SC Pride's 25th anniversary - the pictures tell the entire story

Saturday, South Carolina Pride celebrated its 25th anniversary with its annual parade and festival through the downtown streets of Columbia, SC .

This year was highly successful as over 30,000 attendees joined together for fun, fellowship, and basic love for each other regardless of age, race, or sexual orientation. Granted, when it comes to pride celebrations, all of the attention seems to be devoted to the big cities of San Francisco and New York.

But we in South Carolina do rather well for ourselves:

And just like a good picnic attracts ants, a good pride parade attracts these people:

THIS is what anti-gay groups want the lgbt community to 'tolerate'

My post this morning on the Human Rights Campaign report, The Export of Hate has generated a lot of positive feedback.

And a good part of it came from the spotlight videos which HRC created to accompany the report on the anti-gay figures who are attempting to spread their homophobia around the globe. I think I know why this is happening. The videos, using footage and exact footage of these anti-gay talking heads, have taken a life of their own because they speak to a serious part of this so-called cultural war.

The continuing mantra of anti-gay spokespeople and groups is that lgbts are basically hypocrites because we supposedly want "tolerance" for our opinions and views but refuse to show tolerance for views that disagree with ours.

That frame of mind is basic semantic garbage carefully crafted to take attention away from the exact words and views of those who oppose our right to equality. While this claim puts the lgbt community on the defense, no one talks about the ugly claims they make about us, our lives, and our lives and how these claims destroy our dignity as human beings.

So by request (because I've had quite a few this morning), I am going to spotlight more videos from HRC's youtube accompaniment to The Export of Hate and with those spotlights, I am going to ask the simple question which I DARE anyone from the other side of the argument to answer:

Why in the hell should the lgbt community tolerate this:

Brian Camenker: 

Janice Shaw Crouse:

 

Robert Scott Lopez:

 


Peter LaBarbera: 

 

 Scott Lively:

 

To see other videos, go here. 

 To download the report The Export of Hate, click the title

HRC's 'Export of Hate' report making the anti-gay right downright hysterical,

Editor's note - My photo essay on Saturday's South Carolina Pride festival has been postponed until this afternoon. The following post is very important. I had already written in the past about HRC's report on anti-gay groups spreading propaganda worldwide. However, the level and intensity of detail HRC has put into this report as well as the responses of several anti-gay groups and talking heads leads me to realize that more details, attention, and praise should be given:

I have never engaged in the negative banter about the Human Rights Campaign whether it was deserved or not because I've always felt such things are self-defeating.

But that's not to say that when the organization creates a direct hit against the religious right, you won't find me singing from the rooftops and dancing in the rain.

And such is the case with its report,  The Export of Hate. .

The Export of Hate is an intense and very thorough calling out of those anti-gay figures who are now attempting to spread their venom across the globe. According to HRC:

There is a network of American extremists who work tirelessly to undercut LGBT people around the world at every turn. They spew venomous rhetoric, outrageous theories, and discredited science. Some claim that LGBT people are responsible for the Holocaust, the Rwandan genocide, and the spread of HIV/AIDS. Others argue that LGBT people are luring away children, and that acceptance of LGBT people will lead to the destruction of families around the world. Some even suggest that the death penalty could be an appropriate punishment for simply being LGBT. It's time to take action.

 It surprises me that HRC published this report because I have never viewed the organization as one to take on the anti-gay industry with such directness. But I say more power to it.

Needless to say some folks aren't happy with HRC's report, such as Peter LaBarbera, who has a profile in the report. He said the following:

If criticizing intentionally motherless and intentionally fatherless homosexual-led households is hateful, then surely most of the world is hateful! The LGBT Lobby’s campaign to portray the fervent defense of historic, Judeo-Christian teachings on sex and marriage as Hate, Bigotry & Homophobia–Big Gay Inc’s top three slanders against people of faith and morals–is itself profoundly hateful and bigoted. But we should expect such calculated smears from a Sin Movement that is essentially engaged in a political and cultural war against Nature and Nature’s God. Casting aside the lies and slanders, we will not be deterred in our defense of Truth. God bless.

Of course in his mea culpa, LaBarbera never directly addressed what HRC's report said about him:

Americans for Truth About Homosexuality is known for posting inflammatory material and inaccurate material about LGBT people on its website. The organization has given a platform to discredited psychologist Paul Cameron and to notorious exporter of hate Scott Lively. The Southern Poverty Law Center considers Americans for Truth About Homosexuality a hate group.

Another person whose anti-gay activities garnered him an entry into the report, Scott Lively, got downright hysterical, accusing HRC of plotting to get him killed.

HRC's report is accompanied by short videos which use the exact words of every anti-gay figure mentioned in the report, such as Paul Cameron (featured at the top of this post). Other videos feature such folks as:

Michael Brown:



Mat Staver:

 

Brian Brown:



At the very least,  go to HRC's youtube site in order to see the videos on every anti-gay activist spotlighted in the organization's report. But by all means, PLEASE download The Export of Hate, read it, and send it to your friends and family.

I don't know what possessed HRC to let it's hair down and engage in the street fight against anti-gay propaganda, but who cares.

I say hell yeah! It's about time!

Related post: How They See Us: Unmasking the Religious Right War on Gay America