When former Focus on the Family leader James Dobson told The Daily Oklahoman in 2004 that,“Homosexuals…want to destroy the institution of marriage. It will destroy marriage. It will destroy the Earth,” reasonable people dismissed him as a crank. And, for the record, six states have since legalized marriage equality and the earth is still here.
Now we learn that Pope Benedict XVI did his best Dobson imitation when he delivered a New Year’s address to diplomats representing 180 nations. According to reports, the pontiff said that the marriage was “not a simple social convention, but rather the fundamental cell of every society. Consequently, policies (such as gay couples marrying) which undermine the family threaten human dignity and the future of humanity itself.”
Really? Because I just married my same-sex partner in Vermont, a state that allows for such unions. South of us is Massachusetts and Connecticut, which both allow gay people to get hitched. To my east is New Hampshire, another state where gay couples get equal treatment under the law. In this cluster of states, marriage equality has had no visible effect on heterosexuals, unless you count the extra money their businesses have made from gay tourists who visited New England to marry. Meanwhile, for the LGBT people who live in the region, there has been an obvious increase in human dignity. Whatever evidence Joseph Ratzinger possesses to back his outrageous claim must be shrouded in more secrecy than a Pope-picking conclave.
As for the claim that the future of humanity is in jeopardy – it seems to be a figment of the Pope’s vivid imagination. Life in New England has not changed one iota since marriage equality was established and anyone who says otherwise is either a liar or a lunatic. Which camp is the Pope in?
It is time for people to be honest and admit that this pope is becoming a joke and his reign is an abject failure. He arrogantly swept into office and preposterously lambasted the secularization of Europe, as if the continent was more humane when ruled by the Church and its countless bloody religious wars.
Fortunately, his goal of turning back the clock has been unrealized. Once staunchly Catholic Spain now has marriage equality and the Vatican had to recall its ambassador to Ireland after the Irish prime minister lambasted the Roman Catholic Church over pedophile priests.
Why are we even listening to the pronouncements of a “moral leader” who presides over a church that has spent billions of dollars to settle child molestation cases? If a church and its leadership do not protect the interests of children and cover-up the misdeeds of monsters, they forfeit the right to point the finger and preach. The last thing hardworking, taxpaying, law abiding LGBT families need is to be scolded by the enablers of the child sexual abuse scandals.
The pathological homophobia of Pope Benedict XVI has filtered down the food chain. Last month, Chicago Archbishop Cardinal Francis George compared the LGBT community to the Ku Klux Klan. After a huge public backlash, he finally apologized.
In Minnesota, Saint Paul and Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt recently posted a letter to the local diocesan website that infuses a prayer for marriage discrimination into the Catholic Mass. Nienstedt’s pathetic “prayer” was to “assist in the strengthening of our state-wide efforts to defend marriage in our civil constitution.”
Can you feel the spirituality?
Sadly, gay bashing is a way to ascend the career ladder in Rome. For instance, the Pope will promote New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan to cardinal next month. Dolan worked mightily, yet unsuccessfully, to keep gay couples from marrying in New York. Like the Pope, Dolan should either admit he was blowing holy smoke where the sun don’t shine or produce solid evidence that he was correct in asserting that gay couples marrying would harm society.
Of course, his attacks on innocent LGBT families are not the Pope’s only notable gaffes, which include:
In 2006, the Pope enraged Muslims when he quoted a 14th-century Christian emperor as saying the Prophet Muhammad had introduced only “evil and inhuman” ideas into the world.
In 2009, Benedict decreed that Anglicans who leave their Church because they believed it was too liberal could join the Catholic Church, which would allow them to keep some of their traditions.
In 2009 the Pope revoked the excommunications of four schismatic bishops from the far right order, St. Pius X Society. One of the bishops the Pope embraced, Richard Williamson, is a conspiratorial holocaust revisionist who claims the extermination of six million Jews was a hoax.
The pontiff’s rule can best be described as insensitive, indecent, and intolerant, and his latest anti-gay comments should be put into context of his overall reprehensible record. While LGBT marriage equality does not threaten the future of humanity, the out of touch pronouncements and actions of Pope Benedict XVI may very well threaten the future of the Roman Catholic Church.
