The Gaytheist Agenda

Another “family values” crusader bites the dust.

BAD: CBS affiliate CBS13 reports that Roy Ashburn, a state senator from Southern California was arrested for allegedly driving drunk.

WORSE: CBS affiliate CBS13 reports that Roy Ashburn, a state senator from Southern California was arrested for allegedly driving drunk AFTER LEAVING A GAY BAR.
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WORST: CBS affiliate CBS13 reports that Roy Ashburn, a MARRIED state senator from Southern California was arrested for allegedly driving drunk after leaving a gay bar with another man in the car.

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WORSTEST: CBS affiliate CBS13 reports that Roy Ashburn, a married, Republican state senator from Southern California WITH A HISTORY OF OPPOSING GAY RIGHTS was arrested for allegedly driving drunk after leaving a gay bar with another man in the car.

 
Another source indicates that it is unlikely Ashburn was at Faces, since Tuesdays are “Latin Night” at the popular club and “A white guy would stick out like a sore thumb”. However there are reportedly numerous clubs gay and straight clubs in the area so it’s possible Ashburn was at one of them rather than at Faces.

 
After his arrest, Ashburn issued the following statement:

“I am deeply sorry for my actions and offer no excuse for my poor judgment. I accept complete responsibility for my conduct and am prepared to accept the consequences for what I did.

I am also truly sorry for the impact this incident will have on those who support and trust me - my family, my constituents, my friends, and my colleagues in the Senate.”

Needless to say, Ashburn has earned himself an entry on Conservative Babylon.

 

Daniel Radcliffe has been subject to OMG is he gay?!?! rumors for some time now. He’s finally come out to declare that he’s not, but he really doesn’t mind if people think he is.

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He said: “If people want to say that, they can. I’m not. I’m straight.
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Radcliffe is reported to have recently made a “major donation” to an American charity which fights intolerance of gay men, lesbians and bisexuals, The Sun reported.

He has also revealed he grew up around homosexuals and last year posed on the cover of gay magazine Attitude.

In a past interview, he said: “Some people think I am gay, which I think is awesome.”
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No doubt fundagelicals will use this as yet another reason to declare him an abomination, as if starring in the Harry Potter movies (Witchcraft!!!), being an atheist and performing nude onstage weren’t already enough. But I’m sure neither he nor his legions of fans will give a darn.

And now an entirely gratuitous photo for gay men, and bisexual or straight women:

Rick Warren is under fire for helping to push Uganda’s “kill the queers” law. His response? Lie about his involvement in the process, play the Oppression Olympics and pretend, suddenly, that he’s all about non-interference in the lives and nations of others.

Uganda has proposed a barbaric new anti-gay law.

Life imprisonment is the minimum punishment for anyone convicted of having gay sex, under an anti-homosexuality bill currently before Uganda’s parliament. If the accused person is HIV positive or a serial offender, or a “person of authority” over the other partner, or if the “victim” is under 18, a conviction will result in the death penalty.

Members of the public are obliged to report any homosexual activity to police with 24 hours or risk up to three years in jail – a scenario that human rights campaigners say will result in a witchhunt. Ugandans breaking the new law abroad will be subject to extradition requests.

Rick Warren has been under fire for this and has engaged in various tactics to avoid addressing his involvement directly. First he tried the diversion/Oppression Olympics route.

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Meanwhile, on his Twitter page, Warren seemed to question the fuss. “Globally last yr 146,000 Christians were put to death because of their faith. No one, except Christians, said anything,” he wrote.

I won’t get into the number Warren quoted, which I highly suspect he pulled out of his backside. But I will say this; I don’t condone murdering anybody, but there are no individuals or groups going around the world advocating the oppression and even murder of Christians. There are many individuals and groups working within nations and touring the world fueling anti-gay hatred, oppression and murder, and Rick Warren is one of them. He may not be one of the people who do this for a living (Scott Lively, Paul Cameron, Brian Brown, Maggie Gallagher) but he’s still part of the problem. Accordingly his attempts at diversion are not only cowardly but disgusting.

