Hate group leader Brian Brown gets all 'hot and bothered' over homophobic speech

In the unsuccessful fight against marriage equality, former National Organization for Marriage president Brian Brown liked to portray himself and his organization as defenders of freedom who merely wanted a conversation about the issue. We all knew it was a lie. I guess the loss he suffered has made Brown abandon that fake posturing.


From Right Wing Watch:

 In late October, Brian Brown, who heads the National Organization for Marriage and the International Organization for the Family, sent out a gushing email about his “good friend” and “close ally” of IOF Bosko Obradovic, whom Brown described as “a Member of Parliament in Serbia, and leader of the pro-family Dveri Party.”  

 You wouldn’t know it from Brown’s description of Dveri as a “pro-family” party, but the Dveri Party is a fringe far-right nationalist movement that just barely won representation in parliament in 2016 by joining forces with another party to narrowly overcome the threshold of 5 percent of the vote. 

 . . . Brown’s email about Obradovic was practically a love note:  

 Bosko is much more than a committed and outspoken supporter of the family, he’s a true champion and courageous leader. The other day, he gave an incredible speech before the Serbian Parliament that was a true tour-de-force, an incredibly powerful rebuke of the LGBT movement. He spoke truth to power, and passionately took on the majority’s insistence on imposing pro-“homosexualism” on society.

The rest of Brown's email is nauseating hero-worship so sappy that it would make you develop a case of diabetes.

In reality,the speech is horrid. To to call it a "hot mess" is an insult to all hot messes in the world. This speech is so nasty there needs to be a new term to properly describe just how ugly it is. You can see it below but here are the quick points about it: Obradovit calls for all pride parades to be outlawed. He calls the LGBTQ community a totalitarian cult, which (wait for it because you know it's coming) is attempting to recruit children into our supposed lifestyle. He even pulls the "I don't have a problem with anyone's lifestyle" nonsense.

No wonder Brown loves this speech so much. It's the same mess he tried to peddle to America. The conundrum is amusing, though. It figures that the only time Brian Brown gets all "hot and bothered" over a man is because he gives a speech claiming that gays want to recruit children.

'How Trump Administration has impacted the LGBTQ community since election' & other Mon midday news briefs

Easily the most oxymoronic image in election history (emphasis on the word 'moron.')

How the Trump Administration Impacted the LGBTQ Community Since the 2016 Election - Here's a hint. It's been a stinking pool of nastiness. And of course the worse is yet to come, but that doesn't mean we are going to lose. Let's rock, biiitaches!!

14-year-old shot dead by his father because he didn't want a gay son - Oh God in Heaven!

Two People Crashed A Church Service To Campaign Against Same-Sex Marriage - This happened in Australia, but still deserves a "oh no you didn't!!!!" 

Same-sex marriage conference to take place in Costa Rica - It's nice to see folks on our side of the spectrum not fall for the "it's over! we've won!" lie. 

10 Companies Leading the Way on Global LGBTI Rights - This is good know. The fight continues but we have some good allies.

Repost - Your Religious Liberty Doesn’t Give You The Right To Steal My Queer Tax Dollars

Editor's note - A repost from earlier this year.

With Trump in the White House, religious right groups such as the Family Research Council and figures like Franklin Graham and Fox News personality Todd Starnes are eager to get certain goals accomplished.

High on their list is a dehumanization of the lgbt community under the seemingly innocent courtesy of “religious liberty,” or allowing entities and people to discriminate against queers under the guise of “personally held religious beliefs.” It’s been a goal they have been working on for a long time and with Trump as president, they hope to reap benefits for all of the stories and hype they have spun about bakeries and florists “forced” to accept money from queer customers for their services, government employees like Kim Davis “forced” to do their jobs, and religious groups such as Catholic Charities with its adoption services which are “forced” to say no to government money because they refuse to not discriminate against lgbts.

They imply that it’s all about preserving the integrity of the “faith” of groups and people supposedly targeted by lgbts with a huge phone book, an obscene amount of Facebook friends, a pipeline to a secret worldwide organization not unlike the one James Bond has fought against, and long list of IOUs to cash in for being denied the right to supposedly “flaunt” their lifestyle or “pervert” marriage all of these years.

Okay, I am exaggerating a little bit, but the gist of what I said is true. And so is my next statement. Like so many times before, the entire truth about “religious liberty” is a world of difference from what is fed to us by the religious right. Unfortunately, the terms of this debate are usually dictated by them because they appear to have the loudest megaphone and the most access to the media, even if what they say isn’t necessarily true.

Here is a fact about the “religious liberty” argument which is generally not talked about but needs to be moved in the midst of the discussion. The argument as it is presented now is degrading, embarrassing, and simply hurtful. It’s yet another attempt by the religious right to put us on the defensive and make us have to justify our existence and our right to respect and dignity.

Franklin Graham engages in hypocritical bigotry against Disney, LGBTQ youth

So Franklin Graham just put out this tweet this morning:

So he's mad at Disney for daring to emphasize the reality that LGBTQ children exist. That's his right. However, I call out his homophobia as well as his hypocrisy for doing so.

