Gay-rights advocates, opponents see this summer as `watershed'

Times Leader ^ | Aug. 12, 2003 | RANDY MYERS

[Between the Lines]

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - (KRT) - Suddenly this summer, landmark decisions on gay rights whipped the nation with a tornado's ferocity, leveling previous rulings and shattering taboos.

From the U.S. Supreme Court overturning anti-sodomy laws to the contentious debate rocking the Episcopalian church as its first openly gay elected bishop takes office, to approval of same-sex marriages in two Canadian provinces, sexuality issues muscled into headlines and airwaves.

"I think there's no question that this summer has been a watershed in the cultural history of gay and lesbian rights and sexual rights in general," said Gilbert Herdt, director of the National Sexuality Resource Center.

Those opposed to the changes have had enough.

"It's in your face, it's intolerant and people know that something's wrong with that," said Randy Thomasson, executive director of the Campaign for California Families.

"The gay activist movement is un-American in the sense that it's trashing and thrashing the things that a family hold sacred, from marriage to Boy Scouts to religious freedom."

The newsmaking blitz is far from over. Now comes the powder keg of topics, the one most likely to trigger raging discussions among friends, family, neighbors, politicians and advocates: same-sex marriage.

Any day now, the Massachusetts Supreme Court is poised to rule on the legality of gay marriage. It would be the first state in the nation to legalize them, and it could lead to more same-sex couples filing in their own state.

That judgment could cap a season that has promoted pride among gays and lesbians and discontent among those opposed to what they call the homosexual agenda. No matter where alliances lie, both sides are daily watching for the ruling on the state high court's Web site.

One daily netgazer is Glenn Stanton, a Focus on the Family senior analyst. He predicts that a favorable ruling will backfire for gay rights advocates while thrusting the volatile topic into the forefront of the political arena.

"It's going to be a huge political issue," he said. "It's going to be a campaign issue. It's going to be an American issue. It's going to be a judicial issue. And it will essentially be a judicial smackdown on what marriage is."

President Bush, who has remained mostly quiet on gay rights issues, announced June 30 that he was looking into the legislation that will define marriage as the union of men and women. Some see him charting the course for his re-election, especially since President Clinton signed similar legislation stating the same thing.

The Vatican weighed in July 31, urging bishops and Roman Catholic politicians to defeat any overture toward gay marriage.

While a recent Pew Research Institute poll suggested a slow erosion in the public's dislike of gay marriage with 53 percent against it and 38 percent favoring it, more recent polls suggest this summer's news may be exacting a backlash.

A Gallup poll in late July showed that 48 percent of Americans said homosexual relations should be legal while 46 percent said they shouldn't.

The level of tolerance was much higher in May: 60 percent for legality, 35 percent against.

The shift doesn't surprise Herdt.

"A lot of events have come down at the same time. This is how cultures change, in fits and starts."

Gay-rights advocates anticipated setbacks.

"There's no question that we're going to face an immediate short- term backlash in some areas," said Shannon Minter of San Francisco's National Center for Lesbian Rights. "That's the way progress is made."

---

Certainly this summer's events have generations talking.

Advocates and professors point to the June 26 Supreme Court decision as the lightning rod for other gay issues that ignites debates.

"It's a reminder that some times hard work pays off even if it doesn't pay off right away," said Christopher Nealon, a UC- Berkeley professor of gay and lesbian studies. That all these events collided at once is coincidence.

Although the Supreme Court decision was considered most influential, the ordination of openly gay Episcopal bishop Gene Robinson proved to be the most explosive, generating impassioned claims that it would destroy the church and last- minute charges of inappropriate behavior.

Although it's presumptuous to think Robinson's consecration will prompt other religious institutions to ordain gay clergy, the action sends a potent message, says one expert.

"The fact that a mainline denomination has managed to confirm an openly gay man as a bishop is a bellwether of what our country is feeling," said Jay Johnson. He is program director of the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry in Berkeley, Calif.

"This isn't a fringe church and it seems to me to indicate that it favors full inclusion of gays and lesbians in our churches and in our society."

The cluster of decisions and the reactions from President Bush, the Vatican and party leaders have emboldened some gay and lesbian Republicans to take action, said Patrick Guerriero, executive director of Log Cabin Republicans, an organization for GOP gays and lesbians.

"An interesting irony is that a lot of folks who are conservative are so angry and fired up that they want to be involved in our efforts. We're growing at a record pace."

Guerriero estimates that 15 to 20 new chapters of the Log Cabin Republicans are springing up in states not normally associated with promoting gay rights, including Tennessee, the Carolinas and Colorado.

Even though Guerriero cringes at recent comments made by some GOP members, he says he's proud to be a Republican.

Yes, it can be discouraging, he says, but one of the group's goals is to fend off the more conservative GOP element, which can lead to damaging inter-party squabbling during important election periods. There are lessons to be learned, he said, on the divisions created when Pat Buchanan made his voice heard in 1992.

Despite recent historic rulings and victories this summer, he doubts he'll be posting an "out-of-business" sign anytime soon.

[chachacha]

Yup! While America sleeps the sludge spreads. For every action there's a reaction. Some will be surprised, others won't know why, some will laugh, some will cry.

I'll just pray and hope it's not to late.

[Agnes Heep]

Just what the Confederates were thinking, right up to the moment when Pickett yelled "charge!"

[Imagine]

Homosexuality:

Homosexuality is deviant sexual behavior and a mental illness.

