To All Ethical People of All Sexuality,
To clarify to the reader, I believe in live and let live. I am against wanton discrimination against anyone (whether homosexual or heterosexual).
I am in philosophical solidarity with all ethical and just people against the persecution of homosexuals in concentration camps during the Nazi reign of terror in Europe during WW2. Homosexuals were forced to wear the pink triangle to distinguish themselves from other perceived Nazi named inferior sub-humans.
I believe it is none of anyone's business who one is. However, I believe that it is none of one's business telling/broadcasting who they are - let alone having a week (Gay Pride Week Toronto) and/or a day (Gay Pride Day Parade Toronto) about one's personal sexuality.
That being stated, it is dangerous with far-reaching sociological negative aftermaths that the Canadian Homosexual/Lesbian Community have gone too far in crossing the line in being able to be allowed same-sex marriage (the word: marriage has religious connotations) with full 'spousal' rights and to adopt children but it is more ominous that the persecuted have become the persecutors through the militant gay agenda, as follows on this web site: www.frontline.org.za/articles/Christophobia.htm and other venues
To reiterate, Geoffrey, a student at UCLA and regular Rod 2.0 reader, joined the massive protest outside the Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Westwood. Geoffrey was called the n-word at least twice.
It was like being at a Klan rally except the Klansmen were wearing Abercrombie polos and Birkenstocks. YOU N*GG*R, one man shouted at me. If your people want to call me a F*GG*T, I will call you a n*gg*r. Someone else said same thing to me on the next block near the temple...me and my friend were walking, he is also gay but Korean, and a young WeHo clone said after last night the n*gg*rs better not come to West Hollywood if they knew what was BEST for them.
JUDICIAL PERSECUTION
In April 1996, Scott Brockie and his family's Toronto Ontario (Canada) printing business, Imaging Excellence, were approached with an order for letterhead, envelopes and business cards for the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives. Mr. Brockie, who is a Christian, refused to accept the order as it contravened his religious conscience to assist an organization's activities that directly promoted homosexuality, which he believed to be a sin. Two months later, a representative from the Archives filed a complaint with the Ontario Human Rights Commission, asserting that Mr. Brockie had denied the individual commercial services based on the man's sexual orientation. In September 1999, Mr. Brockie and Imaging Excellence were found guilty of what was called discriminatory conduct. He was forced to pay a penalty to the Archives of $5,000 and to provide the printing services he had originally refused; in other words, to perform an act that he regarded as being unethical or immoral. In addition, left-hand click on: www.theinterim.com/2002/july/02brockie (different condensed article but same theme). Interesting and disturbing, a Muslim lawyer was approached by EGALE (Equality For Gays and Lesbians Everywhere), the prominent gay rights advocacy group, and was asked to act for them in bringing a constitutional challenge to some legislation which denies a benefit to same-sex couples. The lawyer refuses, citing his religious belief that the Koran states that same-sex relationships are contrary to the law of Allah. EGALE never brought this Muslim lawyer to trial for his ‘human rights’ violation. Scott Brockie challenged the ruling to the Ontario Court of Appeals and was successful but EGALE took this to the Ontario Supreme Court which overturned the Ontario Court of Appeals ruling. Alas Scott Brockie is forced to take this the Canadian Supreme Court even though he has a business to run.
In Sweden, Pastor Ake Green was sentenced to a month in prison for having offended homosexuals in a sermon. Pastor Green is in his 70’s. When a reporter asked, “What about the Pastor’s rights”? The prosecutor replied, “When he started reading Bible verses about homosexuality, he crossed the line”.
Slovakia issued a protest against this heavy handed prison sentence for the pastor in Sweden, saying that this was an example of how “left-wing liberal ideology was trying to introduce tyranny and misuse the (European Union)” to silence freedom of expression. “In Europe, people are starting to be jailed for saying what they think."
Hugh Owens, in Canada, was prosecuted for placing a small ad in his local newspaper in response to all, that he had been forced to observe during Homosexual Pride Week. His advert listed four Scripture references (Romans 1, Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13 and 1 Corinthians 6:9-10) next to an equal sign and a drawing depicting two men holding hands, superimposed over the line drawing with the universal red circle with a line through it, effectively summarizing the Scriptures listed. For that “crime,” Owen was fined $4,500. The newspaper was also fined. So, in Canada, even listing Bible verses can be construed as a “hate crime!”
