My Two Cents

By Jim Koury, Editor, Diversity Rules Magazine
© 2012 Diversity Rules Magazine.  All Rights Reserved.
www.diversityrulesmagazine.com

Jim_singin'Welcome to the July issue of Diversity Rules Magazine.  This month’s issue features Aiden Leslie, an amazing musician who is going to dominate the charts soon enough!

Aiden’s ultimate mission as a performer is to share his story and experiences.  Aiden Leslie recently returned to the music scene with his first single in two years, “Worlds Away.” The track has managed to resonate with fans around the world as it has recently risen to the number one position on Logo-TV’s Click List and stayed there for a consecutive 4-week reign and was immediately put in rotation on MTV and VH1. Aiden recently released his anticipated follow-up to “World’s Away,” the pop anthem “Trying to Leave Now” which is quickly rising on the charts.

Aiden first appeared in Diversity Rules in the July 2011 issue and I am honored to have him back as the feature cover interview!  I hope you enjoy reading about Aiden as much as I enjoyed interviewing him.

Coming off another Queer Pride month, I am compelled to reflect on where we are as a movement.  Since the days of Stonewall, we have come a long way.  We are on the verge of winning full equality with the certain demise of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).  It is just a matter of time before that vile piece of trash is thrown on the dust bin of history.

We have made great strides forward legislatively, but I must say there is something missing in the contemporary queer rights movement.

Today’s queer rights movement lacks the passion and zeal of the Stonewall Rebellion participants and the spirit of Harvey Milk.  The mainline organizations fighting for equality seem to have been co-opted by the corporate supporters, and the movement seems to be grounded in a non-offensive, and non-confrontational activism.  I find this disturbing.

Great achievements have always been grounded in the spirit of the people, organizing in the streets and expressing themselves in a boisterous and very noticeable fashion.  While I do not advocate violence or destruction of public and private property, I long to see that passion and “fired up” spirit that so epitomized the early queer rights movement.  If it were not for that passion on the night of June 27, 1969, I believe we would certainly not be where we are at today.

Our movement must get back to its roots.  While I unabashedly support organizations like the Human Rights Campaign, and the Empire State Pride Agenda and similar groups, they seem to lack that inherent passionate spirit for equality that  Harvey Milk and the others capitalized on to mobilize the masses and foster significant changes for the better.

Yes, we are in the year 2012, the era of political correct activism and civility.  I am all for that to a certain degree, but I fervently wish that our movement could rekindle the early days of the queer rights movement and just rock the house down with a good old fashioned protest or two or three or more!

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