Tag: anti-gay

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Gambian President Signs “Life In Prison For Gays” Into Law

Gambian President Yahya Jammeh

Gambian President Yahya Jammeh has signed into law legislation which makes being gay punishable by life in prison:

The law targets those with a previous conviction for homosexuality, those living with HIV, and same-sex partners of people with disabilities – all of whom could be imprisoned for life.

Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said on Thursday the law violates fundamental human rights – among them the right to privacy, to freedom from discrimination and freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention.

“I call on The Gambia to fulfil its international obligations to promote and protect the human rights of all persons without discrimination, to repeal all provisions of the Criminal Code that criminalise relations between consenting adults and to put in place an immediate moratorium on arrests on the basis of such laws,” he said in a statement.

Our good friend Bryan Fischer of the American Family Association cheered the passage of the bill via Twitter when it was passed in September.

But remember – Mr. Fischer says he has no animus towards the gays at all…

Right.

(h/t JMG)

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Anti-Gay ‘National Organization For Marriage’ Sees Donations Drop Over 50%

Brian Brown of NOM

Brian Brown over at the ironically named National Organization for Marriage might need to worry about feeding his kids soon if NOM’s funding continues to dry up as it has in the past year.

According to analysis of the organization’s 2013 tax filings done by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), NOM raised $5.1 million in 2013, dropping by over 50% since 2012. Just 2 donors accounted for more than half of the organization’s funding – further evidence that everyday Americans have little interest in furthering NOM’s extremist agenda. In addition, the NOM Education Fund also dropped by nearly $3.5 million in funding — a drop of almost 70% since the previous year. NOM ended the year more than $2.5 million in debt.

“NOM should start figuring out that people aren’t willing to give their hard-earned money to an extremist agenda that’s going nowhere,” said Fred Sainz, HRC Vice President of Communications. “If I were Brian Brown, I’d be worried that my two or three mega-donors are soon going to come to terms with the fact that they’d largely be better off flushing money down the toilet. Americans certainly aren’t buying what NOM is selling, and it’s only a matter of time before the trickle of money keeping the lights on at NOM HQ dries up.”

It’s important to note from that quote – “Just 2 donors accounted for more than half of the organization’s funding.” Which means that most Americans are not part of NOM’s hate campaign.

And there’s more bad news for NOM:

• The Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices voted unanimously to impose record civil penalties against NOM totaling $50,250 due to non-disclosure violations

• “Strong Opposition” to marriage equality has dropped to a low of 28%

There’s more info about NOM’s activities over at the Human Rights Campaign.

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Donnie Swaggert: Gay Activists Want To Behead Christians

Right Wing Watch shares this video of Donnie Swaggert, televangelist Jimmy Swaggert’s son, hosting a panel on the Frances & Friends TV show.

In the segment, Swaggert tells the television audience that LGBT activists would behead Christians if they could get away with it.

“All of this is to shut the Bible up,” Swaggart declared. “They want the Bible gone. And I’m going to make a statement: These people that are trying to do this in Houston, the only difference between them and ISIS, those thugs in Iraq, is those here cannot chop our heads off. That’s the only difference. The heart is the same. The heart is the same. If they could silence us that way to intimidate others, that’s exactly what they would do.”

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Liberty Counsel To Anti-Gay Magistrates: Stay On The Job So We Can Sue

Mat Staver of homophobic Liberty Counsel 

I recently reported on six magistrates in the state of North Carolina who resigned their positions rather than marry same-sex couples now that marriage equality has come to the state.

Now, however, Mat Staver of the virulently anti-gay Liberty Counsel is urging homophobic magistrates to stay on the job so they can sue the state:

“Stand your ground. Do not voluntarily resign your post when confronted with this intolerant agenda.” Staver made these comments after several magistrates in North Carolina resigned because they refused to preside over a same-sex marriage.

“I appreciate the conviction of these magistrates, but rather than resign they should remain at their post. Liberty Counsel will represent them, but once they resign there is not much we can do to help,” said Staver.

“Where would the Civil Rights movement be if Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., voluntarily went home when he faced opposition? Where would we be today if Rosa Parks had voluntarily moved to the back of the bus? The quest for religious freedom was the reason American was born. We cannot voluntarily give up this unalienable right,” concluded Staver.

The fact of the matter is this really seems like Staver looking for work for Liberty Counsel folks. Liberty Counsel hasn’t won against gay rights in a long time.

And in a case of civil servants (magistrates) refusing to fulfill their duties based on discrimination, they would lose here, too.

(h/t Good As You)

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From Last Night’s Hate Rally In Houston

(via JoeMyGod)

Last night, the anti-gay Family Research Council hosted a hate rally to raise opposition against openly lesbian Mayor Annise Parker for passing LGBT protections in Houston.

While the haters keep saying their opposition is based solely on their ‘deeply held religious convictions,’ t-shirts made their way around the rally with the saying “We reserve the right to refuse service to homosexuals.”

But remember, it’s not about the gays – it’s about protecting “religious freedoms.”

Riiiiiiiiight.

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LGBT Advocates Use Anti-Gay Hashtag To Demonstrate Hate & Intolerance

Family Research Council initiated a hastag — #iStandSunday — to promote their anti-equality campaign taking place in Houston on Sunday night.

