It has been 10 years since Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., became the first openly gay person to win election to a first-term seat in Congress, and this year Linda Ketner is among four openly gay men and lesbians who are hoping to follow Baldwin's lead. Last Friday (March 21), Ketner officially announced her intentions to run for South Carolina's 1st Congressional District, which includes Charleston, Dorchester, Berkeley, Georgetown and Horry counties against Republican incumbent Henry E. Brown, Jr. who has held the post since 2001. So far, she is running unopposed for the Democratic Party nomination.
Ketner is probably best known for being the daughter of Ralph W. Ketner, founder of the Food Lion chain of grocery stores, but she's much more to the LGBT people of South Carolina. In 1998, Linda Ketner gathered other LGBT leaders in Charleston to develop a strategic plan for what became the Alliance For Full Acceptance. Through funds from Linda Ketner and the Gill Foundation, AFFA has advertised in the Charleston area in order to raise awareness that gay and lesbian people live next door to you, are your brothers and sisters, your teachers, etc. You may remember my column on Jan. 24 when I looked at a debate that eruptedin the Charleston area after one such advertisementwas pulledfromMt. Pleasant'sPalmetto GrandeTheater. Through the years, AFFA has also reached out to local communities and religious organizations in order to form faith-based coalitions that champion respect for LGBT people in our area and provide training in sexual and gender orientation to hundreds of teachers, guidance counselors, police and sheriff's offices. She also helped develop the South Carolina Equality Coalition that fought an anti-gay marriage constitutional amendment last fall. In addition to her work in the LGBT community, Linda Ketner has spent many years working as a philanthropist fighting racism and homelessness.
In a recent statement by her office, she says she hopes to build "a path that leads to a 1st District known for its opportunities, exceptional education system, job growth in new technologies, commuter rails, clean air and water, support for veterans and quality healthcare." "We forge a path that leads to an America which is again respected around the world - not because we have bigger guns and more money, but because we live our values of a level playing field, opportunity for all, fairness and compassion."
Linda Ketner's biggest disadvantage will obviously be the demographics of our district, whose solid Republican majority has even prompted Democratic Party strategists in Washington D.C. to write it off, so to speak, and earmark money and resources for more so-called "winnable" areas. However, Linda Ketner is said to be financially independent due to the family business and has the money to run a well-financed campaign. Could her family name, Southern hospitality and values win out over the lesbian card, or is South Carolina about to experience some hard-ball homophobia in its politics? Charleston is the most-populated area in District 1 and may seem a little more worldly and open-minded in many aspects, but it's still a stronghold for conservative Republicans. But in all seriousness, can an openly gay or lesbian contender win any political office in South Carolina? According to the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, which provides financial and campaign support to gay and lesbian political candidates, S.C. remains one of only six states that still have no openly LGBT elected officials at any level of government. Our neighbors to the north elected their first and only openly lesbian state Senator in 2004, when Julia Boseman took the 9th Senate District seat, which covers New Hanover County, N.C. (only about an hour away from Myrtle Beach). Openly gay Jim Neal, Jr. announced last year that he would run for North Carolina's U.S. Senate seat currently held by Elizabeth Dole. The G&L Victory Fund also approximates that out of the 500,000 elected officials in the U.S., about 400 of them are openly gay or lesbian.
If Linda Ketner is elected, will she actually be able to accomplish anything on the LGBT equality front? Let's hope that at least our voices might be heard over the monotonous tone of bigotry that has existed in our state for far too long.
Official campaign kick-off events for Linda Ketner will take place on Thursday, April 3. Starting at 10 a.m., she will officially announce her candidacy at Cannon Park in Charleston. At 1 p.m., Ketner will make an appearance at The Fish Camp Bar at Louis' at Pawleys, located at the Hammock Shops in Pawleys Island, followed by a walking tour at 4 p.m. of downtown Conway. Finishing the day, she will meet the public at 6 p.m. at The Market Common on the former Myrtle Beach Air Force Base.
OUT & ABOUT
Monday, March 31 - Friday, April 4 - 2008 FMU Homophobia Awareness Week. The students at Francis Marion University will celebrate Homophobia Awareness Week once again this year with a week-long observation to show the community that homophobia in South Carolina will not be tolerated. On Monday, March 31 Erin Davies will present FagBug and show her new documentary film project at 7 p.m. in CEMC (Cauthen Education Media Center) Auditorium. The Gender Studies Department will present "For the Bible Tells Me So" in the Chapman Auditorium on FMU's campus at 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday, April 2. Warehouse 250, located at 1719 S. Irby Street in Florence will host "Erase the Hate" from 9 p.m. - 2 a.m. on Friday, April 4. All events are free and open to the public. For more information email FMUGSA@GMail.com.
Friday, April 4 - The Gay Professionals Happy Hour will meet from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. April 4 at Damon's Grill, located oceanfront at 2785 South Ocean Blvd. in Myrtle Beach. GPHH meets the first Friday of every month at different locations along the Strand and is open to everyone. For more information email FirstFriday@GambleLivingston.com.
Until next week, have fun and be safe.
-Chris Rudisill, Weekly Surge