Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters

Saturday, October 24, 2009

U.N. official defends murder of lgbts and the religious right defends HIM

Religious right groups would like to have you to believe that lgbts despise them because we have a nefarious agenda for America and that they are the last line of defense against it.

Religious right groups will like to have you to believe that lgbts despise them because we want to silence Christianity.

Neither assumption is true.

Lgbts despise religious right groups because they exploit the fears and egos of people of faith while instigating negative action against the lgbt community.

I personally despise them for that and for the reason that they are totally duplicitous.

For proof of this, look no further than the Liberty Counsel's Matt Barber and One News Now:

Homosexual activists who have been trying to gain recognition from the United Nations are still upset over comments by General Assembly President Ali Abdussalam Treki.

When asked by a journalist for his position on a U.N. declaration about homosexuality, the Libyan diplomat stated: "As a Muslim, I do not agree with it. My opinion is not in favor of this matter at all. I believe it is not acceptable for most of the world, and it is totally unacceptable for our tradition and religion." His comments brought swift response from the international homosexual movement.

But Matt Barber of Liberty Counsel says Treki's statement is in tune with the majority of countries and religions that believe homosexuality is aberrant behavior. And Treki, he adds, is not attacking homosexuals.

"All I hear [Treki] saying is that the rest of the world cannot be forced to accept behaviors that are demonstrably destructive to both individuals who engage in those behaviors and to the society around them," states Barber.

Treki has been harshly criticized by activist groups around the world. Barber believes that illustrates that those groups demand tolerance, but are the least tolerant themselves.

"They are completely intolerant of other people's belief systems [and] of other cultures," says the Christian attorney. "We hear talk of cultural diversity -- [but] there is no cultural diversity as far as the left is concerned and as far as homosexual activists are concerned. It's either their way or the highway."

I noticed how One News Now didnt clarify about the U.N. declaration Treki was against.

The declaration was a statement calling for the universal descriminalization of homosexuality.

And while the phony news service makes it seem that Treki is under attack by the so-called dreaded homosexual activists, it omits comments by U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

"The anti-gay bigotry spewed by this Qaddafi shill demonstrates once again that the UN has been hijacked by advocates of hate and intolerance. Likewise, the leadership of the UN Development Program is held by the Iranian regime, which denies the presence of gays in Iran even as it murders them and other innocent citizens. We must ensure that billions annually in U.S. taxpayer dollars no longer foot the bill for the UN's anti-freedom agenda without significant reform."

Consider these facts:

30 Islamic countries having laws on the books that make homosexuality a criminal offense. In most cases punishment ranges from floggings to life imprisonment. In Mauritania, Bangladesh, Yemen, parts of Nigeria and Sudan, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Iran, convicted homosexuals can also be sentenced to death. - Homophobia on the rise in the Muslim world

In Jamaica, gay leaders are not just killed, but murdered in ugly fashion. - Leading Gay Activist Found Murdered in Jamaica

In Uganda the government is actually trying to pass a bill making being gay a crime worthy of the death penalty. - Uganda Parliament Takes Up Anti-Gay Bill Adding Death Sentence and Bans on Free Speech

Barber contends that Treki isn't gaybashing, but I say his condoning the wholesale torture and murders of lgbts is much worse.

Furthermore, it is sad that Treki uses his Muslim identity as reason to oppose the decriminalization declaration.

Is he saying that as a Muslim," he agrees with the wholesale butchering of lgbt men, women, and children (such as those two gay teenaged boys hung in Iran in 2005)?

One needs to ask the same question of Barber and One News Now. Both Barber and the phony news service are trying to frame this issue as that of intolerant lgbts verbally attacking a man, and by extension, countries for simply expressing their religious disagreement with homosexuality.

Well when that religious disagreement includes murder, torture, or imprisonment and the defense of those acts, you had better believe there needs some verbal attacks.

And if Barber and One News Now were true Christians (and if Barber was any type of true man), they would be in our corner and not in the corner of the oppressors helping to hide their bloody hands.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Know Your LGBT History - New York Undercover

The weekend is here and I will be taking a break from my Kevin Jennings coverage (albeit a brief one because I'm working on a post that will hopefully tee you off) to focus on another segment of Know Your LGBT History; a look at positive and negative portrayals of our community in television and movie history.

The following clip is an episode of the 90s urban drama, New York Undercover, that ran on the Fox Network.

The episode, Blondes Have More Fun, features the two main stars of the show going undercover in the lgbt community to find a murderer of drag queens.

This episode excellent performances from Joe Morton and the legendary Miss Coco Peru:

Anti-marriage equality forces in Maine tell ANOTHER lie and other Friday midday news briefs

Obama didn't start this war with Fox News. They started it with him:

And in other news briefs:

New SFMM Ad, Featuring... Task Force's Monique Hoeflinger??? - Anti-marriage equality forces in Maine have stepped into it this time. You can smell the desperation when they resort to tactics like this.

