Free Republic

Five years after decriminalizing sodomy, the justices on India’s Supreme Court unanimously declined to legalize same-sex marriage, leaving the issue for the nation’s Parliament to decide. Tuesday’s ruling came after listening to arguments for and against same-sex “marriage” last spring. During those hearings, “the government argued that a marriage is only between a biological male and a biological woman, adding that same-sex marriages went against religious values and that the petitions reflected only ‘urban elitist views,’” according to an AP report. “Religious groups too had opposed same-sex unions, saying they went against Indian culture.” Attorneys representing those in favor of...

A beloved store owner in Lake Arrowhead was shot and killed during a dispute over a Pride flag, officials say. The shooting happened around 5 p.m. Friday at the Mag Pi clothing store on Hook Creek Road in Cedar Glen. When deputies arrived, they found 66-year-old Laura Ann Carleton with a gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead on the scene. According to the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department, the suspect, who has not been identified, "made several disparaging remarks about a rainbow flag that stood outside the store before shooting Carleton." Deputies found the suspect near Torrey and Rause Rancho Roads,...

In his first year as Florida governor in 2019, Ron DeSantis paid a somber visit to the memorial for the 49 people who lost their lives when a man opened fire at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando. His wife, Casey, clutched a bouquet of white flowers as DeSantis took in the faces of those who died on that June night in 2016. Most were Latino. Many were gay. Before leaving, DeSantis signed a wall with the words: “Florida will always remember these precious lives.” For Florida’s LGBTQ community, the day brought a glimmer of optimism that this new Republican...

“Hello Father Martin,” wrote one mother, “I am a parent of a 13-year-old girl who identifies as gay. She is loving, kind, funny and has a heart as large as the continent. We have stopped going to Mass because all of our local parishes are pressing a hard anti-gay message, and I cannot sit in a pew with the thoughts that run through my head.” “Hi Fr. Martin,” another mother began, “My parish has a new pastor and our first introduction to him was a piece in the bulletin where he wrote about the ‘diabolical’ nature of Pride Month.” In...

One has to ask the question: why is the LGBTQ industry so hell-bent on targeting children? Why is LEGO holding a queer festival in its stores to promote sexual deviancy to children who would otherwise not even think about such things? To be clear, the LGBTQ movement and its various symbols, including the pride flag, have absolutely nothing to do with love. Friends, even friends of the same sex, can love each other—but it is not sexual. The LGBTQ movement is a movement designed for the sole purpose normalizing aberrant, dangerous, and violent sex acts among people of the same...

For decades, progressives have been aggressively informing us that they are devout fans of “diversity” and “multiculturalism.” These words have taken on an almost totemic significance, with “diversity is our strength” becoming a mantra for Canadian lefties. I have my quibbles with these buzz-words—diversity is a description, not a value—but I have often found myself wishing, over the past few years, that those who brandish these terms actually believed in them. What we have found as the LGBT movement achieved cultural dominance is that for progressives, “diversity” is where people look different, but think the same. Thus, Western nations (primarily...

When we were children my mother would bring me and my sister to our local library every Saturday. We were allowed to take out two books of our own choosing (usually The Baby-sitters Club which my mother thought was cute, or one of the Sweet Valley High series, which she said was trash) and then the third book had to be what she deemed a classic: The Secret Garden, Tom’s Midnight Garden, A Little Princess and so on. When I turned 12 she took me down the steps from the children’s section of the library to the adult section and...

There is something very amusing about Catholics talking about beliefs that have no scientific consensus. I was raised in the church and, although I’m not religious any more, I still believe in God. I believe in something greater than us, shaping our lives in ways that we cannot even begin to understand. I’m out here, all the live-long day, praying to my guardian angels for help with parking spots and to ensure the plane doesn’t crash in the middle of particularly nasty turbulence. However, I have absolutely no proof that any of these things exist, outside of my belief in...

Within the next decade, some scientists figure it will be possible to create a viable human egg from a male skin cell — paving the path for same-sex male couples to have their own biological children. The prediction came on the heels of a genome development that saw scientists producing baby mice by generating eggs from male cells. Oh, what a tangled web they weave. The LGBTQ crowd in particular is no doubt cheering this latest evil. After all, if tearing down normal, traditional family structure is the end game of the LGBTQ activists — which it is — well...

Even in circumstances when there might appear to be little doubt about the individual's gender, stating preferred pronouns is a clear signal of contemporary virtue. Now God themself, it seems, is not to be found wanting in this regard. The Church of England is planning a review of "gendered language" in its texts and services, and among the proposals reportedly being considered is the removal of the words "Our Father" from the Lord's Prayer. Some members of the Anglican clergy are uncomfortably refering to God as he/him, particulary in prayers seeking forgiveness, and are seeking non-gendered alternatives. In reality, this...

