Day: May 13, 2012

Interesting Development: Republican Leadership Evading Gay Marriage Issue, Angering Evangelical Conservatives!

Ronald 1 Comment

A very interesting development is the mild manner that the Republican leadership, from Mitt Romney down to members of Congress and even Fox News Channel, is reacting to Barack Obama’s gay marriage support this past week.

Romney, and just about everyone else, is saying they will not focus on social issues such as gay marriage during the campaign, instead focusing on economic issues.

This is shocking and angering social conservatives, evangelical Christians mostly, who insist that gay marriage should be the cornerstone of the GOP campaign for Congress and the Presidency this year.

Tony Perkins, of the evangelical Family Research Council, and Gary Bauer, of the American Values organization, disagreed strongly with the argument that the gay marriage issue is a distraction.

One has to wonder what will happen IF the Republicans continue to push the gay marriage issue to the sidelines.

Is there a chance of a third party movement promoting the social agenda, if the GOP does not do so? Could it affect Mitt Romney’s Presidential campaign?

Stay tuned!

African Americans, Gay Rights, And Barack Obama: Will They Spite Themselves And Promote Denial Of Human Rights?

Ronald 1 Comment

The African American community is divided over the declaration of President Barack Obama favoring gay marriage, and his general backing for gay rights.

A large percentage, often thought to be a majority of the African American community, is theologically conservative, and detests the concept of gay marriage.

They helped to contribute to the defeat of Proposition 8 in California a few years ago, and to the success of the amendment to the state constitution of North Carolina banning same sex marriages, civil unions and any other recognition of same sex relationships.

This is the case despite the historical reality that many Christian groups remained silent for decades over the lynchings of African Americans in the South, and the denial of interracial marriages, and the fact that the Mormon Church, so active in California in mobilizing opposition to gay marriage, did not allow African Americans to become Mormons until an epiphany in 1978 led the Mormons to change their theology!

So the question arises whether the black community will, in large numbers, abandon Barack Obama in November.

The idea that large numbers will vote Republican for Mitt Romney is highly unlikely, but if they stay home and do not vote for President, the African American community could affect the result in some states in a close race.

The point is that if they do just that, stay home, and if Obama and the Democrats lose, who will be the ultimate “victims” of a Romney victory? The answer is that the African American community will spite themselves, in the name of a religion which stood by in large numbers for a long time as they were themselves denied equal rights, only seeing change after many decades of discrimination, as many churches and sects started to change their views, and finally back civil rights for blacks.

So it would be counterproductive for blacks to forget their own struggle for civil rights, and let religion betray their better judgment about human rights!

Equality, Dignity, Hope, Acceptance: The Effect Of Barack Obama On Gay Americans!

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What Barack Obama did on Wednesday, May 9, will reverberate in history as much as when Lyndon B. Johnson called for passage of civil rights laws, and the Supreme Court declared interracial marriage constitutional, in the 1960s.

Just as for African Americans back then, today gay Americans and those who love and support them, see equality, dignity, hope and acceptance, part of what every human being desires as part of being human!

Yes, there were critics then, and even today, of civil rights laws for African Americans and interracial marriage, as there are, today, critics of gay rights and gay marriage.

But in the long run, these critics, past and present, will be part of the “dustbin of history”, who are, and will be, condemned and deplored, and future generations will wonder how we could call ourselves a democracy, and deny equality, dignity, hope, and acceptance to ANY minority!

Just as it did not matter whether all people accepted civil rights and interracial marriage in the 1960s, it does not matter whether they accept gay rights and gay marriage today.

It is not a question of whether something is popular, as no one should have the power to deny equality to anyone else!

This is not something where ordinary people, many of them ignorant and prejudiced, should be voting on other people’s rights.

This is where the Supreme Court should, as with Loving V. Virginia in 1967 mandating Interracial marriage as constitutional, declare gay marriage constitutional, and make it clear that it must be accepted in all states and territories of the United States, no matter what anyone’s personal feelings are regarding the matter!

Organized Religion, Parenthood, and Gay Rights: Time To Do What A Jew Named Jesus Would Advocate!

Ronald 2 Comments

Today is Mother’s Day, and in five weeks, it is Father’s Day.

Today also is the first Sunday since President Barack Obama declared support of gay marriage, part of his continuing agenda to promote legal rights and human rights for people who are lesbian, gay, bi sexual and transgender.

And what do we already see occurring?

We see hate, discrimination, prejudice, bias, anger, fury and narrow mindedness emanating from many Catholic Mormon, and evangelical Christian pulpits as priests, pastors, and ministers declare “war” on gay Americans, and use the Bible to back up their campaign, rather than demonstrate humanity, open mindedness, understanding, tolerance, and acceptance of people who are different than they are.

Instead of promoting compassion and acceptance, we see the issue of gay rights being used as a political football by the haters, and this sadly includes many moms and dads who will refuse to accept their children who are gay, will throw them out of the house, will banish them from family gatherings, will declare them “dead” rather than understand that they have feelings and desires to love someone of the same sex, and wish to be understood and accepted for who they are.

The question anyone with an open mind has is how can men and women reject their own children, provoking depression and suicide in many cases?

And how can those who claim to be spokesmen for God advocate hate and violence against people who would certainly find it easier to deny their own sexuality if they could, but face constant repudiation by religious leaders who are true hypocrites that set out to divide people and deny that these people’s loves are based on their natural, innate selves?

The sad reality is that ANY clergyman or parent who rejects people of GLBT orientation is promoting the kind of hate which makes a mockery of parenthood and of organized religion!

These are not “good Christians” or any other faith, and should be denounced for what they are, peddlers of hypocrisy, who should be called to account and rejected by all decent people!

Just a reminder: Jesus, who these haters say they follow, was a Jew, and his people, the Jews, have faced prejudice and hate from Christian groups throughout history by those who profess to believe in Jesus. Time to stop the phoniness of what these people preach and follow the true, compassionate views of Jesus, which includes acceptance of LGBT orientation!