Goodasyou.org breaks down the ad's deception here.

Anti-gay marriage group challenges reporting requirements - What do they have to hide in Maine?

Isn't This Special? Gainesville, FL Anti-Trans Amendment Supporter Arrested For Bathroom Voyeurism - What happens when those pushing against lgbt equality are guilty of the crime they say lgbt equality will cause?

Peter LaBarbera tries to hide his true face and reveals the duplicity of the religious right

Apparently Peter LaBarbera is feeling left out of the attacks on Kevin Jennings because he tried to start his own phony controversy.

A few days ago, LaBarbera posted a piece which claimed that the book company which published Jennings' book is "pro-pedophile" because of several other books which it published.

And in other news, the police are coming to arrest me since my cousin whom I hugged at the family reunion (which I didn't have to attend but decided to) robbed that bank.

I should get 10 years.

The real issue here is a response which LaBarbera received because of his smear and his answer to the response; both of which he published:

The email:

Gee, that’s huge! Does he also drive the same make car as Ted Bundy? And why are you still pushing that lie about an “underage” boy, when we now know [Brewster — a sophomore student counseled by Jennings after the boy had a sexual encounter with an older man] he was not underage? [The Age of Consent in Massachusetts is 16.] Have you no shame at all?

LaBarbera's response:

Dear Sir, it appears that it is you who has no shame. Yes, we think it’s scandalous to be linked in any way to an organization that encourages predatory, exploitative man-boy sex. It would be like signing up with a pro-Nazi publishing house. And in my mind, under 18 is “under age.” How sad and pathetic that your “gay” movement is resting on the technicality that Brewster was (allegedly) 16 and not 15 (as his teacher Jennings recollected) — to absolve Jennings of his reckless counsel to the boy.

In LaBarbera's response, we see the mindset of all religious right groups -when the truth is not to your liking, create a new truth. Make inaccurate judgements and accusations but never admit you are wrong even when you have been proven wrong.

And above all, put up a front. LaBarbera sounds so proper in responding to that email, it's almost as if he wore white gloves when typing it.

I laughed loudly when reading it because that's not the response he gave me when I also emailed him about the situation with Brewster a few weeks ago. This was his response:

you are a fool, Alvin . . . Kevin Jennings is a lying, reckless, anti-Christian bigot. It's no wonder you are defending him.

That is LaBarbera's true face and that of the religious right. Some people will allow themselves to be fooled (i.e. some vestiges of the news media), but we who have been the victims of their invectives should never be fooled.

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Matthew Shepard Act passes! Time to take this bull by the horns with new endeavour

Excellent news today from Congress:

The Senate passed groundbreaking legislation Thursday that would make it a federal crime to assault an individual because of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity.

President Obama has said the country must make significant changes to ensure equal rights.

The expanded federal hate crimes law now goes to President Obama's desk. Obama has pledged to sign the measure, which was added to a $680 billion defense authorization bill.

President George W. Bush had threatened to veto a similar measure.

The bill is named for Matthew Shepard, a gay Wyoming teenager who died after being kidnapped and severely beaten in October 1998.

Thursday's Senate vote approving the measure was 68-29.

Just more proof of the adage that the battle never is never given to the swift and strong but those who are willing to stay in the fight.

Yeah I know I'm probably misquoting but don't ruin this moment of happiness because it's fleeting.

Don't get me wrong. I am estatic over this huge victory but I want more huge victories. Lgbts deserve it. We not only deserve hate crimes legislation but also the passage of ENDA, the Repeal of DADT, and any other law that will ensure our rights as Americans.

So let's dance briefly and be prepared to work hard because the religious right aren't happy about this. And you know that they will double their efforts to dehumanize us.

But Ive been thinking.

The religious right's main lying claim about lgbt-inclusive hate crimes legislation is that it will lead to attacks on the free speech of those who think that homosexuality is a sin.

They say that pastors will be arrested in the pulpits for simply saying that homosexuality is a sin.

Well as soon as President Obama signs the Matthew Shepard Act, I will be creating an online clock that will count up how long it should take from Obama signing this bill to the arrest of a pastor for simply saying that homosexuality is a sin.

Of course no pastor will be arrested for simply calling homosexuality a sin. And that is the point of the online clock.

The religious right likes to spin a fear story. I say we hold them to it.

Excellent news for lgbt seniors and other Thursday midday news briefs

HHS to Create a National Resource Center for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Elders - This is awesome news all around! One of the main groups the religious right are afraid to address are elderly lgbts because it puts a stake in their "gays have a short life span" lie.

