Get Over the Rainbow Bash
A "We Are Traverse City" Celebration
by Youth - for Youth - Event
Speech by Bryan Siddall

It was several months ago when Charlie was attacked. Rabbi Stacie Fine, though, said something very profound...something I will never forget. She explained that it is too easy to stand here and call these people hate mongers, thugs, evil; but what we must realize is that our community created these people as well. We must be introspective. What is causing us to have so much hatred. Today, I would like to share you with you my philosphy that I struggle toward.

Love. Love for Oneself. Love for Others. Love for Life. Love is a simple word, a simple guideline, but to live our lives by this word - this philosophy - is not so simple.

Love for oneself. This means we must befriend the characteristics we like about ourselves. Our strong wills, our intelligence, the beauty of our bodies-our minds. But to love oneself, we must also learn to befriend the characteristics we find not so appealing about ourselves. Our some times awkward too-long bodies. Our lisp that we cannot quite seem to control. Our tempers. Our Hatred. For it is not only the desirables, but also the undesirables which make us divinely human. We must yearn to love ourselves, our whole selves. When we do this, and only when we do this, will we be able to have – Love for Others.

This means we must love those around us. Those who compliment us. Those who laugh with us. Those who challenge us to be strong, and those who comfort us when we are not. Again, though, this is only half the process. We must also love those who oppose us. Those who condemn us. Even those who hate us. That means that if Fred Phelps walks in that door right now, we must be tolerant, we must be just, we must love – and we must do this, not to spite him, not prove that we are the bigger person…but simply because it is the right thing to do. Let our motives be clear, love will rule our hearts. The first time I opened his horrifying website, and I will never forget that moment, because that moment was the closest I have ever been to being a cynic. I said to myself that day, “I hate him.” But my hatred did nothing positive for me. In fact, it made me smaller. It made me him. Booker T. Washington said it best when he said, “I will permit no man to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him.” So I challenge each of us today, and a challenge it is, to find compassion for Fred Phelps. And as difficult as it may be, we must love him. Take a look around, though, and it isn’t quite so hard. We are all here today in this room, because of him. He has brought our community together. Let this be the beginning of the process of loving others, friends and foes alike, and then we can begin to have – Love for life.

You see, I think we’ve all been duped. We’ve been duped by cynicism. I believe we can create a utopia. I believe it’s OKAY to love life. It’s OKAY to have hope. It’s OKAY to be happy. It’s OKAY to be equal. Gandhi said, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” The process of changing the world starts here. Person by person, community by community, nation by nation. If we want social change, first we must be introspective. We must learn to be tolerant before we can ask for tolerance. We must learn to love, before we can be loved. And you do you want to know what I think? I think we’re doing a damn good job.

We’re in this room today because we are despised, but we do not despise. We are hated, but we do not hate. We are damned, but we do not damn. Because we want tolerance, and so we are tolerant. We want justice, and so we are just. We could be outside picketing, too. We could be creating a godhatesfredphelps.com website. But we are not.

You know, Dan and I were challenged with putting together an event that would be proactive. An opportunity for a forum to express that freedom of speech is valued, even if what is being said is hard to hear. So today, we gather to have fun, but to also observe. Martin Luther Kind, Jr. said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.”

So today I offer us a challenge. Love ourselves. Love others. Love Life. It is not an easy way to live, and we will all stumble toward the goal at first. But we will increase our pace, we will increase our confidence, and we will march steadily forward toward that mystical utopia we’ve all dreamed. I would like to conclude with a reading. Following these final words by Mother Teresa I would like us all to close our eyes in observance of this love. Love for Fred Phelps in hope that it might drive out his hatred. A love for this utopia. Imagine with me, dream with me of a world that is equal. A world that is ruled by unconditional love. A world where people are not bound by the chains of fear. For this is THE agenda. The agenda of humanity’s march toward Greatness.

People are unreasonable, illogical and self-centered. Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable. Be honest and frank anyway.
The biggest person with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest person with the smallest mind. Think big anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway.
People really need help but may attack if you help them. Help people anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you might get kicked in the teeth. Give the world the best you've got anyway.

Mother Teresa