Homosexuals: 1) subject their body parts to uses nature did not intend, such activities often presenting immediate risk to the participants; 2) are prone to greater suicide, depression and other mental disorders and deficiencies than the heterosexual population at large; 3) are prone to far greater sexually transmitted diseases, including AIDS, than the (normal) heterosexual population; 4) molest young people (pedophilia) at a far greater rate than heterosexuals; 5) engage in degrading sexual promiscuity, oftentimes engaging in risky sex with many partners during the same event; 6) are engaged in aggressive and widespread efforts to indoctrinate our children by introducing the homosexual lifestyle using public schools as the primary indoctrination “vehicle” and likewise, through the movie/music/TV industry, with the dual goals of gaining school-age acceptance of homosexuality and encouraging sexual activity among children, especially same-sex experimentation; 7) view most everything through a mindset heavily biased in favor of the homosexual lifestyle and culture, which renders them mostly useless when asked to opine on matters that normal heterosexuals better resolve.

The mental deficiencies described herein applying to homosexuals shall not be confused with the deficiencies associated with the left wing democrat/socialist/marxist/ feminist/environmentalist minds, etc., which have their own distinct set of mental disorders.

This doesn't even touch on what the Bible has to say about homosexuality.

[EdReform]

"The gay activist movement is un-American in the sense that it's trashing and thrashing the things that a family hold sacred, from marriage to Boy Scouts to religious freedom."

An excerpt from: Homosexual Priests: A Time for Truth:

"The homosexual movement has a history of trying to claw its way into places its agenda doesn’t belong, not for the betterment of mankind, but simply to legitimize and normalize perverse behavior. This is apparent in the all-too-common need of homosexuals to declare their sexuality rather than simply do the job they sign on to do.

This is extremely detrimental - first, it creates conflict with others as most believe homosexuality to be wrong, and it shows that the full efforts of the employed homosexual are not going towards performing the task at hand but largely to declaring their lifestyle. When it comes to serious concerns such as the Church, schools, and the Boy Scouts that involve our children, we can’t take the risk of giving them this power to destroy the values we as parents try to instill, nor can we put our country’s welfare at stake by turning these pivotal foundational institutions and our military into homosexual social experiments.

The homosexual movement is marked by two major tendencies: the tendency to continually infiltrate all good aspects of society; and once they have achieved that, the tendency to destroy this good. Public education, the Boy Scouts, the military, and now the Catholic Church have been targeted, and all have been hurt by the effects of homosexuality. The media and the Church must break its silence towards this enemy. If they do not, the people themselves must rise up and expose it..."

The Homosexual Propaganda and Media Manipulation Game

What Homosexuals Say About Homosexuals - Is This Gay Behavior Sick?

Choice4Truth

[JesseHousman]

...he doubts he'll be posting an "out-of-business" sign anytime soon.

He never knows when he'll be put of business. This life ends and a new life begins.

Unfortunately, an eternity in hell is difficult for these homosexual agendists to comprehend.

Their lifestyle, they mistakenly believe, is normal and the glories of how they achieve their disgusting orgasms must be shared with the one group they are breathlessly working towards getting their hands on: our children.

I have never seen a Christian alcoholic form an organization for Christian alcoholics and then proceed to tell them that they should embrace their alcoholism and share what it is to be like with other young kids so that those kids can drink without feeling guilty.

[martin_fierro]

"I think there's no question that this summer has been a watershed in the cultural history of gay and lesbian rights and sexual rights in general," said Gilbert Herdt, director of the National Sexuality Resource Center.

Sounds more impressive than it is.

[hilaryrhymeswithrich]

"It's a reminder that some times hard work pays off even if it doesn't pay off right away," said Christopher Nealon, a UC- Berkeley professor of gay and lesbian studies. That all these events collided at once is coincidence. "


Remember when we actually used to go to college to learn how to work for a living??????

[First Amendment]

You should have added a Barf Alert! The pro-homo bias was disgusting, like this:

That judgment could cap a season that has promoted pride among gays and lesbians and discontent among those opposed to what they call the homosexual agenda.

What WE CALL the homosexual agenda. The homosexual activists are just like Nazis, and many of the Nazis were sodomites too. Intolerance, cruelty, control and dominance of others goes with the deviance territory.

Those of us not blinded by their propaganda have to stand up and fight, or we are going to lose the culture war and it will be a disaster that we can't even imagine.

[Between the Lines]

You should have added a Barf Alert! The pro-homo bias was disgusting, like this:

I thought the title pretty much proclaimed the pro-sodomite slant of the story. Sorry.

[Between the Lines]

...not for the betterment of mankind, but simply to legitimize and normalize perverse behavior.

Well said.

The media and the Church must break its silence towards this enemy. If they do not, the people themselves must rise up and expose it..."

Yes! Exactly!

[Between the Lines]

Unfortunately, an eternity in hell is difficult for these homosexual agendists to comprehend.

I pitty them for their heaven is here on earth with all it's carnal pleasures.

...they are breathlessly working towards getting their hands on: our children.

I honsestly believe that if we do not stop the gay activism in our courts and legislations soon, pedophilia will be legal in our lifetime.

[JesseHousman]

...if we do not stop the gay activism in our courts and legislations soon, pedophilia will be legal in our lifetime.

I agree.

Unfortunately, it's up to our congressrats to rein in the entire activist-satanist system of courts.

The entire system is rotten from the soopremes on down!