Contact: Wayne Besen, Executive Director Phone: 917-691-5118 E-Mail: wbesen@truthwinsout.org
TWO Calls Cardinal Francis George’s Apology to the LGBT Community a Positive Development
We Called for His Resignation But Remorse Is a Good Start, Says TWO
CHICAGO – Truth Wins Out commended Chicago Archbishop Cardinal Francis George today for apologizing to the LGBT community after he made intemperate remarks comparing the LGBT movement to the Ku Klux Klan.
“I am truly sorry for the hurt my remarks have caused,” George said in an interview with the Chicago Tribune. “Particularly because we all have friends or family members who are gay and lesbian. This has evidently wounded a good number of people. I have family members myself who are gay and lesbian, so it’s part of our lives. So I’m sorry for the hurt. When I was talking I was speaking out of fear that I have for the church’s liberty and I was reaching for an analogy which was very inappropriate for which I’m sorry. I didn’t realize the impact of what I was saying. … Sometimes fear is a bad motivation.”
Truth Wins Out placed a full-page ad in last Sunday’s Chicago Tribune headlined “Hey, Cardinal Francis George, Gay is not like the KKK.” TWO also started an online Change.org petition calling on George to step down that reached more than 5,400 signatures. Pressure continued to build with the Gay Liberation Network and the Rainbow Sash Movement planning to protest the Cardinal this weekend.
“We called for Cardinal George’s resignation but we think remorse is a positive step in the right direction,” said TWO’s Executive Director Wayne Besen. “It is gratifying to see the Cardinal take personal responsibility for the hurt he has caused and we hope this incident leads to improving relations with the LGBT community.”
George’s offensive remarks first came during a dispute over the scheduled starting time of the annual gay pride parade in June. The event was originally set to begin at 10am, but a priest bitterly complained that the starting time would interfere with morning services. In an interview with Fox News in Chicago, Cardinal George said: “You know, you don’t want the Gay Liberation Movement to morph into something like the Ku Klux Klan, demonstrating in the streets against Catholicism.”
Truth Wins Out (TWO) is a nonprofit that fights anti-LGBT religious extremism. TWO specializes in turning information into action by organizing, advocating and fighting for LGBT equality.
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.
Today, I’m going to make a rare and radical request.
I’m going to ask you directly for an end of year tax-deductible donation to Truth Wins Out based on the unique idea of rewarding RESULTS.
In 2011, Truth Wins Out has had some amazing accomplishments:
TWO exposed Marcus Bachmann and proved that he lied when he claimed his quack clinic didn’t practice “ex-gay” therapy. Our investigation gained national attention including, ABC World News, Nightline, Good Morning America, the Today Show, and the New York Times. Can you think of another LGBT organization that would have gone undercover to prove that Marcus Bachmann practices “ex-gay” therapy?
TWO launched a petition drive collecting 160,000 signatures that persuaded Apple Inc. to nix Exodus International’s “ex-gay” iPhone app targeting youth.
TWO broke the story of Saturday Night Live comedian Tracy Morgan’s homophobic rant at a Nashville comedy club. The incident quickly became a major story that led to Morgan publicly apologizing.
TWOundermined the “ex-gay” myth by holding educational seminars at universities including: University of Chicago, Northwestern University, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, North Dakota State University, Concordia College, University of Nebraska, Oklahoma State University, Oregon State University, West Virginia University, and University of Alabama.
TWO fought back against Chicago Archbishop Cardinal Francis George when he compared the LGBT community to the Ku Klux Klan. We placed a full-page ad in the Chicago Tribune and launched a petition drive calling on George to resign.
Investigating and exposing anti-LGBT extremism and the “ex-gay” industry takes money. We can only continue to undermine these groups in 2012 with your kindness and generosity. Truth Wins Out is a unique organization and deserves your support because we uncover original information – and then we know how to turn it into action. Few other groups have the capacity to monitor anti-gay organizations and then make them pay dearly when damning data is found.
I’m not asking you to fund pie-in-the sky promises, a fancy mission statement, or a slick brochure to tell you what we plan to do. I’m asking you to invest in an organization that has had a tremendously successful year in activism.
In a world full of broken promises and disappointing politicians – Truth Wins Out stands out because it has delivered. We are having an impact, making a difference and providing tangible results in front of your eyes.
Without your help, the “ex-gay” industry and religious extremists will continue their dishonest and destructive ways and not be held accountable. With your assistance, we will keep exposing these charlatans and hypocrites for the scam artists that they truly are.
At Truth Wins Out, we do exactly what we say we are going to do. We believe that results matter and should be rewarded.
