CPAC and GOProud

Publisher’s Note: The article below is one person’s subjective opinion and not endorsed by this site. During one of my first and most memorable speaking events at the Reagan Ranch Center on behalf of Young America’s Foundation I spoke after my friend and outspoken lesbian Conservative activist, Tammy Bruce. I wholeheartedly endorse Young America’s Foundation. I am proud to speak at its events and to the young leaders who go through their programs. I would not associate myself with a group that had bigotry of any form on its agenda or in its leadership. Upon further investigation, there is no evidence to suggest that Young America’s Foundation removed from their lists or silenced anyone, or that the ACU vote is reflective of Young America’s Foundation policies.

Andrew Breitbart

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I recently heard about CPAC’s refusal to allow GOProud, an organization of gay conservatives, to participate in the conference. I couldn’t help but remember the days when I eagerly volunteered and promoted organizations such as the American Conservative Union, Young America’s Foundation, Clare Boothe Luce Policy Institute, among others.

I started my young activism back in 2007. I first attended the Conservative High School Leadership Conference with the Young America’s Foundation (YAF) that summer in Washington D.C. Everyone at YAF was excited to promote their ideas in hopes that a seed would be planted, or in my case, nurtured. Speakers discussed the values of Ronald Reagan, limited government, the importance of church and state and the nuclear family.

As a young conservative, these unabashed speakers ignited a fire in me. I was not used to hearing discourse I agreed with. I grew up in a very liberal household where abortion was encouraged and redistribution of the wealth sacrosanct. Thus, I was enthralled with the opportunity to spread conservative values and I aligned myself closely with the principles that YAF was promoting. Well, most of them! I disagreed with their obsession with the “radical homosexual agenda” and the assumption that all homosexuals were sadistic perverts. My dissent was largely in part because I knew I would never fit their mold of a conservative leader. I am a lesbian.

Learning that the leaders of Young America’s Foundation and the Clare Boothe Luce Policy Institute (CBLPI) were actively involved in getting GOProud removed from CPAC did not surprise me. What they might be surprised to learn is that I am no more or no less a conservative activist because I am a lesbian. I was obviously not too perverted to enthusiastically be used a poster child for their programs prior to my coming out.

Despite knowing that I wasn’t the conservative ideal described by CBLPI and YAF, I still passionately supported the organizations that gave me a platform to express my political views. After my first summer YAF conference, I immersed myself in as many activism opportunities as possible. I wrote op-eds to local newspapers expressing my views, founded a 9-11 “Never Forget” committee at my high school, commemorated the anniversary of 9-11 with a memorial of 3,000 American flags, started the first Young Conservatives Club at my school, established an Adopt-a-Soldier Fund, honored veterans by organizing community outreach programs, protested local campus showings of the ridiculous Vagina Monologues, and attended as many conservative conferences as possible. I volunteered for local campaigns and even worked on several national GOP 2008 election campaigns. I spoke to audiences in my community, radio stations, newspapers, and numerous times on television about the importance of political activism at any age.

YAF and CBLPI drew attention to my activism because of my age and dedication. I was profiled by CBLPI on their website. Their spotlight stated, “Toni will never be accused of apathy. She passionately defends conservative beliefs, especially her pro-life and gun-rights positions.” At YAF’s recommendation, I spoke at CPAC 2008 as the youngest member of the two-minute activism panel about what I had done to promote conservative values at my high school.

In 2009, I decided it was time to liberate myself and admit that I was a lesbian. Am I no longer the defender of conservative beliefs that YAF and CBLPI held me up to be? Truthfully, I was not surprised when the invitations to conferences and events stopped. My Facebook friend count decreased and many of my political “friends” dropped off the face of the earth. But then I first heard about GOProud’s participation in CPAC in 2010 and that gave me hope that maybe my activism was not in vain. I was empowered by their willingness to engage the dogmatic, homophobic wing of the Republican Party and the lock-step, blind ideology of the Democratic Party.

I was sad to see the board of the ACU, along with leadership at Young America’s Foundation and the Clare Boothe Luce Policy Institute, diminish the efforts of GOProud and conservatives like me. Not allowing GOProud to participate as they have for the last two years shows that the years I spent volunteering for them was a colossal waste of time and energy. When my lifestyle didn’t align with their view of what a conservative should be, I became a liability. Gay conservatives will not be silenced by these organizations’ vitriolic announcement and behavior. We will continue to fight for the conservative principles we believe in and watch CPAC’s attendance numbers deplete. Gay conservatives like me are empowered to keep fighting on the grassroots level, outside of the DC-based groups that want to control who is allowed to be a conservative. To borrow a phrase from one of my heroes, their bigotry will one day be relegated to the ash heap of history.