lgbt issues

For Those Who Fail To Understand Why There's Such an Uproar

jacob

A lot of people get why Rick Warren is such a rancid choice for giving the invocation at Obama’s inauguration. I wish Obama would get it instead of babbling about “inclusiveness.” Perhaps he just needs a short, sharp lesson in why this has been such a cruel slap in the face to the LGBT community.

Remember that Warren was one of the big-name supporters of Prop 8. Here is one of the newlyweds he’s victimizing with his hate (h/t):

I often wonder if the people fighting to strip away our marriage really stop to think of the individuals involved, to really put a face on the news story and the nameless numbers. They are great about putting out press releases, commercials, and emails talking about the dangerous homosexual agenda, but I wonder if they think about the people they are working so hard to take things from.

I wonder how they would feel waking up one day to read a headline in a newspaper that their marriage is not valid and is over. Talk about being breaking news- the two people who are directly affected, whose marriage is being dissolved, have no real say in it.

Think about it. Think about being told your marriage is a sin, that you’re no better than a pedophile. Imagine how much that must hurt.

And if you still have trouble understanding their pain, try reading this succinct summation:

But when I heard Warren had been invited to pray at Obama’s inauguration, I felt sick to my stomach. I cried. It wasn’t a judgment; it wasn’t an intellectual assessment; it wasn’t a political strategy. It was just genuine pain.

But it was nothing — NOTHING — compared to what I felt when I started reading diaries here on Daily Kos, full of smug, ignorant pontification on how we need to not be SO ANGRY or SO HURT, and lumping us in with the “What Obama is doing wrong” crowd, and ignoring that our response to the Warren invitation is a completely separate phenomenon.

Let me explain something very carefully, for those who don’t know: none of what’s going on in the fight for LGBT rights is part of a strategy, as should be apparent by our lack of a cohesive movement and any viable leaders. It’s a true grassroots uprising among people who got a taste of freedom and decided we wanted more. We were no longer willing to settle for a long, slow, state by state battle, for death by a thousand cuts, for an extended period of second class citizenship.

[snip]

You keep telling us we need to reach out and build bridges to the religious right. Do you really think there is any point at all in telling us we need to reach out to homophobes and bigots, to the people who run the churches that abuse our youth and shove us out the doors, that have brainwashed our parents into rejecting us, that tell us they “love” us while they knife us in the hearts with their laws?

Why don’t you tell them to reach out to us? We’re the ones who have been wronged and harmed, disenfranchised, electro-shocked, had our kids taken away in ugly custody battles, lost our homes when our partner died, been thrown out of the hospital rooms of our lovers, had wills overturned and benefits denied. We’re the ones who had our equality thrown up for a popular vote, and whose rights are denied us in the constitutions of 29 states. Telling us to reach out to them is like saying battered women need to reach out to their abusers, or children to the priest who molested them.

Read this diary explaining the impact anti-gay bigotry has on loving families. A seven year-old child watches as his mother tries to show her parents that the family she was creating with her partner was one worthy of love:

Its funny, my first experience with hatred and bigotry was not from some outside source, but from within the people who I thought loved me the most. I still feel that bitter feeling I felt all those years ago still bubbling up inside me. I have never told anyone about this moment, not even my fiancee because it is still to painful for me to talk about. I cannot physically speak about this without crying, and it is entirely too complicated to try to speak about.

We got to my grandparents house and I remember having a feeling of pure tension. That is not a feeling that I had ever felt before that point. We stood on the doorstep together, all of us wrapped up in our own worry. Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, the door opened and we were let inside. There were chairs in the sitting room, two on one side, two on the other and us kids were told to go play in the TV room. I went to the toy chest that had been there for all of my life and pulled out the legos that I had gotten last christmas from my grandma and grandpa. About fifteen minutes went by before the yelling started.

Once again, I don’t remember what was said, I just remember the emotions behind the words. I remember my mom’s absolute frustration with my grandparents lack of open-mindedness. I remember the hatred that dripped in my grandma’s speech. I had never heard her talk like that. Her voice was usually a sweet old lady’s voice, but in that moment, I decided that was the voice of hatred. I remember a huge clatter and my mom screaming to us that it was time to leave, and I remember Rosanne’s black eye.