Dr. James Dobson’s “Focus on the Family” must now edit their Canadian radio programs to remove anything that might be deemed critical of homosexuality, including Bible verses on the subject, and information like the fact that, according to the Centre for Disease Control, the majority of the cases of AIDS in the US are men who engage in homosexual sex.
In New Zealand, two Christian videos that questioned safe sex slogans and exposed the link between AIDS and homosexual behaviour were outlawed by the New Zealand parliament.
When retired air force officer, Enoch Lawrence, in response to a homosexual poster the company had placed near his cubicle, placed a Bible verse, and a bumper sticker that read: “Marriage: One Man One Woman” in his own work cubicle, he was fired by Hewlett-Packard. While a “Pagan Pride Festival” flyer was posted in the break room of Hewlett-Packard, Lawrence’s Pro-Marriage bumper sticker was forbidden.
The head of the Central British Columbia Public Health Board, Chris Kempling, with a PHD in psychology, was suspended from his teaching job at the local high school for writing a letter to the editor of his local newspaper. He stated that homosexuality was not a genetic orientation, that homosexual sex was often unhealthy and promiscuous and that homosexuals could become straight. The judge pronounced Kempling a “bigot.” Although Kempling was never accused of any discriminatory act, he was condemned for having wrong thoughts.
Dianne Haskett, the Mayor of London, Ontario, Canada, was fined $10,000 for refusing to proclaim a “Gay Pride Weekend.” After she lost her case in Canada’s courts, she resigned as mayor rather than to be forced to proclaim the event - just 3 weeks before Election Day. (However, the voters re-elected her with an overwhelming 64% of the vote).
An elderly Englishman, Harry Hammond, was heckled, ridiculed and attacked on the street for holding a sign that read: “Stop immorality. Stop homosexuality. Stop lesbianism.” He was assaulted and knocked to the ground, but when the police showed up they arrested the victim of the assault! He was prosecuted for the opinion he expressed.
When a local school in Canada started handing out copies of the Koran and announced the policy of setting aside a room for Muslim students to pray during school hours, Pastor Mark Harding objected. Pointing out that Christian, Jewish and Buddhist children were not afforded similar opportunities, Harding was prosecuted. Despite Pastor Harding’s publicly stating his love for Muslims and commitment to evangelising his Muslim neighbours, he received more than 3,000 hate filled calls, many of them death threats. ‘Some people in the courtroom motioned by running their finger across their neck from ear to ear. Entering the court, Harding had to pass through crowds of Muslims chanting: “Infidel you will burn in Hell!” However, as they were not prosecuted, these death threats were apparently not considered “hate speech.”
Harding reported receiving a call from someone, identifying himself as from Farrakhan’s Nation of Islam group, who told him that: “They were going to break my legs.” Other calls threatened various amputations and mutilations. Yet, it was Pastor Harding who was convicted of having “willfully promoted hatred” and required to undergo 2 years probation and 340 hours of “community service” at the Islamic Society of North America, where he was forced to go through Islamic “re-education.”
FREEDOM IS AT RISK
Janet Folger, in The Criminalization of Christianity states: “Christians are singled out, labelled, fined, interrogated, humiliated, indoctrinated, fired, ordered to attend re-education programmes and sent to jail for expressing Biblical views…this battle is for truth and freedom. And we are losing by default… If we stay silent on controversial issues, like the slaughter of more than 45 million American children…no one will be offended… We work very hard to present a sensitive, positive Christianity to seekers who don’t like hearing about stuff like obedience and a place called Hell. ‘All we need is love’ has replaced ‘Onward Christian Soldiers’ as our anthem. Love is critical, of course, but so is Truth. The Bible says that God is love, but also that He is Holy… Unless we embrace Him as Lord, we will face Him as Judge. Keep in mind that Jesus talked more about Hell than He did about Heaven… and if we make Him Lord, we have to actually do what He says…He commanded us: “Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don’t stand back and let them die” Proverbs 24:11… “Open your mouth for the speechless, in the cause of all who are appointed to die” Proverbs 31:8… “Thou shalt not kill”…Exodus 20:17 “If you love Me you will keep My commandments” John 14:15… “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action is dead.” James 2:17 “Your actions are what you believe. Everything else is just religious talk… if you want to be free to speak what you believe in your church, in your work place, in your community, you are going to have to get off the side lines and into the game…but this is more than just a game. It’s a battle for our freedom. Yes, we have the right to remain silent, but if we use it much longer, we may hear those words being read to us just before we see the inside of a prison cell.”
