Count Four

Irrational Hatred

So, Why Are Whites So Homophobic?

Gay Marriage Ads

Gay Marriage is just like yours… only gayer

Conversions

Ted Haggard is “completely heterosexual“.

I wonder if his conversion process will be anything like this one.

Words II

A better follow-on site to the admittedly waaaay over the top vid (can we say ‘heavy hammer?’) from the last post.

Words Can Hurt

Think they can’t? Think again.

Defending All of Us

An excellent article by Leonard Pitts, Jr, on Why defense of gays matters. Link comes in via a good write up and commentary on the article from the Republic of T. Couldn’t have said it better than these two, so I’ll let their words speak for themselves.

Calling a Spade a Spade

Maggie Gallgher has a piece over on Yahoo Opinions in which she decries same-sex marriage proponents’ use of the term “bigot” to describe those who oppose such unions. She quotes Senator Brownback in his (correct) assessment of the situation:

Same-sex marriage proponents argue that sexual orientation is like race, and that opponents of same-sex marriage are therefore like bigots who oppose interracial marriage. Once same-sex marriage becomes law, that understanding is likely to be controlling.

She then goes on to argue that:

[f]or the foreseeable future, Americans are going to live with some deep moral disagreements on the marriage issue. Conducting this debate in a spirit of mutual respect and civility would be a lot easier if gay marriage advocates stopped pretending that only fear, hatred or bigotry is at the root of these disagreements.

The only response I have for her there is to look to the propaganda from her own side first before condemning that coming from the other. “Bigot” is relatively easy when up against “disordered,” “morally corrupt,” and “disgusting,” to name a few of the terms fired off by opponents of anything related to same-sex relationships. Reasonable people may disagree on whether ‘marriage’ as a civil institution should be extended to same-sex couples (and, yes, to more than two persons of the same or opposite sexes), but when faced with rhetoric that denies the very humanity of the persons at issue, opponents of this change should not be shocked when proponents fire back with an equal amount of vitriol.

We All Have Choices

A-freakin’-men

Christian Persecution Complex

Christian Conservatives are now suing for the right to discriminate.

I think this was the most telling comment from the article:

By equating homosexuality with race, Baylor said, tolerance policies put conservative evangelicals in the same category as racists. He predicts the government will one day revoke the tax-exempt status of churches that preach homosexuality is sinful or that refuse to hire gays and lesbians.

“Think how marginalized racists are,” said Baylor, who directs the Christian Legal Society’s Center for Law and Religious Freedom. “If we don’t address this now, it will only get worse.”

Well, yeah, duh, because they should be marginalized just like racists are because it’s the same prejudice, backed up by the same misused book that these same bigots tried to use to deny civil rights to non-whites and women. A shame that bit of self-discovery (that they’re being treated the same) hasn’t penetrated their consciousness to show them that they’re wrong.

Mrs. King on GLBT Rights

This came to me from one of my email lists and I thought it was important to share it.

—–
Soulforce Honors the Life of Coretta Scott King and Acknowledges Her Founding Influence

The staff and volunteers of Soulforce, a national social justice movement, express deep sadness at the news that Coretta Scott King has passed away at the age of 78. Her legacy will live on in the work of all of the advocacy groups founded on the principles of nonviolence taught by her husband, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The vision of Soulforce began in 1995 when our President and Founder, the Rev. Dr. Mel White, received a phone call from Mrs. King’s assistant, Lynn Cothren, introducing him to the principles of nonviolence taught and practiced by her husband, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. At our first major direct action at a United Methodist Conference in Cleveland, Ohio, Yolanda King represented Coretta Scott King and the King family.

We honor the life of Coretta Scott King and her strong voice in reminding America that Dr. King would surely be fighting for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people if he were alive today. Some of her public statements include:

Coretta Scott King:
“I still hear people say that I should not be talking about the rights of lesbian and gay people and I should stick to the issue of racial justice… But I hasten to remind them that Martin Luther King, Jr., said, ‘Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere’…. I appeal to everyone who believes in Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream to make room at the table of brotherhood and sisterhood for lesbian and gay people.”1

“Gay and lesbian people have families, and their families should have legal protection, whether by marriage or civil union. A constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages is a form of gay bashing, and it would do nothing at all to protect traditional marriages.”2

“We are all tied together in a single garment of destiny… I can never be what I ought to be until you are allowed to be what you ought to be,” she said, quoting from her husband. “I’ve always felt that homophobic attitudes and policies were unjust and unworthy of a free society and must be opposed by all Americans who believe in democracy.”3

“Gays and lesbians stood up for civil rights in Montgomery, Selma, in Albany, Georgia, and St. Augustine, Florida, and many other campaigns of the Civil Rights Movement. Many of these courageous men and women were fighting for my freedom at a time when they could find few voices for their own, and I salute their contributions.”4

“We have a lot of work to do in our common struggle against bigotry and discrimination. I say ‘common struggle,’ because I believe very strongly that all forms of bigotry & discrimination are equally wrong and should be opposed by right-thinking Americans everywhere. Freedom from discrimination based on sexual orientation is surely a fundamental human right in any great democracy, as much as freedom from racial, religious, gender, or ethnic discrimination.”5

“We have to launch a campaign against homophobia in the black community.”6

“Homophobia is like racism and anti-Semitism and other forms of bigotry in that it seeks to dehumanize a large group of people, to deny their humanity, their dignity and personhood. This sets the stage for further repression and violence that spread all too easily to victimize the next minority group.”7

Sources:

1 Coretta Scott King, 25th anniversary luncheon for Lambda Defense and Education Fund, March 31, 1998

2 Coretta Scott King, speech at The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, USA Today, March 24, 2004

3 Coretta Scott King, 25th anniversary luncheon for Lambda Defense and Education Fund, quoted in the Chicago Sun Times, April 1, 1998

4 Coretta Scott King, 25th anniversary luncheon for\ Lambda Defense and Education Fund, quoted in the Chicago Tribune, April 1, 1998

5 Coretta Scott King, Opening Plenary Session, 13th annual Creating Change conference of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Atlanta, Georgia, November 9, 2000

6 Coretta Scott King, Reuters, June 8, 2001

7 Coretta Scott King, a speech at the Palmer Hilton Hotel, quoted in the Chicago Defender, April 1, 1998