I was inspired by the public stance of such celebrities as Brad Pitt, Steven Spielberg, and George Lucas as they contributed large amounts of their own money to try and defeat Proposition 8. What hurts is who did not contribute any money.
Let me first say that I am a huge Madonna fan. I have shelled out thousands of dollars to travel to three of her concerts (paying upwards of $300 for the concert ticket alone). At least half of her fans at the concerts are members of the LGBT community. She owes a lot of her career to us and our continued devotion to her.
While the company that promotes her concerts (as well as the concerts of Jay Z and U2) donated $50,000 to defeat Proposition 8, financial disclosure records indicate Madonna herself did not donate a penny (I searched under Madonna, Ciccone, and Ritchie).
It’s sad to say, but I feel a bit used.
P.S. If I am wrong on this, someone please let me know!
UPDATED: While totally not where I was going with this diary, there is a powerful discussion going on in the comment section about the role of race in the vote on Prop 8 and the slippery slope of comparing forms of oppression. The relationship between the African-American and LGBT communities is complicated and there is much potential there to support one another. However, this dialogue is testament to the fact that we are not there yet.