Monday, June 29, 2009

The religious right thinks that character assasination is a Christian virtue


That piece I was going to write, The American College of Pediatricians and the Laundering of Junk Science, is going to have to wait until tomorrow morning due to the above ad.

The Family Research Council have now pulled out the big guns in its pitiful attempt to get GLSEN founder Kevin Jennings removed as head of the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools at the Dept. of Education.

The organization has begun a huge campaign complete with a webpage along with the above monstrosity as an ad.

First it was the "Jennings is teaching our children how to have gay sex" lie. Then it was "Jennings did not report the sexual abuse of a child" lie. Now FRC is jumping on the reliable "Jennings is trying indocrinate America's children into homosexuality" lie.

Through this campaign, FRC is manipulating Jennings's words against him. Of course they are being taken out of context.

Jeremy from Goodasyou.org have broken down this lie in an excellent post.

Some of us may find the entire situation funny. However to me, it's disgusting that FRC is trying to destroy Jennings simply because he is a gay man who believes that lgbt children should be protected.

That's what this is all about. Jennings scares them.

Jennings is helping to create a world where lgbt children are not afraid to come out of the closet and heterosexuals are not afraid of lgbts.

In this world, fear and ignorance cannot take root.

And we all know that the religious right thrive on fear and ignorance. They rely on scaring America's families with lies that aggressive lgbts will be invading their homes and schools and snatching away their children like some boogieman in old fairy tales.

Jennings via his work with GLSEN reminds folks that this country and its schools belong to lgbts as well as heterosexuals. He reminds folks that we have families too and our families deserve protection and respect.

Let's not allow FRC to take Jennings down, PERIOD.

Other HB/HM posts on Kevin Jennings and the religious right:

The war against Kevin Jennings - now it's getting pathetic

Attacks on Kevin Jennings sleazy, un-Christian

More right wing lunacy on Kevin Jennings courtesy of Kevin McCullough

More attacks on GLSEN'S Kevin Jennings - Now the Family Research Council gets in the act'

'Fistgate' and President Obama - religious right pushes a pitiful attempt of guilt by association




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Monday midday newsbriefs

Stonewall In 2009? Police Raid Texas Gay Bar, Arrest Patrons for “Public Intoxication” - No "witty" comments from me until this situation is fully evaulated.

House Leaders Plot Gay Rights Agenda - It's about time.

Wingnuttery From WingNutDaily: "See the impact of 'birth certificate' billboards nationwide" - Shades of how Obama will most likely stay in office - lunacy on the other side.
Catholic agency to cease new adoptions over gay parents - The birth of a new religious right talking point - "gays made the agency do it."

Now because we all need fiber in our diets:

'Gays' in the military - bad idea then, bad idea now - I asked it a while ago and I will ask it now. How is that Barber didn't tell the story of the gay man with "roaming hands" before, especially when Elaine Donnelly got destroyed in front of Congress. The most she had was a specious anecdote from the 1970s. I don't believe Barber's anecdote.

One last thing - I am currently working on piece that I hope will be widely read. It gives a view on yet another way the religious right tries to push bad information.

It's called: The American College of Pediatricians and the Laundering of Junk Science.

I hope to have it done and posted by either this afternoon or tomorrow morning.




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THIS is what happens when lgbts of color have visibility

The Proposition 8 vote is a perfect example of what happens when lgbts of color are not acknowleged as a crucial part of the lgbt struggle for equality.

I don't see a need to go into detail about it because unfortunately the speculation and opinions have done nothing as far as I am concerned.

It's a lot of talk but no action.

So instead, how about a demonstration of what happens when lgbts of color ARE in fact acknowledged:

According to an article in the American Prospect, lgbts of color are leading the fight for equality in Washington, D.C.

In doing so, they are not only getting things done but are serving as a huge roadblock against black pastor (and religious right flunky) Harry Jackson being designated as the "face of the anti-gay marriage movement:"

The anti-gay-rights movement has long sought to use the relative religiosity of the black community to marshal its support. Anti-marriage-equality leaders often cite the results of Proposition 8 in California, which was supported by a majority of African American voters in the state, as proof that the black community as a whole is against gay marriage.

In Washington, D.C., the anti-gay-rights movement attempted to put recognition of same-sex marriages performed in other states to a citywide referendum (it was rejected by the Board of Elections and Ethics) hoping that the city's mostly black population would come out against it. This dynamic may explain why Bishop Harry Jackson, an African American religious leader, has been put forth as the face of the anti-gay-marriage movement.

There's only one problem: The face of LGBT leadership in D.C. is often black. Nationally, anti-gay-rights activists have had a great deal of success in encouraging black voters to oppose gay rights, partially because LGBT rights are seen -- incorrectly -- as a "white issue." But in Washington, D.C., the diverse composition of the marriage-equality movement means that marriage-equality activists don't have to "reach out" to the black community, because they're already part of it.


This should be a cover story of The Advocate instead of that ridiculously ludicrous monstrosity of Is Gay The New Black.

(My stomach hurts every time I think of that stupid, stupid, stupid headline.)

This article is a must read for all lgbt organizations, activists and wannabe lgbt activists from Michelangelo Signorile to Dan Savage to everyone else.

The link is here.


Hat tip to Box Turtle Bulletin for alerting me about this article.



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