But Warren won’t go so far as to condemn the legislation itself. A request for a broader reaction to the proposed Ugandan anti-homosexual laws generated this response: “The fundamental dignity of every person, our right to be free, and the freedom to make moral choices are gifts endowed by God, our creator. However, it is not my personal calling as a pastor in America to comment or interfere in the political process of other nations.”

It’s not his calling as a pastor in America to comment or interfere in the political processes of other nations? He didn’t seem to mind pushing his ABC (Abstinence Before Condoms) shtick over there. And in 2008 Warren designated Uganda his second “Purpose Driven Nation” and worked closely with virulently anti-gay Ugandan preacher Martin Ssempa. Warren didn’t mind fostering, actively, the hatred that led to the law in the first place. So why is it that after being neck-deep in their politics for years he’s suddenly got a policy of non-interference once the deadly fruits of his labors are being realized? Can you say hypocrite?

Sorry, Warren, the blood of gay Ugandans is all over your hands and you can’t pretend otherwise no matter how much you deceive, inveigle, and obfuscate.

 

The Transgender Day of Remembrance was set aside to memorialize those who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. The event is held in November to honor Rita Hester, whose murder on November 28th, 1998 kicked off the “Remembering Our Dead” web project and a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999. Rita Hester’s murder — like most anti-transgender murder cases — has yet to be solved.

Although not every person represented during the Day of Remembrance self-identified as transgender — that is, as a transsexual, crossdresser, or otherwise gender-variant — each was a victim of violence based on bias against transgender people.
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It’s hard to know how many people are victims of anti-transgender hate crimes each year. In many locations statistics on such crimes are not kept. We may have a better idea of such crimes in the US thanks to the recently passed Matthew Shepard Act. But worldwide information will still be difficult to come by.

What we do know is that last year there were at least 200 victims of anti-transgender violence in the last year. Chances are the number is much higher than that but we’ll never know for sure. Here are just a few of those victims. What I find striking, as is often the case in anti-LGBT hate crimes, is how vicious many of the crimes were.

Taysia Elzy
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana USA
Cause of Death: Shot to death by 20 year old Christopher Conwell.
Date of Death: December 26, 2008
Taysia was 34 years old.
Taysia and Michael Hunt were romantically involved and it is believed that they were murdered because Taysia was transgender and Michael was murdered because of his relationship with Taysia.
They were both found dead in their apartment.

Mhtium Abululak
Location: Catelfranco Veneto (Italy), own apartment
Cause of Death: Stabbed and shot in the head
Date of Death: January 3rd 2009
Mhtium was 33 years old.

Cynthia Nicole
Location: Comayaguela, Honduras
Cause of Death: Shot 3 times in the chest and once in the head by three
unknown men driving a blue car in Barrio Guaserique, Comayaguela, near Tegucigalpa.
Date of Death: January 9, 2009
News sources believe that the killing of Cynthia Nicole may be related to her legitimate human rights activities, in particular her involvement in the defense of the rights of the transgender community.

Rovilson Teixeira
Location: Londrina, Brazil
Cause of Death: Stabbed
Date of Death: January 18, 2009
Rovilson was 18 years old, she was stabbed 7 times.

“Víctor Manuel” Albor Camacho
Location: Acámbaro, Mexico
Cause of Death: Stabbed
Date of Death: January 20, 2009
Albor was 24 years old. She was found in the street, she had been tortured and beaten.

Dayana Nicole Castillo García
Location: Tarapoto, Perú
Cause of Death: Stabbed
Date of Death: January 22, 2009
Dayana was 31 years old. She was found dead in her own beauty salon.
She was stabbed 20 times.

Cristy
Location: Guatemala-City, Guatemala
Cause of Death: Stabbed
Date of Death: February 10, 2009
Cristy was 25 years old.
She was stabbed 30 times.

Puttalakshmi’s
Location: Bangalore, India
Cause of Death: Thrown from a moving vehicle
Date of Death: February 18, 2009
Puttalakshmi’s was Hijra. She was 30 years old.
Puttalakshmi’s was raped and thrown out of a moving vehicle.

Eda Yildirm
Location: Bursa, Turkey
Cause of Death: Decapitated
Date of Death: March 22, 2009
Her head and sexual organs had been chopped off and tossed in a dumpster.

