The Gaytheist Agenda

Many people, political candidates in particular, are fond of the “states’ rights” argument when it comes to same-sex marriage. They choose the easy way out (for themselves) by claiming that this is the fairest option for all. But it isn’t the fairest option for the LGBT people who are denied rights in any state except MA, currently the only one that allows same-sex marriage. Nor is it the fairest option for any LGBT citizen who is married and moves out of MA, for those rights are not portable. Nor have Civil Unions/Domestic Partnerships proven anywhere near equal to marriage. So “states rights” is just another way of saying to LGBT citizens you don’t count.

 
Now another instance has arisen in which the utter inequality LGBT citizens experience under the law has been laid bare. And the “states’ rights” nonsense only becomes more insidious as we see how real-life couples are harmed by this notion.

(Miami, Florida) Janice Langbehn and Lisa Pond had planned to take their three children on a family cruise. The Olympia, Washington couple had been together 18 years and with their children were looking forward to the holiday.

But just as they were about to depart on the cruise from Miami, Florida. Pond, a healthy 39-year-old, suddenly collapsed. She was rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami with Langbehn and the children following close behind.

But once Langbehn and the children arrived at the hospital the hospital refused to accept information from her about Ponds’s medical history.

Langbehn says she was informed that she was in an antigay city and state, and she could expect to receive no information or acknowledgment as family.

…..

Other than one five minute visit, which was orchestrated by a Catholic priest at Langbehn’s request to perform last rites, and despite the doctor’s acknowledgement that no medical reason existed to prevent visitation, neither she nor her children were allowed to see Pond until nearly eight hours after their arrival.

Soon after Pond’’s death, Langbehn tried to get her death certificate in order to get life insurance and Social Security benefits for their children. She was denied both by the State of Florida and the Dade County Medical Examiner.

With the help of Lambda Legal Langbehn has notified Jackson Memorial Hospital that she intends to file a lawsuit….

No opposite-sex couple in any state would have been put through that kind of hell. But since Pond and Lagbehn were lesbians the employees in that hospital felt it was fine to deny Lagbehn and their children crucial Human and Civil Rights. This is utterly unacceptable and will not stop until we as a nation put our foot down and make it stop.

We must stand up for what is right for everybody, for all families, in all states. Never again should a partner or child be unable to be with a loved one in their last moments or make decisions on their behalf because of the insensitivities or bigotries of others. Hatred and prejudice must give way, on a national scale, to Human and Civil Rights for all.

 

Several days ago I wrote about a proposed law in TN that would prohibit discussion in elementary and middle schools of any sexual orientation other than heterosexuality. Identical bills in the TN House and Senate would prohibit unmarried cohabitating couples from adopting children–be they straight or gay. And in Florida the ACLU had to intervene when a high school repeatedly restricted student’s 1st Amendment rights to speak up for GLBT equality by deeming such behavior “disruptive”.

Again Florida is in the news, this time for a “marriage protection” amendment backed by the RRRW group Florida4Marriage. This amendment barely got the required number of signatures by the deadline, and has met with significant opposition from a wide variety of individuals and groups within the state. Why? Because it is so broadly worded that it harms not only gay people but straight people who are not married to one another. Once again the RRRW hatemongers are so virulent in their need to harm gay people and “defend” their narrow definition of marriage that they do not care who else they harm in the process.

As a broad-based coalition of state, local and national organizations, Fairness for All Families will continue to educate voters and mobilize volunteers across the state. Many of our seniors rely on domestic partnership benefits that could be taken away by the so-called “marriage” amendment. Also at stake are other basic employment and health care benefits from local governments and businesses received by thousands of families including police, firefighters and other municipal employees. Why would we take away benefits that Florida families rely on? The law should not make it harder for families to take care of their loved ones. We should strengthen, not take away family protections. It is wrong to single people out and vote on the fundamental rights of others.

They have struggled to place this on the ballot because Floridians are learning just how intrusive and harmful this amendment is for our families. We are confident that fair-minded Florida voters will vote NO at the polls in November.”

When will legislatures learn that bigotry does not belong in our laws or our constitutions? These hateful, harmful bills and amendments need to be stopped before they even get started. The only benefit to over-reaching laws such as this one in Florida is that it may wake people up to their hideous unfairness sooner than later.

Florida is not known for its gay-friendly atmosphere. Mayor Jim Naugle of Ft. Lauderdale alone is well known for his blatantly homophobic opinions and propositions. So it’s no surprise it’s in the news again for oppressing the rights of LGBT individuals.

A Florida high school has been trampling the First Amendment rights of students who support equal rights for gay people, according to a federal lawsuit filed today by the American Civil Liberties Union. In its lawsuit, the ACLU described an atmosphere of fear and censorship at Ponce de Leon High School, where the school board’s attorney says even expressions like a rainbow sticker may mean students are members of an “illegal organization.”

…..

The ACLU sent a letter in November to the school board’s attorney on behalf of Gillman, asking for clarification as to whether a variety of symbols and slogans, such as the rainbow flag or “I support my gay friends,” would be allowed at the school. The school district replied that it would not allow any expressions of support for gay rights at all because such speech would “likely be disruptive.” The district then went even further, claiming that such symbols and slogans were signs that students were part of a “secret/illegal organization.”

The letter was sent after Gillman and other students approached the ACLU about an atmosphere in which students say they were routinely intimidated by school officials for things like writing “gay pride” on their arms and notebooks or wearing rainbow-themed clothing. According to students, problems began in September when a lesbian student tried to report to school officials that she was being harassed by other students because she is a lesbian. Instead of addressing the harassment, students say the school responded with intimidation and censorship.

“Because the Supreme Court has held that students have a right to free speech at school unless that speech disrupts the educational process, many administrators think they can just slap the label ‘disruptive’ on anything they don’t like and get away with stomping on students’ First Amendment rights. The law doesn’t work that way,” said Benjamin James Stevenson, a staff attorney for the ACLU of Florida. “School should be a marketplace of ideas, where students share new ideas and learn about themselves and others. Just talking about gay rights or any other topic outside of class isn’t inherently disruptive.”

In the complaint filed today, the ACLU asked the court for an injunction to stop Ponce de Leon High School officials from suppressing students’ First Amendment rights in the future.

“Writing something like ‘I support gay rights’ on your notebook doesn’t mean you’re part of some secret conspiracy or shadowy organization,” said Christine Sun, a staff attorney with the ACLU’s national Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Project. “Schools shouldn’t be in the business of trying to frighten students into silence.”

It’s sad that it is so far gone that the ACLU must intervene on behalf of the students. Human rights are suppressed to the point that saying something like I’m not ashamed to be gay is considered disruptive and a sign that the student is part of an “illegal organization”. Have we returned to the McCarthy era? Is Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell now the official policy for high school students? When will the purges begin?

Excuse me, I realize am going a bit overboard. I’ve just read the second story in a row about these gag policies for students and I’m utterly frustrated. It seems that overall we are regressing rather than advancing with regard to rights for LGBTs in every way, shape and form across the nation and I don’t know where it will end.