My Weekend Hero

Life has a poetic way of rooting out our hypocrisies sometimes. Like by having a queer woman of color act heroically to saves a homophobe’s life. But that’s the thing about humans. We can be absolute garbage all too often. But then sometimes we can also be reminded that we don’t have to be garbage. We can be brave and dutiful and rise above to do our jobs like Special Agent Crystal Griner did this week. The Capitol Police officer was one of three officers who saved the lives of Republican congressmen and their staff when an angry, violent white man with a history of violence against women who shouldn’t have had access to guns but did opened fire on them at a softball practice. Griner was shot in the ensuing firefight, as was fellow officer David Bailey. Another officer, Henry Cabrera, also returned fire but was not injured.

The congressman whose life Griner and the other officers saved was GOP Representative Steve Scalise from Louisiana. You might remember him as the Frau Farbissina of Obamacare repeal. He was shot in the hip and remains in the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Look, no one deserves to be shot. Seriously, don’t shoot people. But the irony of a man with Rep. Scalise’s record being saved by a queer woman of color (and two other men of color, it should be noted) cannot be ignored.

He earned a “0” from the Human Rights Campaign and an A+ from the National Rifle Association.

He authored the ban on same-sex marriage in the Louisiana Constitution. He voted against the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” He was one of the sponsors of last year’s so-called “First Amendment Defense Act,” one of those license to discriminate laws under the guise of religious freedom. And he has voted against anti-gay hate crime protections.

He voted in January to reverse a federal rule that prevents people with serious mental-health issues from buying guns. He also co-sponsored an upcoming bill to loosen restrictions on silencers. And since he entered congress in 2008 he has introduced four measures to make it easier to sell guns interstate.

In short, he wants no rights for gays and all the rights for guns.

And, because no modern GOP agenda is complete without a little racism, he has described himself as “David Duke without the baggage” and was a guest speaker at an international conference of white supremacist leaders. Neat-o!

But enough about that asshole. Let’s talk about someone who deserves acclaim instead – Agent Griner. The 32-year-old was a veteran officer on Scalise’s special security detail. She attended Hood College in Maryland where she was a star basketball player.

A former classmate at Hood described her as such:

“She was a woman to be reckoned with at Hood: an amazing athlete and a lively presence. It does not surprise me at all that she would think so quickly and act so courageously.”

At her side while recovering in the hospital is her wife, Tiffany Dyar. The couple married in 2015 – you know, the year the Supreme Court finally affirmed our fundamental right to wed the person we love. Trump and Melania reportedly visited Griner and her wife in the hospitals. Poor thing. She puts her own life on the line to defend a bigoted homophobe and then her reward is a visit from that despicable Cheeto. Fine, it’s not all poetry. Thanks for your heroism and reminding us when they go low, we save their deplorable lives anyway. Happy weekend, all.