It wasn’t just us that was ticked at President Obama for attending the National Prayer Breakfast yesterday. The LGBT-rights group GetEqual is calling his appearance at the conservative kaffeeklatsch giving “permission…to support killing LGBT folks abroad.”
“For another year, President Obama has chosen to set aside his stated values of inclusion in order to attend the National Prayer Breakfast—an event rooted in hatred of LGBT people and covered up by pastries and coffee,” said GetEqual director Heather Cronk. “There are so many communities of faith that fully embrace LGBT people and that are rooted in social justice. We really don’t understand why President Obama continues to give his permission for ‘The Family’ to support killing LGBT folks abroad.”
The Breakfast, now in its 61st year, is run by the Fellowship Foundation—a.k.a.”the Family”—a nebulous organization with ties to right-wing politicians and fundamentalist churches. Its roster includes anti-gay Republicans in Congress and powerful leaders in the fundamentalist movement.
More disturbing, Family members have been tied to Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” Bill. Ugandan legislator David Bahati even broached the idea of the death penalty for homosexuals at a National Prayer Breakfast in Uganda in 2009.
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President Obama had addressed the injustice in Uganda at a previous breakfast in 2010—claiming that even conservatives “can agree that it is unconscionable to target gays and lesbians”—but this year he steered clear of any social issues.
Wouldn’t want to upset anyone, would we?
JasonMacBride
It’s called pandering. This president excels at it.
viveutvivas
This is the same president who has killed more children in drone strikes than the Sandy Hook killer. What else do you expect?
Chad
It is a breakfast, get over it. President Obama has come out in support for the gay community multiple times and in multiple different ways. So he attended a breakfast, whatever. He is the President of the United States and all of its people, not just the LGBT community.
Michael
@Chad: So if George Bush would have attended a KKK prayer luncheon, that would have been ok as long as he made clear his position on blacks? Chad…sorry…but you are a gigantic moron.
kurt_t
Pastries? What kind of pastries?
petensfo
It’s a rock & a hard place… if he doesn’t attend, he lives with that headline forever. If he does, he pisses off people that know that he should know better, but that will forgive him b/c despite it all he’s moving us in the right direction.
I wish he wiggled out of it somehow, but I know this Prez is working harder than any other ever has for my equality.
Joetx
Why the hell is Obama still pandering to the right wing? He’s already been re-elected – despite their OPPOSITION.
It’s shit like this that shows that Obama is truly a frenemy.
Want to make up for this, Mr. President? For starters, direct the Department of Justice to write a brief outlining why DOMA should be overturned.
damon459
It’s amazing how black and white people in the country make things. The poor man is damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t. If he goes the gays hate him if he doesn’t the christians will continue claiming he’s a muslim. Frankly if I was this president my state of the union address would start by me saying fuck you! fuck all of you! I can’t please everyone so I must be a secret muslim, kenyan, voter pandering gay hater. This man is the president of the US, not the president of us in the LGBT community only. So yes he has to do his damnedest to please everyone and “pander”. As for the drones, would you rather he send in another 50,000 troops for another 8 years? It’s a war people die in war, regardless of what weapons are used. Joetx what you ask of Obama and the Justice department was done back in july of 2012, it was covered by the Huffington post. Michael your comparison is ludicrous at best, since Obama is after all a christian. Not all christians follow the same line on gay rights, painting them with a broad brush like that is no different then some calling us fecal matter eating pedophiles.
gppm1103
@Michael: Why is he a moron? He is right. Obama doesn’t really care for those people. He is pandering. But…what do you think would happen if he didn’t attend?
We as a community need to focus on the real problems and discrimination facing us. Nobody cares about the breakfast.
One thing that bothers me more is groups like GetEqual, and others that focus on this trivial stuff. I understand their anger at the prayer breakfast people but this isn’t something they should focus on.
Hope the pastries were good:-)
audo_r
Obama has declared his support for the LGBT community numerous times (unlike any other president). This was a prayer breakfast. Get over it. Attending the prayer breakfast doesn’t mean that he is supporting ALL of the attendees’ and organizers’ stances.
Someone made the comparison to Obama attending a meeting by the KKK. This is not the same. The KKK is an organization entirely devoted to promoting racism and white supremacy. The National Prayer Breakfast is not entirely/only devoted to anti-gay agenda. They have other stances as well. Of course I don’t agree with the right-winged bigots, but lashing out at the president’s attendance as if to say he’s supporting anti-gay efforts is petty.
Every president attends the National Prayer Breakfast at some point during their term.
Harley
Hey!!! I was sitting at the log cabin repugnant-clan’s table front and center and I promise you, everyone there was holding their nose and wearing ear plugs. We didn’t hear a WORD he said.