 This is the same guy who supports "pu@@y-grabber" Donald Trump's presidential administration even to the point of speaking at his rallies. However to my knowledge, he has NEVER publicly called Trump to the carpet for the myriad of distasteful things he has done, from his vulgar comments to his questionable public policies, and general incompetence.

What's more of a negative influence on our children? Disney acknowledging the simple fact that LGBTQ youth exist and showing their lives or a pastor who has abandoned his moral and religious integrity for the power and spotlight?

Roy Moore will bring more homophobia & hypocrisy to the Senate

Most likely,  the controversial former Alabama judge (he was kicked off of the bench twice) Roy Moore will be elected as the US Senator from Alabama due to a combination of the GOP putting party before country and Alabama citizens so programmed to vote Republican that they do it anyway even when they don't like the GOP choice. Taking that in mind, the following video courtesy of the Human Rights Campaign is what not just what the LGBTQ community will be getting, but also what America in general will be getting.  Enjoy it (or not).



Too bad Moore doesn't feel the same way about crooked money practices than he does about the LGBTQ community. Moore's philosophy seems to be "homosexuality is a sin, but questionable ways to get money isn't." But seeing who is in the Oval Office at the present, Moore's brand of evangelical plutocracy will fit in nicely.

Editor's note - I didn't publish this post to create despair so don't even start with the raging or wringing your hands in abject fear of what's coming. Knowing what could be coming is just the first step in  defeating it. The key to victory here will be not losing your head to fear or rage. It will be knowing what's coming, planning for it, and if necessary, using whatever you can to your advantage. In other words, Moore's fanaticism could be more of an asset than a liability to us.

'GOP tax plan would let pastors endorse candidates from the pulpit' & other Fri. midday news briefs

The GOP are about to reward the religious right for replacing Jesus with Trump.

Republicans' tax plan would let clergy endorse candidates from the pulpit - This would eventually be catastrophic for the church. And you know it would wreak havoc with the LGBTQ community. On one hand, with the religious right pushing heavily for this, we are gaining further proof of the power hungry face it hides. On the other, I am a religious person and I don't like churches being immersed in the ugly political world. This will lessen its credibility.

GOP lawmaker suggests repealing the Johnson Amendment isn’t really about ‘religious freedom’ - This is why they want to repeal the Johnson Amendment.

Battle Over Rights Inspires More Transgender Political Candidates - THIS is wonderful news - "Nearly 30 races in the 2017-18 U.S. election cycle already have a transgender candidate, up from 13 in 2015-16, according to Harvard researcher Logan Casey." You see, that's how progress begins. These candidates understand that it's about more than academic terms in your circle, group-shaming of people not being "correct" or useless public displays garnered to simply get attention. 

 Virginia Legislator Says Trans Opponent Defies ‘Laws Of Nature’ At A ‘Fundamental Level’ - BUT it's not without struggle. No struggle, no progress. 

This Short Film Hilariously Examines Dangerous Expectations Of Masculinity Among Gay Men - THANK YOU!

When religious liberty was used to justify racism instead of homophobia . . .

Zack Ford of ThinkProgress has just published an excellent piece about the upcoming SCOTUS case involving  the baker attempting to use his religious beliefs as an excuse to not serve gay couples.

In 8 arguments against the anti-gay baker you may not have considered, Ford looks at the amicus briefs submitted in the case on behalf of the gay couple. It's all a fascinating read which proves that this is not a case simply about baking a cake.

One brief I found interesting in particular was by the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund. Apparently the idea of using religious liberty as a way to deny services was already litigated in the courts. But that particular case had to do with racial discrimination:

One particular amicus brief makes perhaps the most compelling argument that the Masterpiece Cakeshop case poses a threat to all civil rights. Here’s how the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund describes it: 

This case involves a familiar story: Three customers walk into a small business that sells specialty foods. The owner is said to be an “artist” for his unique culinary skills and believes his religious convictions imbue his work. The owner turns the customers away entirely or denies them access to the full range of his products because these religious beliefs forbid him from serving a particular group of persons. When the owner is challenged in court regarding his refusal to serve the customers, he claims that the First Amendment should abrogate public accommodations laws and immunize his refusal to provide service. 

This portrays what occurred in 2012 to Mr. Mullins, Mr. Craig, and Ms. Munn in the instant case—but it also describes what transpired in 1964 to three African-American customers at a barbeque restaurant in South Carolina, which led to this Court’s seminal case addressing racial discrimination in public accommodations. 

The NAACP is referring to the case Newman v. Piggie Park, which it litigated. And exactly as the organization describes, an “artist” of barbecue, Maurice Bessinger, denied service to customers on account of their race and argued that he was simply following his religious beliefs. The Supreme Court outright rejected these arguments and ruled that the discrimination was not justified. It’s an informative case because 50 years have passed and it’s clear there were no consequences to ruling against the owner’s “religious freedom.”