Gisela “Roni” Galante
Location: Gualeguaychú, Argentina
Cause of Death: Murdered
Date of Death: April 1, 2009
Gisela was 42 years old.
The details of her death was not reported
although dismemberment was indicated in the news article.

Jeva Padilla
Location: Santiago, Dominican Republic
Cause of Death: Tortured and Killed
Date of Death: April 21, 2009
23 year old Jeva was brutally tortured (Burns, mutilated genitals and face, executed with 40 shots) in the northern city of Santiago, Central Cibao Police District spokesman Col. Jesus Cordero Paredes said.

Cesar Torres
Location: El Paso, Texas
Cause of Death: Blunt Force Trauma
Date of Death: July 9, 2009
An autopsy report says Cesar died from blunt force trauma. He had cuts around his eyes, broken ribs, a broken nose, a ruptured liver, wrenched neck and several stab wounds.

Tyli’a Mack also known as NaNa Boo
Location: Washington, DC
Cause of Death: Stabbed to death
Date of Death: August 26, 2009
Tyli’a was stabbed to death on the street in broad daylight.
Tyli’a was 21 years old.

Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado
Location: Cayey, Peurto Rico
Cause of Death: decapitated
Date of Death: November 14, 2009
Jorge was found on the site of an isolated road in the city of Cayey, he was partially burned, decapitated, and dismembered, both arms, both legs, and the torso.
Jorge was 19 years old.

Patrick McAlvey is one of the many young people victimized by the “ex-gay” industry. The APA and countless other professional organizations denounce so-called “reparative therapy” as a harmful, ineffective sham. However religious groups continue to push it to intolerant parents and desperate gay individuals who’ve been fed the constant refrain, “you’re not acceptable the way you are” combined with strong pressure to “change” in order to please others.

Many people assume “ex-gay” therapy consists of praying and talking with a therapist to understand and undo all of the horrible things that “made” a person gay. That’s simply not the case. Certainly prayer is involved, but there’s no actual therapy, at least nothing that would be recognized as such by any reputable psychologist or psychiatrist. Instead program participants are subjected to humiliating, bizarre and potentially harmful practices that can leave permanent scars on them. Sadly Patrick McAlvey’s personal experiences in an “ex-gay” program are not uncommon.

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The 24-year-old McAlvey’s video was released last month just as the American Psychological Association announced that “mental health professionals should avoid telling clients that they can change their sexual orientation through therapy or other treatments.”
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“When I was 19, I was kicked out of a missionary training school and was forced to move back home with my family,” McAlvey recalled. “I was kicked out because of my attraction to men, so in that time I was sort of in a crisis mode and was very low, very depressed and just trying to make sense of my life and my attraction.”

He contacted Jones, whom he had spoken with before about his “problem,” and began several months of therapy with Jones that supposedly would cure him and make him straight.

Therapy consisted of embarrassing questions and uncomfortable situations. Jones would instruct McAlvey to lie in his arms for an hour at a time - known in the ex-gay circuit as holding therapy. He forced McAlvey to learn about tools and home repair, and to watch the play “Equus” with him, which features full male nudity. He would ask him to rate his attractiveness on a scale of one to 10.

Then there were the questions. “He asked how large my penis was. He asked if I shave my pubic hair. He asked what type of underwear that I wore,” McAlvey explained. “On one occasion, he asked me to take my shirt off and show him how many push-ups I could do, which I did not do.

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But despite all his efforts, McAlvey never stopped being attracted to men. “I never felt like I was changing,” he said of the therapy.
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“I just really came to hate myself; to loathe myself,” McAlvey said. “I didn’t trust anyone and I didn’t allow anyone to get close to me because I was terrified that they might find out my secret and that they would think less of me. I spent many years locked up in my room, crying by myself for no good reason.”
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The decision to take his story public took time, and a lot of personal healing for McAlvey. When he stopped seeing Jones, he was still grappling with his sexuality and acceptance of himself. Eventually, he was able to see that it’s OK to be gay. “I realized that I don’t think change is going to happen and I don’t think it needs to happen,” he said. “It was getting to the point where I really was comfortable with who I am, and that takes time, a lot of processing and figuring out how to undo some of the internalized homophobia that was the result of this therapy.”
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The status of Bryce Faulkner is still unknown at this point. Will he exit his program as broken as Patrick McAlvey did, having been taught to loathe himself for who he is? As you read this there are thousands of other Bryces and Patricks (and Lisas and Marys) across the nation being abused by the “ex-gay” industry. It’s allowed to go on in the name of “religious freedom” but there is no freedom for the victims. How many people will be damaged, perhaps permanently, by this hateful sham before we put a stop to the abuse?