My grandma had hurled a chair at Rosanne’s face. Yes, one of those aluminum fold up chairs. She got hit in the face and ended up with a black eye.

If the anger spilling from the LGBT community right now perplexes you, keep this in mind:

Yes, we’ve come a long way. But we suffered, struggled and crawled our way here… sometimes LITERALLY crawled to get here.

We endured hate, beatings, death, torture, shunning, excommunications and discrimination to get even just this small part of equality. (and when I say “we” I mean I.. I have endured EVERY thing on that list, as have many gay and lesbians here).

So, give us a bit of slack when we get angry and hurt when someone who represents, and is an integral part of, all of that hate and torture and death is giving the prayer that will bring in what we hoped will be a new and hopeful presidency.

We’ve endured a hell of a lot to get even here. There is my story, in a nutshell. So, please, don’t presume to tell us when we should be ‘calm’. I’ve spent nearly four decades being ‘calm.’

It strikes me that asking people to build bridges and reach out to embrace those who are fighting to take away their rights is awfully ridiculous, considering that battle is still raging. There will come a time for outreach and understanding. It hasn’t arrived just yet.

And how, exactly, do you reach out to hypocrites? Maybe we can start with a little lesson in what’s contained within the Bible:

The religious right picks and chooses which parts of the Bible they want to apply. And they choose based on which outsider group they would like to hate next. First, they emphasized slavery in the Bible when they wanted to hate black people. Now, they emphasize the parts condemning homosexuality so they can hate gay people.

[snip]

Now the Bible says that a man shall not lie with another man. That is true. But it also says, in the same exact book, that adultery is an abomination. And the just punishment for this sin is execution. So, who will execute the first adulterer? Please step on up. May the one without any Biblical sin cast the first stone.

Here is a question no one can answer — and lucky for the right wing, the media never bothers to ask — why do you only focus on the part of the Bible against homosexuality but not on the part against adultery? It’s one thing to say you’re against adultery; it’s another to take away their rights. How come no religious figure in this country has mounted a campaign to take away the rights of adulterers? Let alone execute them.

I think this is a question we should be asking a lot more often, myself. It could shake at least a few bigots into realizing that they’re just one literal reading away from finding themselves in the same boat with gays.

Of course, the likelihood of them having an epiphany is minimal. There’s a surer way to win this battle for equality:

A September poll showed that two-thirds of those under 35 support same-sex marriage. The most active opponents to same-sex marriage largely have been those who have received the dreaded letter from the AARP. I believe that the solution to marriage equality sprouts from these statistics.

To win marriage equality, you must live them to death.

(Consider this your pallette cleanser – it’s wonderful and whimsical and funny as hell. Enjoy, then join me back here for the wrap.)

To put everything in perspective for those perplexed by the outpouring of anger and anguish, this diary by a man who is able to understand by analogy is exactly right. He explains that he and his brother were abused by fundamentalist adoptive parents who “thought of my brother and I as their ministry instead of as their children.” They beat them, tried to cast the devil out of them, and kept one brother in their home with lies and threats because they were getting state money for him. His brother remembers the aftermath:

When he turned 30 I couldn’t take it anymore. I didn’t care if I went to jail for it… I got him out of their house. I remember the day he came to live with my wife and I(six months after we got married). He was so broken, but so alive too. He had spent those years doing research on his own and writing books. Down there in the basement.

He was so happy to be out. He called that day his independance day.

We found out that my parents had been lying all along. They had never had control.

My brother was so angry. He wished they would burn in hell forever. He wished they would go to jail for the rest of their lives.

At first I tried to argue with him saying that they are still our parents, but then I saw his look… the look where he retreated… where he accepted that nobody cared about what he felt… and then I couldn’t disagree with him.

I remember that. And I realize that gay people are experiencing that same thing right now. And even though I want to say that they should try not to be so extreme and how these people are still people…

I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I was wrong. Be angry. Tell everyone how angry you are. Fuck them if they can’t take it. Fuck me if I can’t take it.

You deserve to be free.

