Although I find fascinating the recent spate of analyses of the presidential election, slicing and dicing factoids and often concluding that one group or another was responsible for the (blessed) Obama  victory, there is some danger here. I would never discount the valiant efforts of the LGBTQ community in achieving equality for ourselves, but we need to remember that our success has depended on a coalition of others who saw our cause as right and just, with many seeing it as similar to theirs. The danger I see here is not dissimilar to what happened when the AIDS pandemic shifted from the white middle class gay community to other groups:  we largely lost interest and moved on to other things. Today it is fine for us to celebrate our victories but tomorrow we can't forget our allies who made them possible: liberals in general, workers and unions, communities of color, women, right-thinking corporations and the countless other parts of our communities making up the amazing rainbow coalition. We need to be part of the next steps in our nation's slow journey to equality and opportunity for all, both to secure our own rights, and to thank those who helped us achieve them.

Donald E. Vaughan
Boston