The Pink Posse

     The "Pink Posse" is the latest development on the most recent episode of Queer as Folk. The concept was introduced but not a whole lot was said about what exactly the "Posse" was going to do. I gleamed from the bit they did say that they were going to patrol/protect the streets of Liberty Ave. (the gay neighborhood of town). It stemmed from yet another gay bashing where a young man was beaten senseless. The folks there are getting tired of the police seemingly (realistically) doing nothing so they're ready to take matters into their own hands. I worry though that this is going to become violent, and from the preview of the next episode it would seem that may be the turn it takes. Instead of gay bashing it will turn into straight bashing. Violence only begets more violence, and escalation isn't the goal here.
     It's interesting that this has come up on one of my favorite TV programs. I've often wondered what the world would look like if queer folks or religious zealots were more impatient about civil rights vs. "morality" and things became violent. When people are pushed around constantly, both physically and mentally, civility wears thin. When I hear about the most recent erosion of equality I've found myself at times so livid I could tear a Martha Stewart magazine to bits and feel no better. Seriously, you back an animal into a corner and it may bite. At times it seems that people are getting so mad about queer issues that taking up arms seems only a step away. Luckily everyone comes to their senses...
     We all have our ways of releasing our anger and stress. I've found an outlet here. Some persue legal redress, some work for political action, others simply let it go. While I wouldn't want to see a violent conflict, Martin Luther King Jr. demostrated that things can be done in forceful yet peaceful ways. I wouldn't be adverse to participating...
     I don't believe in violence as a means to an end. I don't approve of the war in Iraq, I don't approve of abortion clinic bombings, and I don't approve of vigilante justice. Not to say I never see things from a different perspective, but I never want to see my struggle for equality denegrate into a bloody one.