Posted on 07/08/2009 11:57:54 AM PDT by bs9021
Freedom Federation Takes Flight
by: Bethany Stotts, July 08, 2009
A coalition of national groups committed to Judeo-Christian values launched the Freedom Federation on June 30, 2009 with the goal of promoting freedom and representing Christian perspectives on national issues such as abortion, health care, and hate crimes legislation.
Ironically, the speakers talked a lot about “justice”—but not justice as often defined on campus. “Everyone among us would intervene at any point [if] anyone were being accosted or mistreated because of their race or their gender or any other stereotype or...whatever might be,” said Rick Scarborough, founder of Vision International, at the press conference.
“We are against any kind of injustice, including religious injustice,” he said. “There’s a fear among many preachers that I deal with—our organization is of the pastor, by the pastor, for the pastor but in its current form we believe that hate crimes legislation is an infringement upon our freedom of religion.”
Critics of hate crimes legislation argue that applying harsher penalties based on a crime’s motivation involves criminalizing belief-systems. In contrast, supporters such as Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) argue such legislation aids police. “[The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act] would combat acts of violence motivated by hatred and bigotry, but it does not target pure speech, however offensive or disagreeable, and it certainly does not target religious speech,” said Leahy during a June 25 hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee....
(Excerpt) Read more at campusreportonline.net ...
"Judeo-Christian" values? Hmmmmm. What then is Easter about?
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