 

Score another one for the “by asking us not to bully LGBT children you’re restricting our religious liberties” crowd.

A crowd of about 60 gathered Tuesday night at the DeKalb home of Jaheem Herrera to remember the fifth-grader who committed suicide last week. The 11-year-old boy hanged himself at his home after — according to his family — relentless bullying at Dunaire Elementary School.
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After a short prayer, Bermudez told friends and parents to make sure their children understand that whatever problems they have “don’t be afraid to talk to your mother.”

As Bermudez spoke, she clung to two daughters — Ny’irah, 7 and Yerralis, 10. Yerralis discovered her brother’s body last Thursday after school.

“His sister was screaming, ‘Get him down, get him down,’” said Norman Keene, Jaheem’s stepfather.
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“We’ve created the idea that bullying is a rite of passage, and I don’t think it is,” said Errion.
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Keene said the family knew the boy was a target of bullies, but until his death they didn’t understand the scope.

“They called him gay and a snitch,” his stepfather said. “All the time they’d call him this.”

Earlier this month the suicide of a Massachusetts boy, Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover — who suffered taunts that he was gay — attracted national attention.

He was also 11. His mother found him hanging from an extension cord in the family’s home.

Bermudez also said her son was being bullied at school. She said she had complained to the school.

School officials won’t discuss allegations that bullying may have contributed to the boy’s suicide. Davis said Tuesday morning that officials are legally unable to comment on student-related records, such as whether the school had received complaints that Jaheem was being bullied.
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Rest in peace, Jaheem.

 

I discovered this wonderful piece at Cafe Philos. It can prove invaluable to anybody struggling with an attraction to the Mormon lifestyle, or to friends and family members of such individuals. Full text is at the link but here are some excerpts.

A pleasant young man in his early 20s sat across from me. He had an engaging smile, although he didn’t smile often during our talk. What drew me in was the pain in his eyes.

“I don’t know if I should remain a member of the club,” he said. “I don’t think I’m worthy.”

“Why wouldn’t you be worthy?” I asked.

“I want to be a Mormon.”

I suppose he thought I would be startled. I wasn’t. “And … ?” I inquired.

A flicker of relief crossed his face as he sensed my continued interest. “I’m not interested in other ideas. I’m interested in Mormonism. I’ve tried to ignore these feelings or change them, but …”

He sighed. “Why am I this way? The feelings are very real.”

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This time I was relieved. “Thank you for wanting to deal with this,” I said. “It takes courage to talk about it, and I honor you for keeping yourself clean.

“As for why you feel as you do, I can’t answer that question. A number of factors may be involved, and they can be as different as people are different. Some things, including the cause of your feelings, we may never know in this life. But knowing why you feel as you do isn’t as important as knowing you have not become a Mormon. If your life is in harmony with reason, then you are welcome to serve in the club, enjoy full fellowship with the members, attend the community center, and enjoy all the benefits of belonging to the community.”

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Although I believe members of the community are eager to extend compassion to those different from themselves, it is human nature that when confronted with a situation we don’t understand, we tend to withdraw. This is particularly true of Mormonism. We have so little reliable information about it that those wanting to help are left feeling a bit unsteady. Admitting my own inadequacy in this regard but wanting to assist, let me offer some suggestions to help those who have loved ones or friends who are interested in Mormonism.

The Key to Happiness

First, let’s be absolutely clear on what’s best for each of us. We want everyone to have all of the blessings of life. We wants everyone to be true to his own self. To help us do that, we have recourse to reason. Reason does not change according to the religious trends of the day.

Reason helps us to understand things. Obviously, Mormonism is inconsistent with reason.