Do you understand now? Good.

The LGBT community, once more, has been kicked in the face. This time, it’s no good telling them to calm down and be patient and inclusive and reach out to those who think they’re evil – these things won’t help them. All they do is allow bigots to feel better about themselves.

I know Rick Warren’s starting to feel a little less certain about his stand. You can see evidence that the outcry is reaching even his religion-plugged ears:

So Rick Warren pulled the anti-gay language from his church Web site. The site used to explicitly ban gays from membership in the church.

We’re getting through. The din may even be loud enough for Obama to hear, and eventually shows he understands.

Keep shouting.

For Those Who Fail To Understand Why There's Such an Uproar
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Reports of Rick Warren's Dining with Gays Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

jacob2 Comments

Pastor Rick Warren, defending his homophobia:

“I have many gay friends. I’ve eaten dinner in gay homes.”

And:

Q: Are you homophobic?

WARREN: Of course not. I have always treated them with respect. When they come and wanna talk to me, I talk to ‘em. When the protesters came, we served them water and donuts.

A former homophobe says horseshit to the first. And here’s an interesting little example of Rick Warren “talking to” and “dining with” gays:

In December of the previous year, I wrote a letter to Warren outlining my plan to bring a group of gay and lesbian couples, and their children, to visit his Saddleback Church over Father’s Day weekend. I expressed our intent to attend worship on Sunday, and my hope that he and some families in his congregation would share a meal with us in an effort to reach beyond our differences and focus instead on the commonalities we share as parents and people of faith. In due course, I began a series of phone conversations with Warren’s chief of staff. Over the next several weeks, we agreed that eight of our families would eat lunch on June 16 with Warren, his wife Kay, and six of their staff members. After the family meal, eight people from our group would then convene for a 90 minute conversation with Warren, his wife, and the six other church leaders. Here’s where it gets interesting.

The week before our visit, Newsweek senior editor Lisa Miller published an article that contained a single sentence about Warren’s upcoming get-together with a bunch of gay dads. Suddenly, the tone and demeanor from those paid to protect Warren’s public image began to deteriorate.

First, we were told that things had changed and Warren and his wife “might” attend the meal and forum. A few days later, Warren posted a message on a religious blog saying that he never intended to meet with our families. Once we arrived in California, I called his chief of staff to discuss final details. Implausibly, I was told that Saddleback had now decided to only feed the eight people from our group who were going to be in the meeting, but not our children or spouses.

I pushed back by expressing my opinion that it was not very Christ-like to renege on our covenant after we had already traveled thousands of miles from Texas. “We’ll discuss your visit again and call you back,” they said. An hour later they telephoned – this time with a much more serious tone. I felt like I was negotiating a nuclear arms deal rather than the breaking of bread and some fellowship among families. With seeming reluctance, they finally settled on feeding everyone but announced that now only four Saddleback staff members would attend and that Warren and his wife would not be among them.

They made a new offer. Warren had decided to preach from one of Saddleback’s satellite facilities, 45 minutes away from the main campus. He would sit down with my family for ten to fifteen minutes after the early service, if we agreed to attend. I accepted that offer and on Sunday morning we waited near our seats at the conclusion of church.

Eventually, I heard Warren call out my name. As I turned to greet him, he hugged me, my partner, and our three children . . . and then walked away. No conversation. Minimal eye contact. Just an awkward hug and he was gone.

The following day we tried to initiate heartfelt conversation with the four Saddleback staff members who managed to show up. From the opening moments it was clear that this was a meeting to save face without any real interest in hearing our stories or getting to know us.

It appears Rick Warren only wants to speak with gays who are “repentant.” Not the icky kind who are married with kids and don’t feel they have to repent for basic biology.

But then, Rick Warren doesn’t understand biology. The Bible doesn’t mention evolution, you see:

WARREN: If you’re asking me do I believe in evolution, the answer is no, I don’t. I believe that God, at a moment, created man. I do believe Genesis is literal, but I do also know metaphorical terms are used. Did God come down and blow in man’s nose? If you believe in God, you don’t have a problem accepting miracles. So if God wants to do it that way, it’s fine with me.