RIDICULE AND NAME CALLING
One tactic often used to silence Christians is ridicule. This encompasses everything from insults and name calling to character assassination.
Given the prevailing dogma of “tolerance” it is extraordinary to note the abusive terminology published against Christians.
One article in the Washington Post described Christians as “largely poor, uneducated and easy to lead.” Imagine describing any other group of people in that way in the press!
Ted Turner, the former owner of CNN, described Christians as “bozos” and Christianity as “a religion for losers.” Again, imagine any prominent figure describing the adherents of any other religion in such words.
Mel Gibson was one of Hollywood’s greatest stars, popular and respected - until he wanted to make a movie about the sufferings of Christ. No one in Hollywood was willing to finance or distribute it. Mel Gibson began being described as “a wacko”,”crazy”, “a real nut case”, and worse. Interestingly enough, The Passion of the Christ, in terms of box-office sales, became one of the top ten most successful films of all time - despite the extraordinary Hollywood and news media campaign against it. Despite Christianity being based on the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ to love one another, love our neighbours, love our enemies, return good for evil, to forgive and be merciful, Christians are frequently referred to in the most negative terms: “The forces of genuine evil, evil, genuine evil;”“Their religion is so narrow, and it is so mean, and it’s so ugly…”
Roseanne Barr publicly exclaimed: “You know what else I can’t stand, is them people that are anti-abortion. F – Them; I hate them. They’re horrible; they’re hideous people. They’re ugly, old, geeky, hideous men… they just don’t want nobody to have an abortion…”
Syndicated radio host, Howard Stern, after vehemently arguing for abortion, responded to a pro-life caller in these words: “You’re an idiot. I can’t stand dumb people. If I were president, I would have you gassed. I would march you into the ovens!” Can one imagine any radio host being able to refer to Muslims, Jews or any other group with such words!
At a Grateful Dead concert, musician Bob Weir announced to a crowd of 30,000: “Can I hear everyone say, ‘F-the Christian Right?”
ANTI-CHRISTIAN PREJUDICE
“If they are Christians, you can hate them. You can ridicule them, and before you silence them make sure you blame them for everything you don’t like. Pick a Christian, any Christian. And, hey, why not start at the top? There are now more than 50 books bashing (President) Bush”
Hypocritically, the California National Organisation of Women (www.canow.org) and NOW - National Organization of Women (www.now.org) did not show any solidarity with Miss California, Carrie Prejean being insulted by Perez Hilton with anti-women sexist 'b' words and 'c' words on Facebook. Are we to believe that so-called women rights advocates are ethical and have integrity insofar in excluding evangelical Christian women when their rights are trampled by the other sex -whether straight or gay in any situation?
HOMOSEXUAL BIAS
Former Clinton White House Spokesman, Mike McCurry, declared that anyone who believed what the Bible had to say about homosexuality was “backward thinking.” Can you imagine him saying that about people who believed the Koran?
The Criminalisation of Christianity observes that while there were 13,500 stories on the murder of Matthew Shepard, who was a homosexual, there were only 632 stories on the brutal murder of 13 year old Jesse Dirkhising by homosexual assailants. The people who killed Matthew Shepard later confirmed that they didn’t do it out of any animosity for his sexual behaviour – they killed him for money for drugs. Both killers attacked Shepard for robbery, it had nothing to do with his homosexuality. Yet there was massive newspaper and TV coverage of the Shepard case, two major Hollywood specials, three TV movies and a play, all depicting Shepard as a victim of an anti-homosexual hate crime. However, people like Jesse Dirkhising, who was bound, gagged and brutally sodomised, then smothered to death, by homosexual assailants failed to receive any such media coverage. Similarly, the murder of Mary Stachowicz, a 51 year old wife, and mother of 4, who was murdered by a 19 year old homosexual, Nicholas Gutierrez, for witnessing to him and suggesting that he could change his lifestyle, was ignored by most newspapers. This mother - who was described as a deeply compassionate church member and soft-spoken - was “punched, kicked, stabbed and strangled to death.” But that wasn’t considered a hate crime.
