Members of the Highfield Road Gospel Hall in Toronto spent an evening caroling preaching outside a gay couple’s home because they were a gay couple, uh, living in a home. Yes, really. So the neighbors heard the commotion, came outside and, Desperate Housewives style, showed them off the property. What kind of people have this much time in the evenings? [via]
preach it
What Do You Mean You Don’t Want Christian Evangelists Hanging Outside Your House?
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menlo
Don’t know why they’re upset, it’s kind of like caroling but with a mean edge.
alan brickman
why are most of them black???…..
robert
I love how they go on about it being their ‘right’ to do so, when freedom of expression is just one of the rights they’d take away from everyone else if they ever achieved a Christian theocracy.
Kev_Hanson
This ‘church’ is a very short distance from my house, in what is (like most of Toronto) a very cosmopolitan and progressive-minded neighbourhood. I’m a bit stunned to see this happen, but heartened by the reaction of the neighbours. The ethnic composition of the group may be a reflection of discomfort among some immigrant communities with the legal status the LGBT population enjoys in Canada (conservative tendencies that the current non-progressive federal government isn’t shy about leveraging for its own advantage). Perhaps I’ll stop off on my run tonight and say a little prayer for enlightenment outside of Highfield Gospel.
AndrewW
Activists, ugh.
It’s great to see the numbers evict these irritating people from the neighborhood.
Hilarious
Leave it to hypocritical morons to turn this isn’t a race issue.
While the bigots in the video preach hate against gays, the bigoted commenters on Queerty have to focus on “the blacks” and “ethnics”.
I’d say put on a Klan hood, but they don’t want you either.
It’s almost scary how some can be both gay and racist while crying about people being black and homophobic or Asian and homophobic. You’re no better than the people you’re whining about.
Meanwhile any white people involved are totally ignored and absolved of any wrong doing as usual. That’s just icing on the totally ignorant cake.
AndrewW
@AndrewW: *neighbors*
fuzzy
I want those neighbors. My neighbors would never do that for me. Hell, they’d probably join in the preaching.
Mike UK
In the UK this is called “a breach of the peace” and the nice police persons come along and make you move.
edgyguy1426
@alan brickman: Alan where do you get the math where 3 out of 9 is ‘most’? Can’t you racists get *anything* right?
B
Something like this happened in the Castro last Halloween during the day (it was a Saturday). Two religious nuts with a megaphone showed up and started preaching. Some neighbors called the police and complained about the noise, but one guy went out to argue with them – completely naked. It was hilarious. You had this nude guy having a theological argument with a religious nut. Then the nude guy followed them around to shoo them out of the neighborhood. Predictably, when the police arrived, they had some words with the religious nuts (about the noise) and completely ignored the naked guy.
karlschneider
Could somebody persuade these vile scumbags to picket MY house? I have lots of ammunition.
PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS
If I had scum like this outside my door, I think my brakes somehow may malfunction as I was pulling up to my door…………..
adam
@Hilarious: Sorry, but black people from majority-black countries (as their accents would suggest) are overwhelmingly homophobic. They aren’t homophobic due to their race, but the demographic is generally vociferously homophobic in practically every part of the word, including in the West. It’s not ignorant, nor is it racist, to acknowledge this fact.
John
Alan, If as you suggest, Black people from majority Black countries are overwhelmingly homophobic; it’s only because those countries were colonized/conquered by homophobic Whites who forced Christianity on them.
You still didn’t acknowledge why you didn’t bother mentioning the Whites or Asians in the group.
I suspect that you are just an ignorant racist – the worst kind.
karlschneider
@Hilarious:
Well, sadly the fact is that black Californians were a significant factor in the passage of Prop 8 by their support. A notable percentage of black folks believe, thanks to their religious leaders who they do not dare question, that being gay is ‘different’ from being black because it is a choice (a very popular lie that’s told over and over by many different sects of what passes for Christianity these days.)
bluenosedive
I just saw this on my local news station….since I live in Toronto. And I was like O_O!! WTF!?? o_O?? So I quickly run to my laptop to see if it was on Queerty and sure thing it was. I can’t believe I missed it this morning. This sure is weird.
Apparently the gay couple claims they were not being attacked because of their sexuality. Hhhhhmmm??…this story seems more complex then it appears.
karlschneider
@John:
It’s just a fact, you don’t seem able to separate facts from hysteria. It doesn’t matter “how” they got to be homophobic, only that they ARE.
Lighten up, Francis.
Tallskin
A solution would be to turn your lawn sprinklers on pointing out into the road in order to drench these evil bastards.
James UK
@PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS:
Baby Jane goes driving.
@karlschneider:
It wasn’t. The damage was done by white women with school age children. The research to that effect has been all over the press and the internet for the last few weeks.
What is offensive about the evangelicals in the video clip is not the colour of their skin, but the content of their characters. They aren’t Christians preaching love, they are bullies preaching hate.
Bravo to the neighbours!
karlschneider
@John:
It’s just a fact, you don’t seem able to separate facts from hysteria. It doesn’t matter “how” they got to be homophobic, only that they ARE.
Lighten up, Francis.
Here’s an interesting piece
http://www.blacklightonline.com/phobia.html
karlschneider
@James UK: I haven’t seen that ‘research’. Where did you find it?
James UK
Try the LA Times website. It was a 500 page plus report – the author is David Fleischer.
James UK
@karlschneider:
See http://www.Prop8Report.org
Bill Perdue
Oh! Canada!
Kev_Hanson
@bluenosedive: What station is airing the report?