Oh, and in answer to Mike, liberals are most vocal about their disgust when it comes to Rick Warren’s appalling views on gays, but there’s plenty of other reasons we can’t stand him. Let me count the ways:

1. His penchant for believing that God gives us the right to assassinate foreign leaders is spectacularly outrageous.

2. It’s rather incredible that he could find the time to grill Obama on abortion, but “never got the chance” to bring up torture with George W. Bush.

3. And, in fact, thought Bush was deserving of his “PEACE” prize.

4. He equates abortion with the Holocaust.

5. And stands in the way of stem cell research.

6. Not to mention, he himself has confessed that the only thing that separates him from James Dobson is “tone.”

7. Have I mentioned he’s a snotty little shit when he talks to atheists?

8. And thinks Jews are going to hell.

9. Not to mention the enemy of science shit mentioned above.

Do I need to go on, or are we good here?

Rick Warren may have done a few decent things in regards to poor people, but overall he’s the same kind of festering fundie fucktard that’s led this country to believe it can shit on science, human beings, and other countries all in the name of God. And he’s a bald-faced fucking liar, as proved above in reference to his “I talk to gays” and “I dine with gays” remarks.

The more I see, the more I loathe. Obama needs to rethink this one.

Reports of Rick Warren's Dining with Gays Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

Keep Your Filthy Fundie Hands Off My Government and My Library System

jacob2 Comments

Okay, so it’s not completely mine – it’s Oklahoma’s – but still, this shit has a distressing tendency to spread to the less-insane parts of the country (h/t):

A special investigation has revealed Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett has his eyes on the state executive office and is working closely with religious extremists to fill the Metropolitan Library Commission of Oklahoma County with anti-gay members in order to court the fundamentalist vote.

Cornett and Steve Kern, pastor of the Olivet Baptist Church and husband to State Rep. Sally Kern, are being accused of teaming up to rid the library system of all gay and lesbian materials, as well as those their church-based philosophies find objectionable. A source close to Cornett alleges, “The Mayor is looking to become Oklahoma’s next governor in 2010. With the conservatism rampant in the state, he feels now is the time to fully side with fundamentalist Christians in order to get their backing. He believes one way of doing that is going on an all-out assault on gay citizens. Even if things are done that would later be overturned in court at a great cost to the City, he will walk away a hero to certain people.”

The insider also stated, “The Mayor is aware that Ernest Istook is returning to Oklahoma to join the governor’s race again. Istook has the conservative base locked in, so the Mayor must shake loose Istook supporters if he is to get past the Republican primary. Gays are easy targets for him. He tried to use them in 2006, but it backfired. This round he wants to make it clear he is without a doubt against gay rights.”

Charming little shit, eh? I wish I could say the electorate would wipe the floor with his ass, but this is of course Oklahoma, which seems to be having a bit of difficulty extracting itself from the smothering embrace of the fundies and joining us here in the 21st Century.

They also have a fuck of a hard time understanding little things like the First Amendment, separation of church and state, and the fact that public libraries aren’t their personal pulpit:

In 2005 Rep. Kern sponsored House Resolution 1039, which was passed 81 – 3, in an effort to keep gay-themed books out of the hands of children. The resolution, which specifically targeted gay books, ordered libraries to “confine homosexually themed books and other age-inappropriate material to areas exclusively for adult access and distribution.”

Kern and other legislators threatened state libraries with massive cuts in funding, if they did not remove material like the popular children’s books King & King and Heather Has Two Mommies. Both the books deal with gay marriage and are considered age appropriate for children. This led to a 2006 policy by the Metro Library system to create special sections for such books.

On November 20, 2008, new restrictions were passed at the Metropolitan Library Commission meeting in Edmond, which requires librarians to place material in the ‘Family Talk’ section at least 60 inches off the ground. That section includes materials dealing with gay and lesbian subjects.

The library commission is composed of political appointees, who are often at odds with the system’s employees, who strive to follow standard library policies regarding countering censorship and public access to materials.

Sounds exactly like what Sarah Palin hoped to do to Wasilla. And this is their vision for America, my darlings, which means that if we want a free, secular, and above all non-homophobic country, we need to work hard to keep these fucktards at bay.