Don't be lulled into complacency by Protect Marriage Washington's absurdity - Amen! Complacency is one of the most dangerous enemies lgbts have.

Audio: The law, science, and now HIV. At this point we don't even trust that her name's Regina Griggs - PFOX's Regina Griggs caught in ANOTHER lie.

Anti-gay rights flyer circulates K'zoo - Here we go again with the bathroom lies.

Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill Put Off Until 2010 - A small reprieve in an ugly situation.

Massachusetts hate group behind attack on Kevin Jennings' character

It was just as I figured yesterday. Those who are out to get Kevin Jennings won't let up with their innuendoes.

As fast as Chris Good of The Atlantic magazine published a piece declaring that Jennings' job is safe, the forces out to get him have launched a new and interesting attack.

From the Washington Times:

On Oct. 11, 2008, Jeff Davis, Mr. Jennings "partner" of 15 years, described their first meetings: "The first few interactions were challenging for both of us. He was a member of Act Up. Act Up! So it's like - you know - here's a big gay activist."

ACT UP's demonstrations in the late 1980s and early 1990s centered on vandalism of churches, businesses and homes as well as disrupting public events. The Catholic Church was a favored target because it opposes same-sex marriage and the distribution of condoms. From New York to Los Angeles, activists disrupted Catholic Masses and desecrated Holy Communion, which Catholics believe is the body of Christ.

From a One News Now article, which also repeats the lie that Jennings encouraged an underaged child to have sex with an adult :

According to Brian Camenker of the pro-family group MassResistance, another fact has surfaced regarding the GLSEN founder. Camenker says Jennings was once a member of Act Up -- a "radical homosexual group" he says "profaned churches, vandalized homes and businesses, and disrupted public events." In addition, he points out that Harvard University is thanking Jennings for providing a grant to help fund a recently opened Act Up exhibit on campus.

This will be another flimsy guilt-by-association attack like that of NAMBLA.

For one thing, neither article says that Jennings was involved in the so-called radical activity of Act-Up.

For another thing, according to David Hart of Tips-Q, Act-Up is unfairly getting a bad rep.

He said Act-Up was founded in frustration because of the government's slow action on the burgeoning AIDS crisis:

During the late eighties, Act-Up engaged in numerous demonstrations of civil disobedience. They were, loud, obnoxious and in your face. The police would usually show up donned in full toxic chemical suits. As a nation, we were in a crisis. People were dying every day and the government's inaction was appalling. AIDS was viewed as a queer disease. Numerous leaders of the Christian right were framing AIDS as God's punishment on gays. One can only imagine the resources that would have been available if a dozen white Boy Scouts contracted a strange, deadly disease. Gays were not only expendable but, in some quarters, AIDS was heralded as a means to eliminate us. It was in this environment that Act-Up became a force for change.

Some people may agree with Act-Up's tactics and others may not. To me, a group of Americans being pushed to radical action because their government didn't care that they were dying of a horrific disease is an interesting facet of the story.

And it's a facet that will be ignored should other right-wing bloggers take up the story and definitely if folks like Sean Hannity go on another attack against Jennings.

And you certainly won't the hear the fact this recent attack on Jennings (like the Fistgate lie) is coming from the Massachusetts anti-gay hate group Mass Resistance.

And Mass Resistance's war on Jennings gets worse. It claims that not only Jennings was a member of the "radically, dirty, evil, filthy" group Act-Up but also he help to fund an exhibit chronicling AIDS activism in New York.

There is nothing wrong with this because AIDS activism in general is history. History must be examined and studied.

However Mass Resistance seeks to destroy any logical and normal determination of this fact via publishing (with slanted commentary) the most graphic pictures of the exhibit with the implication that "this is what Kevin Jennings has in store for your children."

Of course Mass Resistance doesn't tell that other contributors to this exhibit included:

The Office of the Provost at Harvard University and the following endowment funds at the Harvard Art Museum: The Agnes Gund Fund for Modern and Contemporary Art; the Alexander S., Robert L., and Bruce A. Beal Exhibition Fund; the M. Victor Leventritt Lecture Fund; and the Charlotte F. and Irving W. Rabb Exhibition Fund. Gifts and grants have also been provided by The Barbara Lee Family Foundation; The Open Gate: a Fund for Gay and Lesbian Life at Harvard University; Fred P. Hochberg and Tom Healy; the Harvard College Women's Center, the Office for the Arts at Harvard, and Harvard Technology Services with special support from Apple Inc.

So I guess all of these groups are out to "indoctrinate" America's children.

Since so many blogger, and various groups (i.e. One News Now and the Washington Times) have demanded at one time or another that Jennings go on record about his so-called radical leanings and associations, I think they should do the same.

Why do these folks have no problem with receiving information from a known hate group?