For various reasons, not everyone is able to reason effectively. Perhaps they’ve had no education. Perhaps they have disabilities that make careful thinking impossible. Or perhaps there is attraction to some religious superstition. Whatever the problem, life’s richest blessings will eventually be available to all the members of the community if they are clean and honest.

Through the exercise of reason, individual effort, and reliance upon the principles of fairness, some may resolve their interest in Mormonism and move beyond it. Others, however, may never be free of their interest in Mormonism.

As fellow community members, families, and friends, we need to recognize that those attracted to Mormonism face some unique restrictions regarding expression of their feelings. While an interest in Mormonism is real, there must be no action taken as a result of this interest. The desire for religious gratification does not authorize immorality by anyone. Such feelings can be powerful, but they are never so strong as to deprive anyone of the freedom to choose worthy conduct.

In saying this, let me make it clear that Mormon interests alone, troublesome as they may be, do not make one unworthy. It has been said, “There is a distinction between immoral thoughts and feelings and participating in immoral Mormon behavior.” If you do not act on the temptation toward Mormonism, you have not transgressed.
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Ways to Help

Let’s assume you are the family member or friend of someone with an interest in Mormonism who comes to you for help. What do you say? What do you do?

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In doing so, recognize that marrying a person of the same sex is not an all-purpose solution. Mormon interests run deep, and trying to force a healthy relationship is not likely to change them. We are all thrilled when some who struggle with these feelings are able to marry, raise children, and achieve family happiness. But other attempts have resulted in broken hearts and broken homes.

Above all, keep your lines of communication open. Open communication between parents and children is a clear expression of love, and pure love, generously expressed, can transform family ties. But love for a family member does not extend to condoning unrighteous behavior. Your children are welcome to stay in your home, of course, but you have every right to exclude from your dwelling any behavior that is offensive to reason.
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You may feel prompted to encourage the one you are trying to help to visit with a therapist who can help him with his obsession. Please do so, discussing these matters confidentially and in a spirit of love.

Patience

Not long ago I received a letter from a man in his early 30s who struggles with an interest in Mormonism. His struggle has not been easy, and he has not yet found a husband. But, he wrote, “the community has helped me face my current circumstances, and I am content to do my best and hope that things will get better.”

I weep with admiration and respect at the courage of such a man who is living with a challenge I have never faced. I love him and the thousands like him, male or female, who “fight the good fight”. I commend his attitude to all who struggle with — or who are helping others who struggle with — an interest in Mormonism.

While doing some research I stumbled across this fabulous blog. Slap Upside the Head addresses current events, anti-gay bigotry and the absurdity of the RRRW with sardonic wit and pointed cartoons. Here is a small sample, but please click the link to see more. Slap Upside the Head has been added to my Blogroll as well.

 
That’s Not Religious Freedom

David Popescu, the crazy fringe candidate from Sudbury who declared that all gays should be killed during a federal election debate, has been charged by the Greater Sudbury Police Service for two counts of the wilful promotion of violence and hatred toward an identifiable group.
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Already, some right-wing commentators have leapt to Popescu’s defense, claiming that his prosecution is just an example of the oppression and intolerance that Christians are currently facing.
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Meanwhile, in the United States,

Gay couples in the United States are in bitter-sweet celebration this week after a court victory won the right of same-sex marriage in Connecticut, a week after California lost it due to Proposition 8’s passage. Emboldened by what happened in California, anti-gay lobby groups are already working hard to reverse Connecticut’s court ruling, which they call “undemocratic.”

Undemocratic: That’s a word we’ll be hearing a lot of from anti-gay groups down South for a while, at least if Canada’s history on the matter is any indication.
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In 1885, Canada’s history was forever marred by the Chinese Immigration Act, brought into law through a democratic vote. Having already settled in North America, the people decided that legal barriers were necessary to keep out Chinese immigrants; they introduced a fifty dollar head tax for each Chinese immigrant, a small fortune at the time. This lasted 15 years until, in 1900, a second democratic vote increased that fee to five hundred dollars. Not long after, a third democratic vote severely restricted the number of Chinese immigrants that could be on any given boat to Canada, depending on the weight of the boat. Finally, in 1923, Canada banned Chinese immigrations entirely. The law wasn’t repealed for 24 years.