Have some motivation:

[Gossip Boy, undercover as a frothing fundie supporter]: Well good for him. He’s a real man of God and his service to everyone has not gone unnoticed. We need all the help we can get to make sure the perverts keep their nasty lifestyle out of our city libraries and away from our children. The sickness is spreading into everything.

[Steve Kern, fucktard extraordinaire]: We have to get rid of that and start curing those sinners. It’s past time that this nation stopped placating sin and start putting them in education programs. Courts can force drug offenders into treatment centers and violent people into anger management. There’s no reason our courts can’t do that with homos.

I’m invoking Godwin’s Law here. These people really are fascists. And I for one do not want to live in a country where they’re in power. This is why I shall be keeping a rather sharp eye on the dominionist fucknuggets who attempt to inject their poison into my nation’s political bloodstream, and will be liberally applying disinfectant at the ballot box.

Keep Your Filthy Fundie Hands Off My Government and My Library System

Tolerance For Me but Not For Thee

jacob

Aww, us big mean supporters of same-sex marriage has forced poor Bill Donahue into bed with the Mormons:

Appearing in today’s New York Times is an advertisement paid for by a “grassroots” organization, “No Mob Veto Dot Org” (or, “NAMBLA”). The burden of the ad is the claim, as preposterous as it is obnoxious, that the real victims of Prop 8 in California are not gays and lesbians, but those organizations who poured immense effort, cash, and resources into stripping away the fundamental civil rights of their fellow Americans.

We’re united in this: the violence and intimidation being directed against the LDS or “Mormon” church, and other religious organizations — and even individual believers — simply because they supported Proposition 8 is an outrage that must stop….

Therefore, despite our fundamental disagreements with each other, we announce today that we will stand shoulder to shoulder to defend any house of worship — Jewish, Christian, Hindu, whatever — from violence, regardless of the cause that violence seeks to serve. Furthermore, beginning today, we commit ourselves to exposing and publicly shaming anyone who resorts to the rhetoric of religious bigotry — against any faith, on any side of any issue, for any reason.

That rattling sound you don’t hear is me not shaking in my boots at the threat of a public shaming by Bill Donahue.

Now, I haven’t had my ear to the ground quite like Billy D has, but I haven’t heard of actual violence perpetrated against supporters of Prop 8. There may have been some isolated occurrences, but he makes it sound like rampaging mobs have been beating up preachers and burning churches.

This, manifestly, has failed to happen.

What has happened is that supporters of same-sex marriage have been protesting. With placards. And exposing the extent of the Church’s efforts to strip marriage rights away from gays. And refusing to patronize businesses that supported the amendment. They have even – horror of horrors – demonstrated.

This, to Bill, is intolerable cruelty. How dare anyone not tolerate their intolerance! It’s religious, which of course makes it all right. And therefore, mere protests and – heh – public shaming become “violence” in his eyes. Not surprising, really, considering that saying “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas” qualifies as persecution of the worst sort with these nimrods.

I’m a little tired, however, so I shall allow Thers to continue applying the Smack-o-Matic:

The Human Rights Campaign has done the work of pointing out just why the ad is bullshit. As a snide, foulmouthed Internet blogger, however, it falls to me to point out that the “No Mob Veto” site is a hilariously empty pile of crap. Please, for instance, enjoy their blog. Even more entertainingly, enjoy their “Documentation” page, where one would assume they would put all the, you know, proof that there is some sort of organized anti-Mormon pogrom put together by the Gay Illuminati, a place where they would at long last unveil The Protocols of the Elders of Gay. This area of their site reads, in part, and I shit you not:

Under Construction.

Note to homophobic shitnozzles: do your fucking homework before taking out an ad in the NYT. Just a tip! (What the links that could be scrounged up for that page do show, however, is that these people’s real agenda is to demand tolerance for their intolerance, to fake like working to deny liberty to others is not morally disgusting because you’re hating in the service of God.)

Well said. And, Thers concludes with a ripping good suggestion:

Oh, and they also have a place where you can “Tell Us Your Story”: I really very much recommend that you do.