Buuuuut – LGBT Tweeters across the nation decided to take the opportunity to use the hashtag as a stand for love and equality.

All graphics via Memeographs.

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Anti-Gay Activist Tony Perkins: Americans Will NEVER Accept Marriage Equality

Virulently anti-gay Tony Perkins, of the hate group Family Research Council, was on yesterday’s edition of “Washington Watch” using the same scare tactics his ilk have used for so long now in trying to deny equal rights to LGBT Americans and insisting that a majority of Americans will never support marriage equality:

From Right Wing Watch:

Perkins said that just as reproductive rights debates are still contentious because legal abortion “runs contrary to nature,” gay marriage will similarly never be “resolved” until it is banned throughout the nation.

“I don’t care what they do, how oppressive government becomes in order to force this agenda through, they will never force Americans to accept this, the majority of Americans to accept it. Won’t happen,” he said. “Some may go silent, some may be carried away but they will not resolve this issue, trust me.”

Note the choice of words – “impose,” “force,” “oppressive.” He really makes equal rights sound chilling, doesn’t he?

And that’s how they work, kids. That’s how they work.

You can listen to his sad diatribe below:

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Idaho ACLU and City of Coeur D’Alene Say Wedding Venue Not In Violation Of Non-Discrimination Ordinance

The Hitching Post, a Coeur d’Alene wedding chapel in Idaho, has been the center of a fake controversy this week seeming to pit LGBT non-discrimination ordinances versus anti-gay religious beliefs.

The city of Coeur d’Alene and the Idaho ACLU have issued statements saying the venue would not be violating the city’s nondiscrimination laws should they decline to officiate a same-sex marriage, but the anti-gay Alliance Defending Freedom is killing itself to keep the story alive.

From Boise State Public Radio:

Initially, the city said its anti-discrimination law did apply to the Hitching Post, since it is a commercial business. Earlier this week, Coeur d’Alene city attorney Mike Gridley sent a letter to the Knapps’ attorneys at the Alliance Defending Freedom saying the Hitching Post would have to become a not-for-profit to be exempt.

But Gridley said after further review, he determined the ordinance doesn’t specify non-profit or for-profit.

“After we’ve looked at this some more, we have come to the conclusion they would be exempt from our ordinance because they are a religious corporation,” Gridley explained.

Court filings show the Hitching Post reorganized earlier this month as a “religious corporation.” In the paperwork, the owners describe their deeply held beliefs that marriage should be between one man and one woman.

Leo Morales of the ACLU of Idaho said the exemption makes sense as long as the Hitching Post primarily performs religious ceremonies.

“However, if they do non-religious ceremonies as well, they would be violating the anti-discrimination ordinance,” Morales said. “It’s the religious activity that’s being protected.”

See, what happened was, quietly on October 6th, the owners of the venue changed the wording of the “purpose” of their LLC in preparation of all these shenanigans. Prior to a few weeks ago, the Hitching Post performed non-religious marriage ceremonies. BUT, that wouldn’t make for as good a story as a “religious corporation” would. Check the new language on the company’s business operating agreement:

“The Hitching Post is a religious corporation owned solely by ordained ministers of the Christian religion who operate this entity as an extension of their sincerely held religious beliefs and in accordance with their vows taken as Christian ministers.”

So, the point is – civil weddings are fine with the Knapps. Other religions ceremonies are fine with the Knapps. It’s the gays they have a problem with.

Even the group that helped draft the non-discrimination ordinance language – the Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations – has issued a statement to the mayor and city council that the Knapps fall under the religious exemption in the law.

But the thing is, the anti-gay groups WANT there to be a controversy so they can point their fingers and say “See? We told you religious folks would be persecuted!” The Alliance Defending Freedom keeps perpetrating the idea that at least one same-sex couple has tried to get the owners of The Hitching Post to marry them. Except, that hasn’t happened.

So, no one is being persecuted.

Fake story. Fake controversy.

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Just Another Day In The Alternate Universe Of Tony Perkins

Anti-gay hate group leader Tony Perkins wrote a rambling essay today which – as usual – gets the facts wrong about the Hitching Post wedding venue and a fictional stay on Idaho marriages that is NOT in effect:

“The only place where there seems to be an overwhelming consensus on redefining marriage is in the chambers of 25 unelected judges, who have been arrogant enough to substitute their agendas for the will of 13 states.

“For now, the states are continuing to put up a fight, right down to the local officials forced to carry out the courts’ bidding.

“In Idaho, site of the first ministers ordered to perform gay ‘weddings’ or be imprisoned, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy is giving the state a brief reprieve by putting a hold on the ceremonies for now.

“While the two sides appeal the Ninth Circuit ruling that struck down Idaho’s law, the Knapps — and other ordained ministers — will hold their breaths, hoping the same country that gave them conscience rights won’t jail the couple for exercising them.”

Seriously. This man drums up support and dollars for anti-gay animus and he can’t get facts straight.

There is no stay on same-sex marriage in Idaho; and more importantly, no ministers have been “ordered” to perform same-sex weddings.

Hyperbole and hysteria! The sky is falling!

Except – it’s not.