Hello to YFT’s Circle of Support.

Last night at our BIG Group meeting, our youth of the month, Brian Jacob, reminded us of the passing of a pioneer of the GLBTQ movement, Dorothy (Del) Martin. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Del, she and her partner of 55 years, Phyllis Lyon, founded the first lesbian-rights organization in the 1950s, and were also the first couple that were married when San Francisco decided  to stop discriminating against lesbian and gay couples, granting all the right to marry.

After pausing to wish her spirit and family peace, we spiraled into a conversation centered on activism. We challenged one another to think about what it means to be an activist, we wondered how activism has changed since the “bra burning” days of the 1960s, and we contemplated the issues which spur us into action.

Often, GenY–the millennials, the “ME” generation–is accused of being self-important and over-indulgent. They are stereotyped as complacent, conservative, and spoiled. Yet, in our sacred space of safety and respect, we saw in our youth a very different character. We heard 18 year olds speak of believing in a world where change is possible. We heard 20 year olds consider how their pending values could be demonstrated through peace and not violence. It occurred to our youth to pause and remember, to honor and recognize, and to dream and inspire. We listened as they sifted the meaning of committment and its relationship to taking action.

Thanks to the legacy of Del and Phyllis, we realized that demonstrating a commitment to anything for 55 years requires an insurrmountable amount of loyalty and dedication. And the idea that these two women could remain true despite the discrimination they faced encourages us all to believe we can help change the perception of our society, shifting the beliefs of our current community to be more inclusive of all persons regardless of lifestyle.

So join us as we take this moment to honor Del Martin. Her legacy lives through us!