Charles Silverstein, a psychologist who helped achieve one of the most significant victories of the gay rights movement by persuading the American Psychiatric Association in 1973 to declassify homosexuality as a mental illness, died Jan. 30 at his home in New York City. He was 87. He had lung cancer, said his executor, Aron Berlinger. Dr. Silverstein spent decades of his life — as an activist, a psychologist and an author — advancing the cause of gay rights. He had felt the sting of discrimination and the burden of shame as a gay man who came of age at a...

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on Pete Buttigieg’s claim that he has a husband: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg recently told Fox News host Brett Baier that his travel expenses were not inappropriate, especially given that other public officials have taken their spouses on official business trips. “Why is it any different when it’s me and my husband?” Baier had no answer. Does Buttigieg really have a husband? Of course not. He may love Chasten but he can never be his husband. Why not? Because he has been disqualified by nature. It is true that Buttigieg is legally married, but...

Three bishops in the Lutheran Church of Sweden say to refuse to ordain a priest who sees marriage as a union between one man and one woman. The bishops respond to a survey by the Swedish newspaper Syre. They indicate that they do not accept that people who oppose same-sex marriage become priests in the Church of Sweden, Varlden Idag reports. EmployabilityAndreas Holmberg, a bishop in Stockholm, writes in an e-mail to Varlden Idag that he would not ordain a priest who is clear about not ordaining same-sex couples. "This is because, in practice, it would be very difficult for...

Loved by pre-school audiences in the UK, US, Australia and Latin America, Peppa Pig is arguably one of the most recognisable - and popular - cartoon animals in the world. It is perhaps no wonder, then, that the programme's decision to introduce its first same-sex couple has made waves. During an episode titled Families, which first aired on Tuesday on Channel 5 in the UK, where Peppa Pig is made, the eponymous character was introduced to friend Penny Polar Bear's mothers. While drawing a portrait of her family, Penny explained: "I live with my mummy and my other mummy. One...

When a significant number of House Republicans voted for a recent bill to recognize same-sex marriage at the federal level, those who most vocally made the case for the legislation were the younger members, especially Kat Cammack of Florida. The split in the GOP vote, with 47 voting in favor and 157 against, mirrors the divide within the wider conservative movement. At Young America’s Foundation’s National Conservative Student Conference last week, several students spoke to National Review about their receptiveness to a national gay-marriage law. But their views incorporated a respect not only for religious freedom but for the religious...

Disney is once again affirming its commitment to woke-ism. The company, built on providing entertainment for children, appears to be more committed to indoctrinating children than entertaining them. In March, Disney crusaded against parents by publicly opposing Florida’s Parental Rights Bill. In April, their desire to insert themselves into politics led Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to sign a bill removing Disney’s tax privilege and self-governing status. Disney’s woke history has picked up steam in recent years. A Disney executive admitted to routinely adding queerness to children’s programming. They have made it clear that their desire is to ‘transform culture.’ A...

On his podcast, Joe Rogan strongly defended same-sex marriage, skewering Republicans as "homophobic" and profanely declaring that anyone who calls him a conservative has no idea what they're talking about. On the Saturday episode of "The Joe Rogan Experience," the comedian and massively successful podcast host pushed back against critics who have accused him of being a "secret conservative," citing GOP opposition to gay marriage as one of many reasons he is not, nor has ever been, a Republican. “It’s not just abortion rights, but now they’re going after gay marriage too, which is so strange to me,” Rogan said...

A Republican lawmaker attended his gay son’s wedding just three days after joining the majority of his GOP colleagues in voting against a House bill that would codify federal protections for same-sex marriage. The gay son of Rep. Glenn Thompson, R-Pa., confirmed to NBC News on Monday that he “married the love of [his] life” on Friday and that his “father was there.” NBC News is not publishing the names of the grooms, neither of whom is a public figure. Thompson’s press secretary, Maddison Stone, also confirmed the congressman was in attendance. “Congressman and Mrs. Thompson were thrilled to attend...

By a vote of 267 to 157, with 47 Republicans joining the majority, the House has passed a bill requiring all state governments to stick with the redefinition of marriage that the Supreme Court ordered in 2015. The best thing that can be said about this legislation is that it is legislation, not an edict from a judiciary usurping legislative authority. Senate Republicans should nonetheless oppose this bill, because these congressmen are making a mistake. Or rather, they are making several mistakes. The bill raises four distinct questions for federal legislators. Is the judicially imposed definition better or wiser than...

The Eastern European country of Slovenia just legalized same-sex “marriage” and adoption privileges last Friday, following two cases in which litigants complained they could obtain neither. According to Jurist, the Slovenia Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities said the court was acting in response to the U.S. Supreme Court Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade. The Dobbs ruling laid out principles according to which the Obergefell v. Hodges decision legalizing same-sex “marriage” in the U.S. could also be overturned. The Constitutional Court of Slovenia voted 6-3 in the two cases it heard, striking down current laws that...