August 18, 2006
Cropp Courts GLBT Community
Pictured above is a flyer spotted and collected near Logan Circle by Charles over at A Single Syllable. And, to be honest, we're not quite sure what to make of it. On the one hand, we're inclined to applaud Cropp for reaching out to the city's GLBT community, particularly in a race where other candidates have stooped to playing to the reactionary prejudices of the city's social conservatives.
On the other hand, the flyer seems a little patronizing and silly. It's as if the Cropp campaign planned its messaging by asking itself, "How would we sell the councilwoman to Jack from Will & Grace?"
Well, we won't presume to speak for the city's gay community. Perhaps readers can tell us in comments how the flyer strikes them. But whatever you think of it, surely everyone can agree that drinking should always, always be done "responsively."
|
"It's time to put this diva in charge! Her way."
Okay, that's a bit ridiculous. I'd be a little disinclined to vote for her if I wasn't already planning on voting for Fenty or Johns. Don't call yourself a diva ... that's tacky!
"a unmatched"
--- and ---
"drink responsively"
a losing combination for Cropp's copy writer/editor!
You'd think that with the $2.5 million she's raised she could afford to pay someone to proofread her flyers.
What a pathetic collection of candidates.
That's a cheap flyer, in my (gay) opinion.
I thought the crowned diva of the Council was Carol Schwartz, drag queen extraordinnaire.
That's horrible. "Drink Responsively"?? What the fuck does that mean??
Let's put this illiterate diva in charge! She's the toothpick-speared olive you've been waiting to drop into your alcohol-soaked lives!
Typical crap from Cropp? Where did she learn grammer 101?
I know I drink responsively. "Would you like another gin and tonic, sir?" "yesh, yesh please." Of course, shortly after that I'm unresponsively not drinking.
Oh. My. God.
That is so awful I just don't know where to begin.
I wonder if this was created by some well-intentioned black staffer from SE or NE that has no idea about all those crazy gays in NW and really DID model their pitch on Will & Grace.
In defense of the flyer's creator, however, it's not all that different from some of the horribly offensive beer ads published all the time in all the fag rags.
I never realized that martinis were so gay.
Oh wait, yes I did.
oh god. carol schwartz. it's a man baby!
glad i am not the only one who thinks that. she must be a man, becuase it takes balls to say you don't support gay marrarige and then appear the in pride parade. tacky, tacky.
It's hard to believe Cropp's camp would produce such mess.
Maybe a crazed fan who wants desperately for her to win?
In my gay opinion this is tragic. A classic martini? Puleeaze!
I don't understand the part saying "fighting for our community". This was put out by Cropp and not the GLBT community, yes?
It might be better to link "playing to the reactionary prejudices" to comments from a (perhaps only slightly) more serious candidate.
KC: Vincent Orange is definitely who I had in mind when I wrote the post, but I can't blame our eds for the link. It's nice to be taken to something funny rather than depressing.
"grammer 101"..LOL!! You've obviously mastered the art of unintentional self-parody.
From Merriam-Webster
Main Entry: re•spon•sive
2 : quick to respond or react appropriately or sympathetically : SENSITIVE
- re•spon•sive•ly adverb
Since when is Jonathan Rees working on Cropp's campaign literature?
I'd never have pegged Linda as a martini drinker. Then there's the fact that, since Linda's spent her career as a deal making parliamentarian, it's impossible to look at her record and diva-ine what "her way" is.
This is hilarious. Wasn't Linda Cropp a teacher in a former life?
And it's not really going out on a limb for a candidate to state that she is pro-gay in a city with two gay men on the City Council. It's not like Fenty is running on an anti-gay platform. Afterall, one the first times I heard him speak as a mayoral candidate was at Halo.
I hope gay people would not vote for Cropp based solely on this asertion. We've got it pretty good already here in D.C., and that which we lack is due more to Congressional oversight than to any actions or inactions on the part of local government officials.
I'm gay and I still don't see gay rights as the most important issue facing voters, gay or not.
The comments here have proven my point that DCist is a blog for the GLBT community of DC headed up by GAYLORD Martin "Ex-Convict Commie" Austermuhle.
Thanks guys, gals are whatever you are for confirming my suspicions.
Stein Democrats and GLAA gave Cropp a better rating than Fenty! What does that tell you?
