Wednesday, February 22, 2017

'Federal judge sues using anti-lgbt 'religious liberty' card' & other Wed midday news briefs


Refusing to Watch LGBT Video, Houston Judge Sues Employer for Religious Discrimination - The lgbt community must take a hard stance against so-called "religious liberty" laws and not be swayed by the illusion that it's simply about bakeries and florists. These laws can bleed into cases of federal and state employees who want to take our tax dollars while refusing to do their jobs; from refusing to issue wedding licenses (hello Kim Davis) to, in this case, refusing to watch a video on how to treat us fairly. 

When Did Christians Become Comfortable with the Loss of Truth? - Not necessarily an lgbt issue per se, but it has a lot to do with us. When you have groups like the Family Research Council and the American Family Association steering people who label themselves as "Christians" into an entire train of thought which include lies and distortions, we have a serious problem with the faith itself. And very few are aware of this. 

 Family Research Council's Peter Sprigg gave misleading testimony at hearing on 'ex-gay' therapy - My post from last night.

 Same-Sex Marriage Laws Linked To Powerful Drop In Teen Suicide Rate - I already sent a link about this, but it needs to be shouted from the rooftops. This is why marriage equality is important. When our lgbt children see a more inclusive society and people fighting for a more inclusive society, it means the world to them. Never forget that. 

 This Republican Congressman Has A Plan To Help LGBT Renters And Homebuyers - Yeah, I know. The GOP is generally awful towards the lgbt community. This guy though seems credible in what he is attempting.  

49 People Tell Us When They Realised Being Open About Their Sexuality Mattered - Wonderful stories to inspire folks about being their authentic selves, particularly young lgbts.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Christianists became comfortable with loss of truth decades ago. With the rise of the "moral majority" under Reagan and his use of the morally suspect "family values" epithet most American Christianists began to love lying for Jesus in earnest. By pretending they are more superior, elite and privileged than any other Americans they began to push through their agenda to impose their religion on everyone regardless if they shared the same beliefs or not. The groups like AFA, FRC, ADF are just the latest incarnations of a hate that's been festering really for centuries. I remember as a young child attending church and listening to the pastor urge everyone that voting Repub was imperative (this was decades before Reagan even). As I grew older I realized that imposing beliefs was more important to my church than actually practicing the tenets of what Jesus taught. I would say the majority of Christians today fall into the Christianist cult mentality. What's sad is that real, loving Christians have allowed these extremists to speak for them and hijack the discussion to the point they represent what most of the public now thinks all Christians believe. The ironic thing is, I think they're causing their followers to turn away in huge numbers. When I was a child, everyone attended one church, synagogue or another. Now, most people don't attend and fewer and fewer are professing any strong belief in divinity at all. I think we're witnessing the last, dying, convulsive gasps of the religious right. In a decade or so, they will be a very minor fringe group that nobody cares about. However, they'll do a lot of damage on their way out.

Unknown said...

This first thing we need to do is stop calling these things religious liberty laws. We validate their argument when we use their language. These are Christian supremacy laws. They are not intended to protect my religion, or my sister's religion, or the beliefs of Buddhists. It is to give preferential treatment to Christian ideology over other religions. The benefits it might give other faiths is incidental, and unintended.