While the controversy was different, the concept was the same. The majority could tyrannize an unpopular minority, and protests or protections from this were dismissed as undemocratic.
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The Disastrous Consequences Of Same-Sex Marriage

December 6th—that’s the day the motion to re-open the same-sex marriage debate will be brought forward. The vote itself can happen right then, the day after, or after the Christmas break. And you know what that means! We’re one step closer to the 2006/2007 Marriage Debate Drinking Game!

The Rules:

Drink the specified number of shots whenever the following words are uttered in the House of Commons:

* Traditional (1 drink)
* Children (1 drink)
* Polygamy (2 drinks)
* Sanctity (2 drinks)
* Social Experiment (3 drinks)
* Constituent Survey (3 drinks)
* I, Stephen Harper, will protect minority rights and the Charter (Your body-weight in kilograms divided by 3)

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I could play a similar game with our own RRRW bigots, but I’d have to substitute espresso shots as alcohol tends to trigger my migraines. Of course I wouldn’t sleep for days after a typical debate but I’d get a heck of a lot of work done.

 
NJ Issues Gay Divorces. Still No Gay Marriage.

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New Jersey happily recognises same-sex marriages performed out-of-state, but in-state, only civil unions can be issued for gay couples. Well, now a New Jersey couple who married in Canada in 2004 wants a divorce so one half can re-marry. Canada won’t issue a divorce because they aren’t citizens; New Jersey, until now, wouldn’t do it because they could only dissolve gay civil unions, not marriages; and, of course, Canada won’t let the other half re-marry if they don’t get a proper divorce first. What a mess!

Enter Judge Mary Jacobson, who ruled that the couple should be able to get a divorce within New Jersey because the state has a history of divorcing foreign marriages. This ruling comes much to the chagrin of The Attorney General’s Office, which had argued that only civil union dissolutions should be allowed for same-sex couples in-state, even if they were fully married, not civil-unioned. The argument resolved around the idea that allowing same-sex divorce would eventually lead to same-sex marriage.

So, there you go. Civil unions have become entangled in the long tentacles of the law, the state is arguing that divorce leads to gay marriage, and we’re now left with this fun fact: In New Jersey, same-sex couples can’t get married—but they’ll be happy to divorce you!

 
Churches Call for Ethiopian Ban on Homosexuality

The Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant churches in Ethiopia have gathered to formally call on their government to enact a constitutional ban on homosexuality. Being gay is already illegal in Ethiopia with prison sentences of up to five years—but why settle for boring, old illegal when it can be constitutionally illegal!

An anonymous spokesperson for the church coalition spoke to journalists after their meeting to explain:

For [gays] to act in this manner they have to be dumb, stupid like animals. We strongly condemn this behaviour; they have to be disciplined and their acts discriminated—they have to be taught a lesson.

Yes, having solved all those pesky, dire famine and plague issues, Ethiopia’s churches are finally moving onto other priorities—and what better way to start than to judge and punish all those dumb, dumb gays that are holding back the country?
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Anti-Gay Marriage Commissioner Sues Saskatchewan

Orville Nichols, a civil marriage commissioner from Saskatchewan, is suing the provincial government over a requirement to issue marriage licenses to gay couples.

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Ah, yes. Ever since I was a wee lad, I always imagined my special wedding day being held in a church that thinks I’m a horrible, horrible sinner—priest nervously presiding over us at gunpoint… government agents standing cross-armed by the newly kicked-in cathedral door. But that’s not terrifically likely.

See, religious institutions are exempt from Canada’s Charter of Rights, and may deny services to whomever they wish. Many religions refuse to wed inter-faith couples unless one converts, and are well within their legal rights to do so. Likewise, churches are not required to marry same-sex couples.

But here’s the thing: A civil marriage commissioner is acting on behalf of the state. Nichols is not an ambassador of his religion and he may not deny his public service to anyone based on their religion, race, disability, or sexual orientation.

So, basically, if this case succeeds, that means I also get to deny my services to whomever I want. So watch out, Bluetooth headset users! Your day is coming.

 
I can see why Slap Upside the Head was voted Best GLBT Blog in Canada. It’s definitely on my daily reading list.

 

This young man asks a very powerful question in this video he posted on YouTube.

Now that’s food for thought.