HATRED AND BLASPHEMY
Folger points out that while pro-family leaders repeatedly condemned the murder of Shepard, the homosexual community never condemned this horrific murder. Posted on the ACLU On Line Forum, were these comments: “I really don’t feel sorry for her. She paid a very steep price for being an arrogant religious fascist.” And “quite frankly, if anyone in this case was being persecuted it was Mr. Gutierrez.” Posted on YAHOO were these comments: “Maybe (Stachowicz’s murder) will strike fear in the hearts of a few fundamentalists…Where do I send a cheque for (Gutierrez’s) defense fund!”; “the B- had it coming to her. I’m glad he killed her…the B- deserved to die!” So tolerance does not seem to apply toward Pro-Life, Pro-Family Christians. Nor does any amount of venom poured out against Christians seem to be worthy of the designation “hate speech.” American Christians have endured all kinds of harassment and threats from militant homosexuals. ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) founder, Eric Pollard, threatened Pro-Family leaders: “I shall torture you during the day time, and will keep you from a peaceful sleep at night.” In Madison, Wisconsin, 400 homosexual activists stormed Trinity Evangelical Fellowship Church shouting obscenities inside the church for nearly an hour, while some of the protesters urinated and defecated on the church floor. Hundreds of others banged on the walls and windows with rocks and trash can lids, shouting: “Crush the Christians!” and “Bring back the lions!” ACT UP member, Michael Petrelis, publicly stated: “We should have shut down the subway and burned down City Hall. I think rioting is a valid tactic and should be tried…if some one took out (former Congressman) Jesse Helms or William Dannemeyer…I will be the first to stand up and applaud.” At St. Patrick’s Cathedral, ACT UP homosexual activists stormed the church, screamed obscenities and stomped on communion bread, urinating in the church. Posters with vile curses against the Pro-Life pastor and the church predominated. ACT UP protesters simulated various perversions on the altar, and swarmed around congregants pelting them with condoms and shouting and threatening them.
ATTACKING THE CHURCH
In their book When the Wicked Seize a City, Chuck and Donna McIlhenny, described what happened after the San Francisco Presbyterian Church fired a homosexual organist. “Rocks, beer bottles, beer cans were thrown through the church windows on many occasions. Swastikas were carved in the church doors and drawn on our house. A window in our car was smashed out. Graffiti was spray painted all over the church, house and sidewalk. Anti-Christian, Pro-homosexual leaflets were scattered around the neighbourhood, calling us Nazis, bigots, anti-gay, etc. Demonstrators would come to our Sunday services and disrupt the worship…one man came pounding and spitting on our front door in the middle of the night, screaming: ‘We’re going to get you McIlhenny – we’re going to kill you politically!’ We were verbally threatened outside the house on the way to the car. There were daily – 24 hours per day – telephone calls. It began with screaming and obscenities. They graduated in the phone calls to describing our children…and what sexually deviant behaviour was to be practiced on the children before killing them…Then…someone actually attempted to follow through with their threats to kill us by fire bombing the house while the children were asleep inside.”
BLOOD TERRORISM
One radical gay activist, Robert Schwab, suggested: “If AIDS research money is not forthcoming at a certain level by a certain date, all gay males should give blood. Whatever action is required to get national attention is valid. If that includes blood terrorism, so be it.” Doug Herman of Pure Revolution lost his wife and baby to “blood terrorism.” Now he travels America speaking about Purity. Folger writes: “And let me assure you, homosexual activists attack him. You would think that killing his wife and daughter would have been enough.”
DIAGNOSIS BY INTIMIDATION
The New York Academy of Medicine issued a Report on Homosexuality in 1963, which stated: “Homosexuality is indeed an illness. The homosexual is an emotionally disturbed individual who has not acquired the normal capacity to develop satisfying heterosexual relations.” However, in 1973, the American Psychiatric Association voted to strike homosexuality from the official list of Psychiatric Illnesses. Not because of any new scientific revelations, nor even from any consensus within the scientific community, but because of threats and intimidation. Dr. Jeffery Satimoveo, in Homosexuality and the Politics of Truth, wrote: “Homosexual activists planned a systematic effort to disrupt the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association.” Protesters broke into the meeting of APA members and grabbed the microphone and proclaimed: “Psychiatry is the enemy incarnate. Psychiatry has waged a relentless war of extermination against us. You may take this as a declaration of war against you…we are rejecting you all…” The committee later voted that maybe homosexual behaviour was not a sign of psychiatric disorder after all. At the 1973 APA Convention, dissenters were allowed only 15 minutes to discuss 70 years of psychiatric research that contradicted it, before the hijacked vote was formally applied to the full membership. Although 69% of psychiatrists disagreed with the vote and still considered homosexuality a disorder, intimidation tactics had succeeded in forcing the APA to reverse their official position. In 1994, activists tried to make it illegal for practitioners to give therapy aimed at helping homosexuals change. Although this attempt failed to secure a majority vote, a few years ago, the APA published a study favourable to Pedophilia.