That could be hugely entertaining.

Tolerance For Me but Not For Thee

I *cough* I'm Not *hackcough* Feeling Well

jacob

Lavender flu, I’m afraid:

National Day Without A Gay has been called for December 10, International Human Right Day, and organizers are encouraging people to “call in gay” and spend the day being of service as volunteers in the community:

Day Without A Gay seeks to shift our strong feelings about injustice toward service! Let’s fight for equality by out-loving those who would deny us rights. Call in “gay” on December 10th (International Human Rights Day) and volunteer for your local LGBT and/or human rights organizations.

[snip]

In Southern California, gay-out participants are readying themselves to help fire victims along with helping out other service groups, and Day Without A Gay has a a state-by-state listing of volunteer opportunities.

Terribly sorry. I’ll be in tomorrow, though. Don’t mind the possible splotches of paint, or the papercuts from stuffing envelopes – it’s all part of my therapy.

I *cough* I'm Not *hackcough* Feeling Well

Upping the Ante in the Prop 8 Battle

jacob

Have I ever mentioned that I think that electing judges is a bad idea? Cases should be decided on law rather than political survival, but that’s what the legal challenges to Prop 8 may come down to:

Six months ago, California’s highest court discarded its reputation for caution and ended the state’s ban on same-sex marriage.

Now the moderately conservative state Supreme Court is being asked to take an even riskier step — to overturn the November voter initiative that reinstated the gay-marriage ban and possibly provoke a voter revolt that could eject one or more of the justices from the bench.

[snip]

Civil rights groups, churches and local governments have filed six lawsuits asking the court to declare the measure an illegal constitutional revision. Letters also have poured into the court pleading for urgent action, and anti-Proposition 8 rallies have attracted large crowds statewide.

At the same time, opponents of gay marriage have warned that they will work to oust any justice who votes against Proposition 8, a threat particularly palpable in a year when voters in other states have booted six state high court justices after campaigns by special interest groups.

These people will take their hate to any lengths. But they want you to think they’re all reasonable and respectful of the law and stuff:

The official Proposition 8 campaign has discouraged supporters from threatening a recall while the court is considering lawsuits to overturn the measure.

“We think the discussion of a recall at this point is premature and not helpful to the current situation,” said Andrew Pugno, a lawyer for the campaign. “The court should have a chance to do the right thing.”

But if the court voted to overturn Proposition 8, “no one would be able to stop” a recall, he said.

Translation: as long as the justices do what we want, we don’t have a problem. If the justices don’t do what we want, we’ll destroy them.

Prop 8 antagonists need to let those justices know they’ll have their backs. Otherwise, we’re going to get a ruling tainted by political threats, rather than a dispassionate consideration of the law.

Let’s just hope the Prop 8 crowd continues to spend themselves into mass lay-offs. It would be nice to see them take aim at civil rights and blow off their own legs.

(Tip o’ the shot glass to TeddySanFran at Daily Kos)

Upping the Ante in the Prop 8 Battle

Sweet Schadenfreude, Parte the Second

jacob4 Comments

ROFLMAO:

In the aftermath of the passage of Prop 8 in California, some gay rights groups are calling for boycotts of those businesses that donated money to the campaign to stop same sex marriage in that state. And suddenly, the religious rights is shocked – SHOCKED – at the notion of boycotting a business over political disagreements. Like this guy:

Some Proposition 8 supporters say a minority of protesters have gone too far by targeting individuals. Opponents of the measure have called for a boycott of the California Musical Theatre after revelations that artistic director Scott Eckern, a Mormon, donated $1,000 to the Yes on 8 Campaign. Members of his church played a significant role in the campaign.

“It’s disheartening that he is being singled out,” said Lisa West, spokeswoman for the church in the Sacramento area. “We had hoped there would be more tolerance for different viewpoints.”

Funny, I don’t recall hearing anyone on the other side calling for “tolerance of different viewpoints” when the American Family Association was calling for boycotts of Ford and McDonald’s because those companies dared to market to gay people.

Poor bigoted fuckwits. Sucks when we use your own tactics against you, doesn’t it?

