The following is the Keynote Address given at the 2022 National LGBTQ Hall of Honor Ceremony on June 23, 2022, at the Stonewall Inn New York City by Founder/National Chair Human Rights Commissioner Nicole M. Ramirez Queen Mother I of the Americas, International Imperial Courts System U.S.A.-Canada-Mexico
Today as I looked upon the national LGBTQ Wall of Honor here at the historic Stonewall Inn holding the names of over 50 of our LGBTQ pioneers, trailblazers, and heroes, I again realized that many were my sisters and brothers that, for over a half a century, we had worked together in my life as a Latino and LGBTQ activist. I wondered what they would want me to say to you today as we have gathered here to remember and honor those whose shoulders we stand on.
I believe that they would want me to tell you that many of them and myself had survived the McCarthy Era of the 1950s and his homosexual witch hunts that we had survived the police raids and brutalities against us in the 1960s that we had survived the times that, with just a stroke of a pen and the signatures of either a judge or your parents, we were committed to state hospitals many subjected to electric shock treatment or lobotomies never to return the same. I think that they would want me to say that we survived the hate and homophobic crusades of Anita Bryant to, and I quote, “save our children”, that we survived John Briggs, Jerry Falwell and other homophobic leaders.
Indeed, we survived those early dark lonely years of AIDS when homophobic leaders wanted to tattoo us, segregate us, and even put us on a proposed island or camps.
But now at these times and days of our LGBTQA+ community the rise of hate crimes against us, hundreds of legislative bills in state houses against us, movements to erase our transgender sisters and brothers, these days and times where just last week the Texas State Republican Party convention added to their official platform that they declare and I quote: “homosexuality is an abnormal lifestyle and a choice”, what would they want me to say to you in these times that the far-right extremists have targeted us, our Pride parades and events, our trans youth and children and their parents, our neighborhoods, our LGBTQ youth and even now drag queens! I can hear Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera whispering to me in that Whoopi Goldberg voice: “You in danger girl.”
Yes, we don’t need a Paul Revere telling us: “The Proud Boys are coming, the Proud Boys are coming” because they have always been here, but now they have come out from their dark sewers and into the light.
The truth is that the LGBTQ Community has always been in danger and under attack for we are the last civil rights movement of the 21st Century and the last Americans to have not been granted full equal rights.
But this national homophobic and hate campaign of the radical right is different for they have also targeted a women’s right to choose, Black Americans’ access and rights to vote, targeted and attacked our Jewish Community and their places of worship more than ever, they are standing up even stronger against gun control.
Yes, indeed something is very different in this current new ultra-Right war against us. They have made immigrants and asylum seekers, and Dreamers the new “boogie man” and in attacking our Asian Pacific Islander Community, they have awoken a sleeping giant.
My brothers and sisters of the LGBTAQ+ Community, a war has not only been declared on us, bout on People of Color, women, and the Jewish Community.
So, my message to you and the message from our heroes on this Wall of Honor is: We must unite and build bridges and stronger outreach to other communities, causes and issues. They must become our issues and causes.
Now more than ever, we must come out of the closets and into the voting booths come this November’s mid-term elections.
And we must not only engage and be involved in the suites of political/government power, S-U-I-T-E-S, but be ready to go back into the streets S-T-R-E-E-T-S.
For always remember Stonewall was indeed a street riot!
In closing, our message today to you of the new ultra-radical radical Right as we stand on this sacred LGBTQA+ historic site. Our community is ready and just like we fought Anita Bryant and her oranges of hate we are ready to fight the campaigns of an orange-faced ex-president and his followers.
“Don’t Tread on Us” for we have only just begun to fight, and will, by any means necessary.
Thank you, Happy Pride and God Bless America.