PERSECUTED FOR PROTECTING
In recent years, the Boy Scouts of America have come under relentless attack for not allowing self-described homosexual activists to become Scout leaders. As a result of attempting to protect the children who had been entrusted to them, the Boy Scouts have been kicked out of parks, schools and public forums, denied funding by cities and counties. So far, despite being underfunded, ostracized, thrown out and left out, they have stood up against the ridicule, the assaults, the censorship and the law suits. And all that because they want to teach young boys honesty, courage, hard work, respect, patriotism and positive values.
CENSORSHIP IN THE CLASSROOM
When 5 year old Antonio Peck was told to make a poster on How to Save the World, he drew a picture of Jesus and wrote: “The only way to save our world.” His teacher told him that this was: “Unacceptable!” When Craig Cunningham of the Genocide Awareness Project set up a display at the University of Miami depicting various forms of Genocide throughout history, some students tried to cut, mangle and destroy them. Reason? He had included pictures of the Abortion Holocaust. A quote from the University paper concerning his Genocide Awareness Project: “Whoever these people are, they should be shot.” So whatever happened to freedom of speech on campus? Imagine some Christian writing something like that about, for example, a homosexual group? Why, that would be a hate crime!
PREFERRING PAGANISM
The Mayor of San Jose justified spending $500,000 of public money to construct a statue of the Aztec god, Quetzalcoatl, because the Aztec religion contained: “those elements that seek to elevate the human consciousness to a higher plane.” The fact that this very same Aztec religion marched hundreds of thousands of slaves to the top of their pyramid like temples, to have their still-beating hearts ripped out of their chests with flint knives, hardly seems to justify such praise. Yet at the same time as this tax funded Aztec idol was being erected, the San Jose Parks Board decided to remove a Nativity scene from the same park. (A flood of protests to the City Hall managed to reverse this incredible decision.) While GOOGLE takes ads for all kinds of XXX pornographic films and sites, GOOGLE recently banned an advertisement from a Christian Organisation, Stand To Reason, because the group’s website contained articles saying what the Bible says about homosexuality! Various judges nominated in the USA, have been opposed by liberals because: “His children are home-schooled”; “They are leaders in the Boy Scouts” and “They teach Sunday school”!
AN APPEAL TO THE NON-POLITICIZED ETHICALLY-MINDED MEMBERS OF GAY COMMUNITIES
Perhaps, the True Church should at least apologize to the gay community for miscommunication rather than its stance regarding homosexuality.
To open dialogue with the Gay Community - rather than using non-diplomatic and/or inflammatory tags such as ‘choice’, ‘lifestyle’, 'biological', and/or ‘who one is’ - a neutral term as sexual orientation would be conciliatory for positive communication in bridging gaps.
The non-politicized ethically-minded gay community need to be open that bigotry and hatred is not only exclusive among the heterosexual community but also among the homosexual community.
For the homosexual/heterosexual communities, is there no discernment among any of you that there are negative, unnatural, and evil nuances that permeate homosexual orientation through various Gay Pride parades? For example, because the feminist lesbian community did not tolerate sexual exploitation in the porn industry, how can sexual exploitation are tolerated through various Gay Pride parades and hypocritically from sexually exploitative magazines such as On Our Backs? In addition, it is hypocritical to protest against Hooters operating in local neighbourhoods and then, tolerate women exposing their breasts during Dyke March.
For the Gay Community, tolerance should be extended for former homosexuals and lesbians in your community for whatever reasons, desire and/or became heterosexual.
In conclusion, may this small olive branch composition in this post extend to some peace and reconciliation?
You’re in all our mutually best interests,
Mike Researcher
Mike Researcher
