2016 by BRASSO

[Fish]

The whole idea of " boycotts " seems rife with hyprocrisy too. Cirque De Soleil announced they have cancelled their scheduled shows in North Carolina... but apparently have not done so for their upcoming scheduled shows in Saudi Arabia ( and Dubai ). For contest, in Saudi Arabia, at the moment there is no such thing as " Gay rights " . Gays have no rights. They are persecuted, tortured, imprisoned, and even murdered for even admitting that they are Gay. But much the American based Left really does not care about any of that repressive and discriminatory practices and persecution of Gays in Saudi Arabia... nor the rest of the Arab World for that matter. If they did, these groups would likewise cancel their shows in these venues that are far, FAR more hostile to Gays than anything today taking place in North Carolina... and about to be followed with the enaction of a similar bathroom law in perhaps a dozen or more of other US States in the coming months.

BRASSO - thank you for being so concerned about LGBT issues. I think you have the most posts here so your concern is apparent.

[war eagle]

Obviously not many, if any of those in this discussion have bothered to read the NC law. The issue of transgender was used to pass a law that has far reaching ramifications on the issue of human rights. Transgender issues are a minor part of this dangerous legislation. But since most of you want nothing to do with basic human rights, I will bow out of this discussion.

Peace

[Fish]

Obviously not many, if any of those in this discussion have bothered to read the NC law. The issue of transgender was used to pass a law that has far reaching ramifications on the issue of human rights. Transgender issues are a minor part of this dangerous legislation. But since most of you want nothing to do with basic human rights, I will bow out of this discussion.

Peace

These are just minor details.....I am waiting for the prolific DCP posters to correct the issue....There are many (one..two) who know so much. Edited April 18, 2016 by Fish

[BRASSO]

BRASSO - thank you for being so concerned about LGBT issues. I think you have the most posts here so your concern is apparent.

I would catergorize my comments on here as... " concerned ".. however. More like " intrigued ". I do find this thread to be interesting. Of course, if you look at my numbers of posts on DCP, ( 18,000 +) its fair to conclude from this that I am equally intrigued by thousands of other thread topics initiated by others here on DCP as well. But thanks anyway for your " thank you"s " with my thread discussion participation on this particular topic. ( why not just give me a " like " instead " however )

Edited April 18, 2016 by BRASSO