It’s hard to believe that 18 months after the awesome Supreme Court Decision declaring same sex marriage to be a constitutional right, we are still seeing headlines like this:
http://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/bria ... manifesto/
I really have to wonder why these people are still on this bizarre crusade. It seems to me that the National Organization for Marriage should have been out of business by now. But no, after losing the fight against same sex marriage in this country, they are now exporting hate to countries that do not have the history or will to protect civil rights in a democratic society.
At the same time, the fight for equality in this country is not finished. There are still the issues of discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodation, usually couched in the rhetoric of religious freedom. And yes, for the most part they are motivated by religious beliefs – or their version of what religion teaches- while ignoring the fact that not everyone adheres to their religious beliefs – and that in a secular society, religious beliefs cannot be imposed on others who do not share them.
When they are not overtly pushing the religious argument-and they don’t at times knowing that it is doomed to failure both in the courts and in public opinion- they are bleating and bloviating about how same sex marriage and other rights granted to LGBT people will bring about the destruction of the family and even society as we know it.
Yet, while the Obergefell decision was only a year and a half ago, there and jurisdictions in this country, and abroad, where same sex marriage has been legal for much longer. I thing 10 or 12 years is long enough to see that the sky is not falling. The fact is that most people don’t notice or care, while the lives of LGBT have been greatly improved.
These people are nothing more than hysterical, maudlin, theocratic bigots, with serious issues, who do not understand the concept of live and let live. However, far be it for me to say that they should be silenced. No, this is the United States of America and even if they do not respect the rights of others to live and love as they see fit, I respect their rights to free speech and religion. However, I do think that others need to think long and hard before supporting and buying into their equine excrement. Think about what you want for America and whether or not she can really be great if we condone the discrimination against, and the marginalization of any minority no matter how small they are. If we do, anyone could be next. That includes you.
Here is more from Brian Brown. (selected excerpts)
A group of anti-LGBT activists from around the world, led by National Organization for Marriage President Brian Brown, used International Human Rights Day this weekend to launch a new global anti-LGBT group, the International Organization for the Family (IOF). Brown, whose own anti-gay activism has taken him around the world, has been planning to take NOM’s work global for a while now, as BuzzFeed’s Lester Feder reported in 2014 and 2015. now, as BuzzFeed’s Lester Feder reported in 2014 and 2015
IOF says it “unites and equips leaders worldwide to promote the natural family.” Its first public project is a new global anti-LGBT manifesto dubbed the “Cape Town Declaration,” which the right-wing site Breitbart described as “throwing down the gauntlet to the LGBT lobby.”
that's right, Breitbart, from whence came Steve Bannon, Trumps chief political advisor and strategist!
The declaration and its concluding vow – “Bowing to no earthly power, using every just measure, we shall not falter or flag until the truth about marriage is embraced in our laws and honored in our lands”