Slavic immigrants' crusade against homosexuality collides with gays' battle for acceptance

Sacramento Bee ^ | Aug. 6, 2006 | Dorothy Korber and Deepa Ranganathan

[FairOpinion]

In the last few months, the growing conflict between Sacramento's Slavic Christians and its politically savvy gay community has erupted on campuses, at school board hearings, and on the grounds of the Capitol.

Russian-speaking hecklers lined the march of this year's gay pride parade downtown. At least 15 Slavic students were suspended in April for wearing shirts proclaiming, "Homosexuality is sin." This spring, Slavic Christians packed board meetings in three local school districts to make their position clear: Being gay is not OK.

Even more offensive to them is the increasingly strong push by gay leaders to bring acceptance of homosexuality into public life and public schools.

The region's large Russian-speaking Christian community, usually shy of publicity, is stepping into the public eye, saying they have to save California from a dangerous moral decline. Gay leaders worry that these protests will erode their community's political progress and spoil the security they have come to feel in Sacramento.

[FairOpinion]

Either everyone has freedom of speech or nobody does. You can't have only select groups have it.

[dfwgator]

God bless the Slavs.

[lightman]

I'm not holding my breath until the ACLU defends the Slavs' First Ammendment rights.

[FairOpinion]

Also from the article:

"As for gays, he cites from memory several Bible verses he says declare homosexuality to be a sin, but adds: "First of all, we don't hate them. We pray for them. They are also people. They are sinners and they need help. This is like any other sin."

[FairOpinion]

A number of Slavic teens were suspended from area schools for wearing T-shirts declaring that "Homosexuality is sin" and "Jesus can set you free."


I haven't heard the ACLU take up their case.

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

Russian-speaking hecklers lined the march of this year's gay pride parade downtown.

Thank God somebody still has the guts to do it. I'm going to feel sorry for those Slavs when the cops start arresting them, charging them with hate crimes, and get them fired from their jobs.

[Triggerhippie]

The "light in the loafers" crowd should be damned thankful that the Slavic folks aren't protesting with honor killings...

Moreover they keep hoping that Islamic terror will defeat the U.S. presumably so they can live under Sharia. Strange...

[Tzimisce]

We on the left believe that immigrants both legal and illegal deserve the same rights as everyone else (as long as they agree with us....)

[Greystoke]

It's a shame recent (legal) immigrants have more guts than the rest of our fellow countrymen who seem to have none.

[jpsb]

Russians are cool.

[HiTech RedNeck]

From Russia with love (of God)

[wmfights]

"A number of Slavic teens were suspended from area schools for wearing T-shirts declaring that "Homosexuality is sin" and "Jesus can set you free."
________________________________

These immigrants are welcome on my block anytime.

[Malesherbes]

Gosh! They are not only Christians, but "Slavic Christians!" What are we supposed to make of that? I suppose the Sacramento Bee is edited by non-Slavic non-Christians.

[weegee]

They come from despotic regimes that used brainwashing and re-education centers to indoctrinate the masses.

That is all "diversity training" is when it requires that all citizens parrot back that "gay is okay" and that what has been taught to be sinful and immoral for thousands of years was really not.

They can change the laws but that still doesn't make it right. Laws against adultery disappeared too (and they DO make sense as divorce is a LEGAL construct, but with "no fault divorce" I guess irrelevant).

[lastchance]

Where should we send the flowers?

[Incorrigible]

Bump

[XR7]

Bumpski!

[jeremiah]

It has been quite a while since Anita Bryant pushed back. She was destroyed professionaly, and few others stepped into the void. She was right then, and these people are right now.

[Space Cruiser]

Go SLAVS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!