Sweet Schadenfreude, Parte the Second

Partners in Bigotry

jacob

Catholics and Mormons may not agree on many points of Christian dogma, but they’re in perfect accord when it comes to fighting same-sex marriage:

The media in Salt Lake City have discovered the documents revealed prior to Election Day that show a long-time collaboration between the Mormons and the Catholics to destroy what they call “Homosexual Legal Marriage.”

DailyKos Diarist thereisnospoon had these documents in a pre-Election Day diary, and summarized them:

Yep, you got that right. They were thinking of this in California way back in 1997. They were saying, “referendum is expensive. We have the money, but we don’t have the public face. So let’s join with the Catholics, because they have a better reputation.”

The Roman Catholic Archbishop of San Francisco who renewed this relationship this summer when he asked for the LDS Church leadership’s assistance had most recently been the Archbishop of Salt Lake City. The SF Chronicle revealed earlier this week:

Months before the first ads would run on Proposition 8, San Francisco Catholic Archbishop George Niederauer reached out to a group he knew well, Mormons.

Niederauer had made critical inroads into improving Catholic-Mormon relations while he was Bishop of Salt Lake City for 11 years. And now he asked them for help on Prop. 8, the ballot measure that sought to ban same-sex marriages in California.

The June letter from Niederauer drew in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and proved to be a critical move in building a multi-religious coalition – the backbone of the fundraising, organizing and voting support for the successful ballot measure. By bringing together Mormons and Catholics, Niederauer would align the two most powerful religious institutions in the Prop. 8 battle.

They could use the power of their churches and their religious authority for a lot of good. They could have focused that money and will on fighting poverty. They could have united to stop our government from torturing people. They could have spoken out with one voice against domestic violence, which truly does destroy families. They could have combined their might to provide medical care for uninsured children. They could have brought their strength and resources to bear on so many things that would have saved lives and improved their communities.

Instead, they decided to pour tens of millions of dollars into an effort to deny same-sex couples the simple right to marry. They declared war not on poverty, starvation, disease or violence, but on two consenting adults’ legal right to say, “I do.”

So I don’t want to hear about the moral superiority of Christianity. Not one single word about all the good the churches do. I do not want to hear a syllable about God’s infinite love.

Not a sound.

Partners in Bigotry

Taking Them At Their Word

jacob

I absolutely cannot wait to see the Mormon Church’s reaction to this:

A group of at least five Utah legislators have asked the Mormon leadership to join their call for state legislation protecting LGBT rights to hospital visitation, medical care, fair housing, inheritance, and non-discrimination in employment, based on a statement from the Church itself last week that the Church “does not object to rights for same-sex couples” in any of these areas.

Leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints have said they do not object to rights for same-sex couples, as long as those rights do not infringe on the integrity of the traditional family.

Now, gay-rights activists and at least five Utah legislators are asking the Church to demonstrate its conviction.

The group Equality Utah says the Church made the invitation, and they’re accepting it. “The LDS Church says it does not oppose same-sex couples receiving such rights as hospitalization and medical care, fair housing rights or probate rights,” said Mike Thompson, executive director of Equality Utah.

In their attempt to appear non-bigoted the day after Prop 8 took away marriage equality rights throughout California, the Mormon leadership detailed a long list of rights of same-sex couples to which they do not object. Now, these legislators will introduce bills to protect all of these rights, and they ask the Church leadership to support them.

“Setting aside the marriage issue for now, there is so much in that space that is short of marriage that we need to talk about; and we’re saying, ‘Let’s talk about it,'” said Utah Sen. Scott McCoy.

Those issues include rights in medical care and hospital visitation, housing and employment protections, insurance rights for a partner, a statewide domestic partner registry. Repealing the second part of Utah’s Amendment 3 would officially recognize gay couples.

Having framed this as accepting the Church leadership’s invitation, the legislators put them into a rather tight spot: Are you as good as your word?

I somehow doubt it. It’ll be interesting to see how they spin denying the rights they claimed they were all for.

Bravo to those legislators. This is very much the right thing to do, and they’re doing it in such a way that the Mormon church is going to lose a lot of credibility if they come out against equal rights.

Taking Them At Their Word