Back when I first arrived in Florida as a new graduate still looking to earn my chops as a reporter, my editor assigned me a story that seemed, quite literally, made for me. He asked me to drive from my daily assignment desk in Port Charlotte to the Magic Kingdom in Kissimmee to cover Gay Day.
I leapt at the opportunity to not only leave the confines of my office on a beautiful June Saturday, but to experience the Magic Kingdom with LGBT people from around the world. Just weeks after securing press passes for myself and my husband-who was my “official” photographer-I was soon walking through a sea of red T-shirts as we were escorted by a cheerful Disney Cast Member.
The woman told me that while I was welcome to explore the park, I could not directly approach anyone for interviews. If I happened to see someone with whom I wanted to speak, I should tell her, and she’d approach the Disney guests to ask their permission to speak with a reporter. It was a clunky way to get information for a story, but it made sense, since Disney didn’t want to disturb its park guests.
Almost every person I pointed out to my personal escort agreed to speak with me, and most of them shared the same thought: “This was a day to connect with friends from around the globe and to celebrate who they were without fear of judgment.”
I made it a point to not share my sexuality with those I interviewed. I simply wanted to get their individual thoughts on the experience.
While I admit most of that day is a blur, I remember one encounter vividly. My personal escort approached a 30-something lesbian and asked her if she would be willing to talk to a reporter. After she agreed to the interview I sat down on the bench next to her, not realizing that the charm on my gold necklace had come out from my T-shirt. The gold cross caught the sunlight and my interviewee’s entire demeanor changed.
“Wait a minute,” she said. “Who do you write for?”
My Disney escort was obviously nervous and paid close attention to the exchange. When I explained that I wrote for a mainstream newspaper, she still hesitated. I saw her eye my necklace and I immediately understood the new situation before me. She related the symbol of a cross to anti-gay rhetoric spewed by Christian conservatives.
I nodded at my “cameraman” and explained that he was my husband and then told her the angle of my story was not to highlight the debauchery of Gay Day, but to put human faces to a day celebrated by the LGBT community.
She relaxed and then proceeded to share her story and introduced me to her long-time partner and their baby boy, who was in a stroller nearby.
Our conversation steered my story in a new direction and for the first time, even though I was a member of the LGBT community, I saw Gay Day as a family event-or better yet, a celebration for all families. It also inspired a column for my mainstream employer, where I wrote of how disheartening it was that a religious symbol I had always been taught signified love, easily signified hate to someone else.
Despite having survived to see its 23rd year, Gay Day at the Magic Kingdom will continue to spark controversy and to ignite firestorms among social conservative groups. In the mid-1990s it was the American Family Association who threatened boycotts and feigned disgust and same-sex couples enjoying Disney World. In 2012 it was the Florida Family Association who flew banners behind airplanes to “warn” Disney attendees about Gay Day. And this year it’s One Million Moms, which is a branch of the AFA, asking Disney to disown the LGBT community.
What these organizations fail to understand, however, is that the more noise they make, the more attention they bring to our community, which legitimizes our fight for equality.
It’s been 13 years since I experienced Gay Day for the first time, and it’s still a day of community. And no matter where we gather, it really is the happiest place on earth.
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