'Franklin Graham thinks Christians should take over mayorships to stop lgbt equality' & other Friday midday news briefs

Franklin Graham thinks he speaks for all Christians

Franklin Graham: Christians Must Take Over Every Mayorship In The Country To Stop 'Evil' LGBT Rights - Graham has crossed the line to religious fanaticism a long time ago with his support of anti-gay persecution in Russia and homophobic lies, so this is part for the course. Not all Christians believe as he does. But mark my words - Graham is operating not from the word of God, but purely from ego. And one day, his egotism is going to take a huge chunk out of his behind. It happened with Eddie Long, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, etc., etc. Graham will merely be the latest.

SiriusXM shuts down its gay channel - Booooo! Not a good idea!  

Anti-LGBT Bullying Has Long-Term Mental Health Consequences, Study Finds - Not surprising. Nor will it be surprising that anti-gay spokespeople will probably cite this study as proof of the false idea of homosexuality being a "dangerous behavior" WITHOUT mentioning that it's their pronounced bigotry which is the problem and not sexual orientation. They've done it so many times before.  

Judge Clears Kim Davis, Approves Kentucky Marriage Licenses With Her Name Removed - And so it ends with a whimper and not a bang. I haven't heard any religious right groups talking about this at all.

Anti-Gay Texas Attorney General Faces Disbarment - Mentioning this because I want to end today's news briefs on a happy note. Pluck that turkey!!

SPLC report exposes the 'religious liberty' fraud and anti-gay groups behind it

For those of us looking to find information to expose and combat the trend of  "religious liberty" bills coming from the religious right and supporters in the wake of legal marriage equality, the Southern Poverty Law Center has come out with a kick ass report on the groups behind these bills (all of which should unfortunately be familiar to us lgbts) and their history of homophobia:

In recent years, the LGBT rights movement has witnessed a sea change in American attitudes toward the gay community and, along with it, a series of dramatic policy and legal victories — most notably marriage equality — that would have seemed unthinkable just a decade ago.

Yet, while the majority of Americans support LGBT rights, these gains have produced a strong backlash.The hardline religious-right groups that have long relied on the use of demonizing falsehoods to justify discrimination against LGBT people have not simply folded their tents and walked away.

Rather, they have used their large megaphone to create a dangerous new narrative that portrays Christians who object to homosexuality on biblical grounds as victims of religious persecution. This idea is particularly compelling to millions of evangelicals who see themselves and their values as being under siege in a rapidly changing society.

Across the country, these opponents of LGBT equality are working to persuade state legislatures to pass laws known as Religious Freedom Restoration Acts (RFRAs) — statutes that ostensibly allow individuals to deny goods and services to LGBT people on the basis of their religious beliefs.

 . . . . The new RFRAs are being championed by extreme religious-right groups that — as these profiles reveal — want to reverse the recent progress toward equal protection under the law for the LGBT community. If they had their way, the country would return to the era when gay people remained in the closet and the government claimed the right to say what could go on between consenting adults in their bedrooms.

These groups are clever — and cynical.

They know that, as Americans have grown more accepting of LGBT people, they can no longer rely on discredited stereotypes to stymie the march toward full equality. So they have wrapped their bigotry in the cloak of religious freedom.

The public should not be fooled.

Get the full report (and you can even download for later reading) here.