Yahoo News The Resistance Now: activists call for action as they mourn Edith Windsor
Edith Windsor and the fight for same sex marriage
The “resistance” lost one of its inspiring figures this week with the death of Edith Windsor, a hero of the gay rights movement who died on Tuesday at age 88. The Guardian’s Molly Redden was at a service for Windsor held in New York city on Friday afternoon, where those paying their respects included Hillary Clinton, and she sent us this dispatch:
With quavering voices, hundreds of family, friends, and supporters gathered on to celebrate Edith Windsor.
They were also feeling political.
When Roberta Kaplan, the litigator who argued Windsor’s landmark gay rights case before the US supreme court, said her passing was a reminder to “redouble our efforts to resist”, the word went out like a shockwave, drawing applause and cheers.
Known to friends as “Edie”, Windsor was the lead plaintiff in the US supreme court case that struck down the Defense of Marriage Act and paved the way for the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2015. Those gathered inside Temple Emanu-El on the Upper East Side remembered her as an electric companion whose 4ft 11in frame could barely contain her verve.
The weight of Windsor’s political legacy was heavy in the room – most of all when Hillary Clinton approached the podium to standing applause. Without naming the current president, Clinton recast Windsor’s legacy as an exemplar for those countering the Trump administration’s assaults on LGBT rights.
“There wasn’t a cynical or defeatist bone in Edie’s body,” Clinton said. “That’s especially important for us to remember now. We owe it to her to ensure that gay rights are human rights and human rights remain gay rights forever … It is easy for us to grow weary of these fights, but remember Edie, who took on and won the US government. Our work is not done.”
Moments later, Kaplan echoed Clinton’s message. After warmly recounting that Windsor lived by two maxims – “never delay joy” and “keep it hot” – Windsor’s friend and attorney charged the congregation with taking up her legacy. “No human gets to complete the dream of liberation,” Kaplan said. “Edie did not see her work as finished, and neither should we.”
Windsor married Thea Spyer in Canada in 2007, after the pair had been together for 40 years. Two years later Spyer died, and the IRS ordered Windsor to pay $363,000 in estate taxes, as the federal government did not recognise the pair’s marriage, prompting her legal battle.
“Even during her final weeks, she was a flirt,” working her charms on the doctors, nurses and cleaning staff who cycled out of her room, said Karen Sauvigne, one of Windsor’s longtime friends. In the hospital, Sauvigne said, Windor charmed a nurse into painting her nails “so that she died with a fresh manicure”.
‘We will win this struggle’
Bernie Sanders unveiled his long-awaited universal healthcare bill on Wednesday, promising that America would eventually adopt the sort of healthcare system that the majority of other developed countries take for granted.
Sanders’ plan would transition the current system to a “Medicare for All” program, funded by an increase in taxes, that would see every American insured.
The bill is unlikely to pass the Senate, but in a sign that times are changing, it is gaining backers at a pace. There are 15 Democratic senators who have backed the bill, including rumored 2020 presidential candidates Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker and Al Franken.
ICP to DC
Washington DC’s national mall will be filled with clowns and Donald Trump supporters on Saturday, when fans of the band Insane Clown Posse gather to protest the FBI, and fans of the president gather to cheer on the commander-in-chief.
Thousands of Juggalos – the name given to fans of Insane Clown Posse – are expected to descend on the capital as they attempt to change the FBI’s designation of Juggles as a “gang”, something that they say has led to discrimination by police and employers.
Further along the mall, meanwhile, thousands of people are expected to gather for the “mother of all rallies” – an event that is intended to show support for the president.
The Guardian will be there, and we’ll have a video coming on Monday.
What we’re reading
During the NFL opening weekend, several players raised their fists “as a symbolic gesture of black opposition to various forms of systemic oppression”, writes Ameer Hasan Loggins here at the Guardian. But viewers are unlikely to have seen the protest – because Fox didn’t show it.
And another thing
The Guardian has partnered with Global Citizen for a “Movement Makers Summit” in New York City on Tuesday. It’ll feature discussions on the state of the left and how people can build movements, with speakers from the United Nations Foundation, the French national assembly, the ACLU and more. Details and sign-up are here.
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