I was at Cobalt a couple of Thursdays ago, and Linda and her posse came through to promote her campaign and demonstrate that she was the strongest candidate for pro-gay issues, doing this and that and the other for HIV treatment, Whitman Walker, discrimination. I told her that while that is fine and good, many gay people are incredibly upset with how she took sides with the Churches during the Logan Circle double-parking issue earlier this year - how she sided with groups that made it a race versus gentrifier (read: gay) issue and how she supported that view rather than the "it's a whole public safety and traffic issue". I told her after that, I had to rethink about whether I support her candidacy. She walked away. True story.
Jonathan, you have long since been banned from this forum. Please respect the wishes of the owners, moderators, readers and voters and go away.
Don't let the door hit you on the way out.
Are you kidding me? Oh God this is horrible. Who is in charge of her events? How patronizing. I am no longer a DC voter, but at the forum I worked on, Johns was ridiculously more articulate and seemed to have credible ideas about real ties to various communities. I fear Cropp will get a lot of votes because she is already "in", but the last thing we need is a Diva whose staff can't write responsively. Or is it, responsibly?
And Jason, surely you don't mean to say the black folks are in the SE and the gay folks are white and in Dupont?
Um, yeah, Elsa, I kinda did... because, in the aggregate, that's kind of the reality. But it was also a bit tongue-in-cheek.
I knew the unctious Rees would post here as soon as the word "gay" appeared. He's OBSESSED.
Like all closet cases. He can't stop thinking, posting, and apparently dreaming about gays. It's funny, once you see the pattern.
The poster that commented on Cropp's support for the anti-gay churches in NW was right on target. She seems to refuse to call these losers on their blatant anti-gay stances, and she supports their 'right' to park anywhere they want in the city. She also didn't seem to have much to say about their pathetic and hateful campaign to stop Be Bar, the gay bar in 'their' neighborhood.
If she won't stand up to these pathetic losers, I don't have much respect for her.
This is a pretty terrible ad. I'm most offended by the clip art.
Sorry, make that "unctuous." And "batshit crazy" while I'm at it.
sorry edit "unctuous" for "unctious". And add "creepy" while I'm at it.
I note another issue - "Its" should be "It's."
People generally add extra apostrophes, rather than leaving out necessary apostrophes. I find this an odd mistake to make.
Alright playaz, stop hating. I don't believe that Linda Cropp's people are illiterate. More like playful and creative. "Drink responsively" is a play on " drink responsibly". It ties in with the theme of the ad. As in be responsive towards her and vote.
I think this board should know that DC's African American gay community is one of the highest in the country. The majority of them do not live in the NW.
As for the "cocktail napkin," it seems incredibly tounge in cheek. Bad grammar yes, good message, hopefully. I have seen Cropp out at the bar crawls before, and people seemed to enjoy themselves.
I also asked her about church parking, and she said point blank "traffic laws must be followed." It may not be my only issue, but I put on a rainbow cropp sticker after that.
I am still checking out their platforms, interesting stuff..
It's unfortunate that all the comments to this flyer are so superficial. Rather than commending this campaign team for reaching out to the GLBT community, when none of the other campaign teams have, and discussing the important issues at hand, most of you have simply stated the obvious - gramatical errors. Kudos for your political prowess!
This is ridiculous and shows exactly why Cropp will lose this election. Her attitudes about LGBT people are as outdated as her economic policies. It is past time for Cropp to go quietly into the night.
We have on of the most politically savvy LGBT communities of any city in the country and we want fall for crap like this.
Niki, it is not true when you say that Mrs. Cropp is the only candidate reaching out to LGBT voters. Both Mr. Fenty and Mrs. Johns have organized events and outreach efforts to the LGBT community. The issue with Mrs. Cropp's efforts is that they reflect an old school, outdated notion of the LGBT community and how to reach out to use. And you should also remember that she was a Jane come lately on the issue of marriage rights for same-sex couples.
Like most voters in the District, LGBT residents are looking for someone with a fresh, positive vision on how to move the city forward and not someone who traffics insulting stereotypes.
It looks like it was put together by some well-intentioned volunteer. Doesn't match her other campaign materials. I think she's the best candidate, she knows that the DC gay community is vocal and wealthy.
-A Gay Guy