05/22/2013
GLAAD: Opponents of Equality in #BoysScouts Project Adult Baggage Onto Supportive Future
Opponents of Equality in Boys Scouts Project Adult Baggage Onto Supportive Future [GLAAD]
Freedom to Work files suit against oil company I drive miles out of way to avoid
The subject, Exxon, is a reliably low-ranking company on the gay rights spectrum, scoring a negative twenty-five (!) on the Human Rights Campaign's latest Corporate Equality Index. The lawsuit, however is a first of its kind.
Basically, Freedom To Work has filed suit with Illinois' Department of Human Rights, claiming that the oil giant discriminates against gay applicants. The LGBT rights org. submitted two fictional applications and claim that the less-qualified-but-more-hetero applicant was offered an interview while the more-qualified-but-more-'mo applicant was shut out. Report at link:
Associated Press report: Complaint Accuses Exxon Mobil of Anti-Gay Bias [AP via NY Times]
(graphic: Memeographs)
Gee, I wonder if Disney is okay with French coalition using Darth Vader for its anti-gay poster
Found on the Twitter account of NOM's Comm. Director, Thomas Peters:
Translation: "Who Is My Father?"
[@AmericanPapist]
First of all—what the hell does this even mean? Just because Darth Vader uttered an iconic line with the word "father" in it doesn't mean that it has resonance. Not to mention, I'm not so sure I'd want to link a known villain to my discriminatory cause.
But beyond that—do these French activists (and NOM allies) really think that the brand-protective and pro-gay Disney, the current owners and gatekeepers of all things Star Wars, is going to let them use this for their anti-equality cause? Ridiculous!
Oh, and these French activists already lost on marriage. So there's that, too.
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Video: Equal Scouting pioneer ponders blazed trails, brighter paths
James Dale:
Liberty Counsel & Liberty Univ. personality proud of his extreme rhetoric; I applaud him for owning it!
You have to say one thing for Liberty Counsel lawyer and Liberty University Associate Dean Matt Barber: unlike so many in his anti-LGBT movement, he is actually proud to stand by his reliably over-the-top rhetoric.
Latest case in point: He went on fringe radio show "Crosstalk" and demeaned gays and President Obama in every way possible, using words like "demonic" and "evil" and "spiritual warfare" and "rebellion against God" to describe his fight and his opposition. But when RightWingWatch posted the clip, Barber didn't run away from it. No, no—he personally retweeted it, as if it's a badge of honor:
Good for Matt! I love that he's proud of his rhetoric. One should be proud of one's own work.
But even better for us. I love that he puts this stuff out there and thinks it's actually helpful to his cause. Every movement has its voices that unwittingly help the other side. In that regard, Matt is one the "pro-family" movement's finest. May he never stop moving polls in our direction.
Audio: Anti-gay activist compares Harvey Milk Day to Hitler
"Save California" leader Randy Thomasson tells popular conservative radio host Janet Mefferd why California parents should keep their children home today. It's because teachers and administrators who back Harvey Milk Day are just like Hitler, natch:
*Source: Janet Mefferd, 5/21/13
And the popular conservative Christian radio host doesn't bat an eye. "You do," Ms. Mefferd proudly responds to a soundbite that compares teachers who promote tolerance to a madman who slaughtered millions.
My friends, we must look out for another. It's getting really ugly out there.
Two top anti-gay leaders condemn anti-gay murder
Tony Perkins:
"We denounce any and all acts of unprovoked violence. No American should be the target of violence - period. We hope and trust that justice will be served in that the perpetrator of this senseless act of violence will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law" [FRC]
Brian Brown:
"We condemn in the strongest possible way the murder of a gay man in New York by a killer who apparently hurled anti-gay insults at him moments before the killing. This senseless act cannot be condoned in America or anywhere, and we urge that the perpetrator be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Our heart goes out to the family of the victim, and we hold them in our prayers. While this killing appears to have no connection to the current debate about redefining marriage, there is no room for violence toward any American — whether they support traditional marriage or not. No person should be subjected to violence because they are gay or lesbian or because they believe that marriage is the union of one man and one woman. There is no place for violence, period." [NOM]
I thank both men for their concern. I hope it will lead to both to reconsider their tone.
'National Catholic Reporter' commentary: Church can show it's not anti-gay by backing gay Boy Scouts
A welcome change of pace on the Catholic commentary circuit:
"Though few will state it publicly, one of the arguments against admitting homosexuals as adult scout leaders is the unsubstantiated belief that homosexuals are more prone to sexual abuse of children than are heterosexuals. Similarly fallacious arguments have been made regarding the predilection of Roman Catholic clergy to sexual abuse of children. Consequently, one would think that Catholic church leadership would be particularly sensitive to such unjust assumptions. Yet the silence of Catholic leadership regarding the Boy Scout controversy has been deafening.
If [Cardinal] Dolan wants the Catholic church to do a better job demonstrating that it is not anti-gay, he might encourage the bishops’ conference to declare publicly its opposition to any scout policy that would either prohibit gay youth from joining a scout troop or gays and lesbians from serving as adult scout leaders.
—Richard Gaillardetz, Joseph Professor of Catholic Systematic Theology at Boston College, writing for National Catholic Reporter.
I'm not holding my breath for Cardinal Dolan's endorsement, since current Catholic leadership seems to have zero interest in distancing itself from far-right, anti-gay politics. But Gaillardetz is on to something, whether or not the defiant in his faith will admit it. A Catholic church that cares about her future would be well-advised to listen to voices of a sustainable (and inevitable) future rather than just the voices of biases gone by.
