Analyzing and refuting the inaccuracies lodged against the lgbt community by religious conservative organizations. Lies in the name of God are still lies.
Today was the day that the first same-sex couples were married in DC and brought to you by the Human Rights Campaign is the video. If it's a little long for your tastes, feel free to skim through.
And I know I am probably going to offend some folks by saying this but I don't care . . . I get a kick out of the fact that the couples are African-American.
It's so rare that lgbts of color see positive images of ourselves, especially in the fight for marriage equality, that the fact that these are black couples is as welcomed as ice cream on a slice a pie to me.
Historically, people have prayed to God for peace, love, and guidance. But the prayer issued last week by religious right mainstay Janet Porter enters a new territory which can only be described as coming from the mind of the late Rod Serling while writing an episode of The Twilight Zone.
Porter, who has done many bizarre things such as claiming that anyone voting for Obama is going to hell and writing a fictional account of Christians forced into "re-education camps" had Hilary Clinton won the 2008 presidential election, actually prayed for the "Christian takeover" of the media. Apparently amongst other things, she wants "more influence than Oprah Winfrey, " and desires "to make CBS 'the "Christian Broadcasting System.'"
I would be remiss if I didn't point out that Porter gave this prayer in front of a huge multitude during one of those dreary we have to save American values from the forces of secular evil conferences which religious right organizations seem to hold more often than World Wrestling Entertainment hosts wrestling pay-per-views.
This one was called "Convergence 2010: A Cry to Awaken A Nation," and it was attended by such luminaries as Rev. Harry Jackson who was called a "modern day Martin Luther King, Jr" because of his failed attempt to keep marriage equality from coming to D.C. and Cindy Jacobs who took it upon herself to "cast out demons" during her speech.
But despite all of this, its Porter's prayer which stands out because it was just so surreal. And it begs the question that if Porter and her allies are successful in "saving America" then who is going to save America from them?
This just goes BEYOND any criticism I can give against Porter and the groups whom she aligns herself with. This is more than insane. It's scary. Whatever Jesus would do, I feel safe to say that He wouldn't support such madness.
Time magazine has published an excellent piece on the persecution gay Ugandans face even if that awful "Kill The Gays" bill isn't passed by focusing on one lesbian couple:
Pepe Julian Onziema looks great in a suit. Tall and lanky, she doesn't slouch to hide her height and doesn't apologize for her boyish figure. Or for anything else. She's got at least 10 suits: pinstripes, white linen, black, gray, navy and others. She buys them from a guy who runs a shop on Entebbe Road, a major Kampala thoroughfare. He knows her build, and he knows what she likes.
These days, though, Onziema doesn't wear suits nearly as often as she used to. As one of a dozen or so publicly out Ugandan homosexuals, Onziema knows that even a trip to a local shop is risky. Wearing a suit can be a death wish.
. . . Onziema and her partner met playing rugby at a local Kampala club a couple of years ago. Onziema knew "within five seconds" that she had met the one, she says. It took her partner a bit longer. Onziema has known her whole life that she's gay, but her partner is not out publicly, and the process of coming to terms with who she is took a little longer.
After they'd been friends for a few months, Onziema made her move. "There was a kiss," she grins. "She wasn't expecting it."
It's an excellent article on how the purity of love endures even in hostile settings. And it's a reminder for us lgbts in America, as we strive for equality, to not take the freedoms we do have for granted.
Meanwhile, it has been reported that Pope Benedict XVI met with the Roman Catholic hierarchy of Uganda at the Vatican last Friday and delivered a speech but said nothing about the anti-gay bill.
Supposedly there are several reasons why the Pope made no mention of the bill:
There are several reasons why Benedict may not have mentioned the anti-gay bill -- or rather the broader issue of human rights and protections for homosexuals and love of the sinner, since for diplomatic reasons the pope would not target a specific piece of legislation. One is that he may not be aware of the legislation or the controversy. Another is that his aides know that if he raised the issue it would become the lead of every story. There is also concern that having religious leaders outside Uganda speak out against the popular bill would backfire and ensure its passage.
Moreover, the bishops themselves may have asked the Vatican to refrain from addressing the issue (though that has not always stopped the pope from speaking his mind) since they are in the tricky position of trying to maintain the church's position in Uganda in the face of serious challenges from conservative evangelicals and Pentecostals, as well as Muslims, who are far more severe in their approach to homosexuals than the Catholic Church is.
Of course maybe he felt it was a little too close to home. After all, the creators and supporters of the bill falsely claimed that the bill was in response to gays targeting children.
And we all know the real situation regarding molestation in the Catholic church.
Whatever the case may be, the Pope's silence on this potential genocide of gays and lesbians in Uganda reveals a serious lack of courage in a someone who is supposed to be possibly the top religious leader in the world.