Contact: Wayne Besen, Executive Director
Phone: 917-691-5118
Email: wbesen@truthwinsout.org
More than 4,000 People Have Already Signed TWO’s Petition Urging George to Step Down For Comparing LGBT Community to Ku Klux Klan
CHICAGO – Truth Wins Out stepped up its campaign calling on Chicago Archbishop Cardinal Francis George to resign today by placing a full-page ad in this upcoming Sunday’s Chicago Tribune. The ad is headlined, “Hey, Cardinal Francis George, Gay is not like the KKK,” and slams the Cardinal for foolishly comparing the LGBT community to the Ku Klux Klan. It satirically includes a picture of a rainbow-robed Klansman and debunks the lies and misinformation disseminated by the Archbishop about the LGBT community. The ad comes as an online TWO petition calling on George to step down has reached more than 4,000 signatures.
“We felt compelled to place this ad after Cardinal George compounded his initial smear with further insults disguised as an apology,” said Truth Wins Out’s Executive Director Wayne Besen. “It seems the sin of pride is keeping George from saying he is sorry for his outrageous and misleading remarks about Gay Pride. At this point, the only road to redemption is his resignation.”
George’s offensive remarks first came during a dispute over the scheduled starting time of the annual gay pride parade in June. The event was originally set to begin at 10am, but a priest bitterly complained that the starting time would interfere with morning services. In an interview with Fox News in Chicago, Cardinal George said: “You know, you don’t want the Gay Liberation Movement to morph into something like the Ku Klux Klan, demonstrating in the streets against Catholicism.”
Instead of backtracking this week, George tried to rationalize his below the belt smear with an offensive statement from the Archdiocese: “When the pastor’s request for reconsideration of the plans was ignored, the organizers invited an obvious comparison to other groups who have historically attempted to stifle the religious freedom of the Catholic Church. One such organization is the Ku Klux Klan which, well into the 1940′s, paraded through American cities not only to interfere with Catholic worship but also to demonstrate that Catholics stand outside of the American consensus. It is not a precedent anyone should want to emulate.”
“This is not a legitimate fight over religious liberty as George wrongly implies, but a vivid example of religious bigotry fueled by a mean-spirited analogy that linked innocent, law abiding families with the KKK,” said Besen. “We will stand up against such lies and speak out when LGBT people are unfairly maligned.”
Earlier in the year, TWO launched a 160,000-signature Change.org petition that helped persuade Apple, Inc. to eliminate an “ex-gay” iPhone app by the group Exodus International.
Truth Wins Out (TWO) is a nonprofit that fights anti-LGBT religious extremism. TWO specializes in turning information into action by organizing, advocating and fighting for LGBT equality.
Last week, Chicago Archbishop Francis George compared the LGBT community to the KKK. TWO launched a petition on Change.org that has already been signed by 4,000 people. I discussed this controversial topic on WGN radio with Bill Leff.
Twelve years ago today, the Vermont Supreme Court handed down its decision in the landmark case Baker v. Vermont. The unanimous decision held that existing prohibitions in Vermont state law which forbid same-sex couples from marrying violated the state constitution, and ordered the legislature to confer the benefits and protections of marriage on same-sex couples.
The historic events of twelve years ago led to Vermont’s passage of the nation’s first civil union law in 2000 and its adoption of full marriage equality in 2009.
My husband Michael and I, along with Wayne and his husband Jamie, are only two married couples among thousands in the state of Vermont and across the country who owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude to Vermont Freedom to Marry, now-Governor Peter Shumlin, now-Justice BethRobinson, Susan Murray, Mary Bonauto, Rep. Bill Lippert, the Baker couples, and the innumerable others across Vermont who led the state through many divisive battles on the road to full marriage equality.
Thank you.
Michael and me on our wedding day, March 22, 2006.
Wayne and Jamie on their wedding day, December 8, 2011.
When the Iron Curtain fell, American fundamentalists rushed in with biased Bibles and zealous missionaries to spread their backward and hateful versions of religion. The cumulative effect is that today Russia is more superstitious and anti-gay — even proposing outrageous laws designed to silence and intimidate the LGBT community.
What role did American Hate Exporting Movements (AHEMs) play in this travesty?
I was doing some research this morning for our Center Against Radical Extremism (TWOCARE) and reading the American Family Association’s AFA Journal November/December 1995. There was a full-page ad in this publication headlined: “You can send 1000 beautiful illustrated Russian New Testaments.”
