(Weekly Column)
When Chicago Archbishop Cardinal Francis George recently compared the LGBT community to the Ku Klux Klan he probably thought that there would be limited push back against his offensive remarks. Instead, his ugly smear was immediately met head-on with outrage and disgust. The way in which the LGBT community rapidly responded is a textbook example of successful advocacy and should be used as a model of how the movement takes on its opponents.
Windy City Times editor Tracy Baim got the ball rolling in a powerful editorial: “In comparing the LGBT community to the Ku Klux Klan—in his remarks about the potential disruption and inconvenience of the new Pride Parade route and start time—Cardinal George has gone too far, and he should graciously apologize, and step down from his post.”
My organization, Truth Wins Out, started a Change.org petition calling for George’s resignation that has been signed by more than 5,300 people. We helped keep the controversy alive during the holidays with a full-page Chicago Tribune ad headlined, “Hey, Cardinal Francis George, Gay is not Like the KKK.”
The Chicago Tribune editorial page called the comparison to the KKK a “bizarre analogy.” Robert McClory blogged at the National Catholic Reporter: “If he sees this latest broadside as an effective argument, he has badly missed the mark. Critics have suggested that George’s rash comments do more to spread anti-Catholicism than do the pronouncements of those who do hate the church.”
Chicago Sun-Times columnist Esther Cepeda body slammed the Chicago Archbishop: “George expressed an opinion that reinforces one of the many reasons Catholics leave the church. One out of every 10 Americans is an ex-Catholic — like me — and if they didn’t run away screaming because of the Church’s stance on abortion, birth control, divorce or the inadequate prosecution of priests who have sexually abused children, it’s because of its attitudes toward women and sexual orientation.”
George’s primary defenders were the Illinois Family Institute and the Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, both deemed hate groups by the Southern Poverty Law Center. Even troglodyte William Donahue of the Catholic League has so far not pounced on this issue, preferring to spend his time defending the Vatican’s handling of pedophile priest cases.
The juxtaposition of the Ku Klux Klan and law abiding LGBT citizens was simply too great a mental leap for all but the most ardent gay bashers. It would be nice if George apologized or stepped down, however if he does neither, the Cardinal has still lost the battle of public opinion. To mainstream Americans, including Catholics, he appears alarmist and extreme. His intransigence has only further tarnished his legacy and damaged the image of the Roman Catholic Church.
George can still escape from his self-inflicted bind if the LGBT community overplays its hand. This issue exploded after George went on Fox News Chicago and said that the gay-rights movement was at risk of morphing “into something like the Ku Klux Klan, protesting in the streets against Catholicism.”
On the cusp of victory, Chicago LGBT activist Lair Scott called for – you guessed it – a protest in the streets of Chicago against the Catholic Church. The demonstration will occur during Sunday mass at the seat of the Chicago Archdiocese. Lair is best known for his controversial Change.org petition demanding that PBS, “Let Bert and Ernie Get Married On Sesame Street.”
The Gay Liberation Network and the Rainbow Sash Movement, an organization of LGBT Catholics, have backed this protest, which has all the makings of a potential PR disaster. If the controversy switches from a debate over George’s KKK remarks to a FOX-fueled media frenzy about Bert and Ernie our message has been lost. If the protest becomes unruly, disrespectful, blatantly anti-religious, or if mass is disrupted the support of the sympathetic middle that believes George went too far will evaporate.
I’m not necessarily against a demonstration if it will keep the issue alive. However, let’s be honest and acknowledge that it is a risky venture that must be carefully planned and exquisitely executed or it could horribly backfire. Do we really want to hand FOX News and the Vatican a gift on a silver platter?
In the past, the Gay Liberation Network has organized important demonstrations in Chicago. Indeed, I worked with them on a successful protest against the Radio Hall of Fame when it inducted Focus on the Family’s James Dobson. They are good people who care very much about the LGBT community. Rainbow Sash also appears to have our best interests in mind.
I am sure that both organizations comprehend the gravity of this situation and understand the global ramifications if events spin out of control. While Cardinal George is fully responsible for sacrificing himself at the altar of idiocy, poor choices by the LGBT community could sadly lead to his unlikely resurrection.
