On Monday, Montana state Rep. Amanda Curtis struggled to refrain from walking “across the floor” to “punch” fellow Rep. Krayton Kerns during debate aiming to overturn a 40-year-old ban on “sexual contact or sexual intercourse between two persons of the same sex.” Rep. Kerns “insinuated that if you are gay you do not have a moral character.”
“That’s so offensive,” said Curtis. “Talk about starting a fight.”
In a YouTube video addressed to her constituents, Rep. Curtis claims the language of the bill was “really hostile,” likening the demand for anti-LGBT laws to gun an ammunition bans in other states.
The good news? The bill to overturn the outdated law will move forward in the state House after a 60-38 vote. The bad news? There are still 38 people in the House of Representatives that support labeling homosexuals as felons.
How about we take this to the next level?
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The classic ‘Bible card’ was played by most of the dissenting representatives—no surprise there. Curtis continued, “To say that our friends and our neighbors, our brothers, our sisters, our cousins, aunts, and uncles, Montanans, should be felons…because the Bible says so?”
While the advancement of the bill looks promising, it’s disheartening to hear of elected officials throwing their constituents to the dogs like this. Pull it together, Montana!
cyberdoogi
The bible says a lot of things, so does the contents labelling on the packaging of hot cross buns. The difference is that the hot cross buns labelling has to accurate and truthful!
tardis
What the hell is wrong with the world? This is beyond insane. Beyond.
Seriously, us humans will never learn from out past. Shame on them.
2eo
Those same 38 would vote for segregation, even the black politicians. Those 38 are that backwards.
Dionte
Those 38 beings aren’t human.
B Damion
Hello? is this the racist site? Have I found the right site? Is this the story about Brad Paisley (the racist) and LL Cool J (the sell out) making a music video about forgetting about what all the white people did to the blacks in the south only 46 years ago?
B Damion
Who cares?
Alex
WHO CARES!!! This issue was settled nationwide 10 years ago in Lawrence v Texas, even if it bill passed it would be unconstitutional… aghhh can we move onnnn
sangsue
@Alex:
They use it to deny rights so the homosexuality is “legal” but they can use it to deny GLBT the right to adopt children. Or fire teachers. It’s used to humiliate GLBT. So no, we can’t move on.
wrww
I gotta say the title of this article is misleading (actually just false) and the entire tone is unfair to the Montanans who have worked hard to see the repeal of the anti-gay laws become a reality. Two years ago this effort failed. The news coming out of Montana is good news–they have enough votes, for the first time, to repeal the laws that homosexuality a crime. Why so much focus on a negative storyline?
wrww
@wrww: “Laws that make homosexuality a crime” :\
trelin
If this passes…We should all parade around Montana with our Pride flags…We’d overtake their jails. This is truly pathetic. These people should be aborted.
popingay
@cyberdoogi: Love it.
JohnQPublic
Anyone got a breakdown on that vote by party?
I’m betting that the 38 were all Republicans.
Daniel-Reader
Now you know your campaign… So-and-so says the Bible should dictate our state laws. The bible says working on the Sabbath is punishable by death – no exceptions. Why does so-and-so want to kill all the police officers, sheriffs, military personnel, hospital workers, prison officials, and religious leaders in the state who are paid to work on the Sabbath? Help remove so-and-so from office for endangering the lives of every Montana resident with their extremism.
Lee
Elected officials put their hand on the Bible and swear to uphold the Constitution. Not the other way around. If they can’t keep that straight, pun intended, they should get the frak out of office.
Spike
What is it with republicans and their obsession gay sex?
Funny their playing the Bible card, so desperate.
Lee
@ spike –
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8772014
gjg64
I’m confused…..how can they pass a bill which has already been called Unconstitutional?
MK Ultra
The more these crows squack their borderline issues, the better it looks for us.
That is, their propaganda is so terrible that it has the reverse effect: it makes us look better, and they look loonier.
I say, onward little christer soldier.
LadyL
38 Closet Cases.
Cyn
IMMEDIATELY CEASE ALL SHELLFISH IMPORTS TO MONTANA. Because the bible says so.
David
Whatever happened to good ole’ biblical values? Next thing you know, people are going to want to make it legal for farmers to plant more than two kinds of crops in a field; allow folks to eat shellfish; let people wear clothes made of mixed fabrics; permit football players to handle pig skins on Sundays, and keep us from righteously stoning women to death if they can’t prove they’re virgins before they marry . . . Montana is going to hell.
damon459
@Alex: Actually the Montana supreme court struck it down in 1996 so 17 years ago. I live in Montana I think I’d know what’s going on here, we have a few nut jobs in eastern Montana who pull this crap year after year even though the Montana GOP removed this language from it’s platform in Montana.
Raquel Santiago
To hell with refraining, while i do not condone violence of any kind, i would have walked over and let him have it.
Raquel Santiago
@cyberdoogi: agreed…the bible was written by man the same as every other book and constantly contradicts itself. While i agree there is a higher power we really do not know what that is until the day we cease our corporeal existance. Need to look at the persons heart