The group behind the ad explained:
“Truckloads of Bibles bound at East European Harvest are going to Russia. East European Harvest, Inc., is a nonprofit, non-denominational Christian Corporation. Its sole purpose is to take the Word of God to the world. The organization is nine years old and fundamental in doctrine and beliefs. This shipment of 25,000 New Testaments is now common.“
The organization framed the issue this way:
RUSSIA’S DILEMMA
The nation is falling apart. Crime and drug traffic are rampant. Suicides are destroying a generation of young people. Economic and political chaos are out of control. Today’s children and young people will be tomorrow’s leaders who will have to rebuild the Russian nation. But without a moral and spiritual foundation Russia will doubtlessly return to a Godless police state. You can help today’s generation of youth discover God by sending a flood of these beautiful books to Russia and the republics. Many thousands have already been shipped to Russia, but we need to send many more thousands.
Has this really been good for Russian society? This one-time superpower is disintegrating into a superstitious country more concerned about angels than economics. Each day, for example, tens of thousands of Russians stand in line for up to 12 hours in frigid weather to kiss a glass covered case that they believe holds the Virgin Mary’s belt.
Fundamentalism is never the answer. Take a look at this 1995 ad to see how American organizations have been working overtime to replace the Iron Curtain, with their very own “Iron Curtain of Intolerance.”
Don’t be naive — there is a reason we are seeing an uptick in anti-gay activity throughout the world. It is because Christian colonialists have targeted vulnerable nations for conversion to fundamentalism.
The sorry results in Russia now speak for themselves.
Contact: John Becker, Director of Communications
Phone: 920-265-6023
Email: john@truthwinsout.org
BURLINGTON, Vt. – The heated standoff between Truth Wins Out and Marcus Bachmann abruptly ended today after the therapist agreed to stop trying to collect $150 from TWO for canceled “ex-gay” therapy sessions. The voice message, left by a Bachmann & Associates’ billing representative, informed TWO Communication’s Director, John Becker, that “[his] account is at a zero balance” and that the charges were written off “per Marcus Bachmann.”
“The last thing we expected was for Marcus Bachmann to behave rationally and abandon his specious and spiteful claim that we owed him money,” said Truth Wins Out Executive Director Wayne Besen. “It is a shame that he wasn’t foolish enough to allow a $150 billing dispute to turn into free publicity that highlighted the harm caused by ‘ex-gay’ programs.”
“We feel vindicated that Marcus Bachmann has ended his vindictive campaign to punish us for exposing his clinic’s ‘ex-gay’ therapy practice,” said Truth Wins Out’s Communications Director John Becker. “Reason triumphed over retaliation today — Bachmann made a wise decision to move on with his life and avoid further damage to his reputation.”
The clinic, which Bachmann co-owns with his wife Michele, was exposed last summer for practicing a form of discredited “pray away the gay” therapy by a TWO hidden-camera investigation – a charge both Bachmanns had previously denied. The revelation badly disrupted Michele Bachmann’s presidential campaign at a time when she was surging in the polls. In November, Marcus Bachmann personally phoned Becker, demanded $150 in no-show fees for two canceled appointments, and threatened to send Becker’s account to collections if he failed to promptly remit payment.
TWO responded with a cease-and-desist letter and promised a lawsuit if Bachmann persisted. TWO launched a Change.org petition that gathered more than 4,000 signatures demanding that Bachmann stop haranguing the organization.
“Ex-gay therapy is rejected by every respected medical and mental health organization in the nation,” added Becker. “This includes the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Psychological Association.”
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Next Mr. Blatt will be saying that it’s actually Obama who’s oppressing the LGBT community and not the...
David Fishback: For those who wish to keep moving the ball forward in Montgomery County, please check this out:
http://metrodcpflag.wordpress.com/2012/02/08/its-about-more-than-just-fliers/
David Fishback, Advocacy Chair
Metro...
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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.
Today, I’m going to make a rare and radical request.
CHICAGO – Truth Wins Out stepped up its campaign calling on Chicago Archbishop Cardinal Francis George to resign today by placing a 
complained that the starting time would interfere with morning services. In an interview with Fox News in Chicago, Cardinal George said: “You know, you don’t want the Gay Liberation Movement to morph into something like the Ku Klux Klan, demonstrating in the streets against Catholicism.”