There’s no reason that a protest against gays being called the KKK need descend to hate of the Church; it’s doubtful that it would be a protest “against” Catholicism so much as what this Catholic said. Gay protests don’t seem to ever move to hate, violence or disruption at all. The times it has happened are so few and far between that it comes down to maybe a dozen in 40 years; our most outrageous of late have been a few glitter bombs for heavens sake.
Indeed, the whole thing could be a “we’re begging for inclusion” protest. It could be a “Jesus loves you too Cardinal George.” It could be many things — and somehow, since gay folks haven’t seem to ever protested against any church — and the handful of times when any religious service was disrupted — what, 5 or 6 times in 40 years? — by a tiny handful of malcontents, mainstream gay groups jumped all over them and those protests were one time affairs.
I think you should give us gay folks a lot more credit for running the most peaceful, longest enduring, largest grass roots worldwide political protest movement history has ever seen: for nearly 40 years now, approaching nearly 2000 cities across the globe — for our “pride” fests are indeed political protests — and no other group on earth has ever come close to the length and breadth of sustained peaceful gatherings that tens of millions of gay folks have held since the 1950s in now over 100 countries. I see no reason that the good gays of Chicago and those who would join them would be any different.
Which makes us exactly opposite to what the Church and the Klan are — we are inclusive — while they are exclusionary (they just argue over whom is to be excluded and who is to do the excluding.)
Let’s hope you are right Jim. The chances are things will be great. But…let’s not deny that one or two rogue protesters out of 100 or 200 and the focus will be off George and on us, which would be a reversal of fortune.
If anyone is going to take the lead on this issue, let it be the Rainbow Sash people. They are aware of the inner workings of the Catholic hierarchy and locally based enough to know the PR ramifications. In this situation, moderation is the best approach – this is Chicago, not the bible belt.
I don’t mean to diss GLN, they’ve been successful and are to be admired, but in this instance, it’s better to let insiders deal with the situation.
Like Jim Hlavac above, I think turning this protest on its head is the way to go. Have a demonstration of what love and inclusion is all about. I see signs like: “We forgive you, Cardinal” and “Love is greater than hate”.
I hope the good LGBTQ folks in Chicago ‘demonstrate’ what the Church so lacks, a voice for peace and acceptance!
A demonstration done in this way would be great. I support it. But it is critical that we do it right and not provide sympathy to the cardinal’s unsympathetic position.
Yes, “love is greater than hate” The Cardinal definitely should not resign. And, the parade must go on, not passing the church(s) during Mass time(s).
[...] From TWO The juxtaposition of the Ku Klux Klan and law abiding LGBT citizens was simply too great a mental leap for all but the most ardent gay bashers. It would be nice if George apologized or stepped down, however if he does neither, the Cardinal has still lost the battle of public opinion. To mainstream Americans, including Catholics, he appears alarmist and extreme. His intransigence has only further tarnished his legacy and damaged the image of the Roman Catholic Church. [...]
Obviously, church reps like this, other religious anti gay groups or less organized people can’t appreciate the reality of just how non violently and through due process of law gay people HAVE conducted themselves in challenging discrimination and bigotry.
The whole point of anti gay sentiment is to smear gay people as threatening to EVERYTHING. Every move a gay person makes is supposed to be taken as a threat. Even looks and back talk. And without EVIDENCE of actual threats trending towards silencing or restriction of hetero rights and access, make stuff up or take the ‘just you wait, it’s GONNA happen, yep, any day now’ approach.
So very tiresome this incitement of group hysteria and mob rule.
While claiming persecution and mob rule BY gay folks.
So very tiresome. And wrong.
What Jim Hlavac says is absolutely true. Gay people, worldwide, haven’t resorted to physical violence, shutting down ANY form of dissent, and have engaged the courts and Constitutionally protected protests and free association to gain openness and what is their birthright, by all accounts.
And considering how daily, the whole world DOES witness bombings, mass shootings, buildings being burned down and terrorist attacks, it’s REMARKABLE that gay people are vilified by ANY churches (or other groups) as a commiserate threat to civil society, by comparison.