Jon
@bluenosedive: It’s possible that it wasn’t originally about anyone’s sexuality. These sorts of folks pull the same thing at college campuses here in the States. They stand on the sidewalk (claiming it’s public property) and yell at anyone in the vicinity. Just wearing a short sleeved shirt is a moral offense to some of these Christian sects.
I’d love to see the local news coverage on this. I hope some clips find their way onto the internet.
gilber
in the name of our holy god, you fagots, go swallow vaginal humors and discharge your sticky pus in the mouth of a female!!!.god is great and he doesn’t like abominations and promiscuity between those that have the same body parts.you are more promiscuous than us,cuz you fake sexual belonging and your relationships are not natural since you don’t have sexual dimorphism like we do.bla bla bla bla bla praise the lord
bluenosedive
@Kev_Hanson and @ Jon
The story was on City TV News here’s a link to the report:
http://citynews.video.citytv.com/video/594237620001/Church-Group-Residents-Battle-It-Out-In-Leslieville/
karlschneider
@gilber:
Tell your Uncle Dad I said hi.
karlschneider
@gilber:
Tell your Uncle Dad I said hi.
@James UK: The link you gave me says this:
“We lost among African-Americans and many other groups, too.”
I never said “African-Americans” were the ONLY group against us, why did you imagine I did? And by the way, just what the fuck is an ‘african american’ anyway? Aren’t they satisfied with being regular Americans? I never wanted anybody to call me a “European American”…I find the phrase ‘African-American” to be arrogant, racist and idiotic.
karlschneider
@gilber:
When I was young and stupid, I would have paid handsomely for a bit of whatever you are smoking. Fortunately I never had the opportunity to buy any.
Nickadoo
As a _____, I feel that _____s should hate the _____s because there are more _____s who hate _____s than ______s who hate _____s and _____s are typically more _____ than _____s. For this reason, I blame the _____s. If you happen to be both _____ and _____, you should pick a side, and if you side with the _____s, clearly you’re a self hating _____.
Ogre Magi
I would set my hounds on them!
Biggiggles
@gilber: Bwahahahahahahah
Chris
The gay tolerance difference between Canada and the US is astounding. It’s like how a north Korean is six inches shorter on average than a south Korean.
Steve
Uh, why didn’t someone call the cops? You have a right to preach your beliefs, but you don’t have the right to do it around someone’s house at night when families most likely DON’T want to hear your bullshit. The neighbors were fucking awesome though!
axos
The “we have the right to stand here and preach to you whether you like it or not” attitude is so dumb. How on earth do they expect anyone to turn to their beliefs or even respect them when they force themselves on people? It’s harassment.
Kev_Hanson
Local context on this: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/852019–viral-video-in-leslieville-is-not-what-it-seems?bn=1
dE
So easy to deceive on the internet; this video is not what it seems, and a story this morning in the Toronto newspaper clarifies:
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/852019–viral-video-in-leslieville-is-not-what-it-seems?bn=1
Rick Brannon
PWNED.
Ricky Wuz Here
@karlschneider: wasn’t there new data that suggests it was actually white parents mostly responsible for the passage of Prop 8 because they’d been duped by the advertisement campaign? I don’t recall where I read that but it was quite recent and overshadowed by prop 8’s overturning.
axos
Kev, DE – thanks for the clarification, but it’s still pretty much what it seems. Those people are in a residential neighborhood and force their loud preaching about sin and God’s love on people who did not ask for it, hoping that something will stick. Have they no respect for privacy? There’s no volume control button on them.
horus
@gilber: God is gonna get u 4 that
Pookie
African Americans used to be referred to as Negroes or Negro but White people (particularly from the south) would pronounce it as “Negra” which was to close to the “N” word. Black really was not an identity for alot of Black people, so that is where the term African American came from. Of course all Black Americans are Americans, but since most Black Americans ancestry is derived from slavery we don’t have any idea what tribe or what part of Africa that are ancestors were from. You may not refer to yourself as a “European American”, but if someone asked about your heritage I’m pretty sure you and your family have somewhat of an idea if your ancestry is from England, Ireland, Sweden, or whatever European country your family came from before they arrived here in America.
Joe
What is disturbing as well is that Evangelical Christianity is making inroads into histrically progressive Canada. Fox News has begun slithering its way into the media outlets throughout Canada over the last year or so. Please, America, keep your crazies down there.
AndrewW
@Joe: Don’t worry – radical Christians are going out of business here in the US because they are dying and thankfully their children have been exposed to education and reason. They are less than one-third of those that self-describe as “religious.” Twenty five years ago the were almost two-thirds.
horus
Highfield Road Gospel Hall-listen to a REAL christian.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeT7yJ7SrE4
AndrewW
@horus: REAL Christians?
Which Christian denominations have rejected the traditional Christian belief that homosexuality is wring, sinful and deviant? Which ones? If they have formally rejected that teaching/belief, we should support them.
But, the truth is NO self-described Christian denomination or organization has done that …. yet.
Who wants to be first? MCC? UCC? Where’s the official statement rejected the bigoted beliefs of Christians?
If you point was REAL Christians would reject those teachings/beliefs – none have done that yet.
horus
@AndrewW: a rhetorical statement andy. i’m on your side…
AndrewW
@horus: We should make odds on which denomination will be first. Maybe take bets. I see little hope for the Baptists or Mormons. We have a 50/50 chance with Catholics.
edgyguy1426
@karlschneider: Heil
Queer Supremacist
I want Christian Evangelists hanging outside my house.
On a rope.
David
Way back in 1988 when I bought my first house, I had various bible thumpers knock on my door. Eventually I wrote my own set of anti-Bible pamphlets and “pamphleted the pamphleteers.”
“Is GOD a Sadist?” was one, and it recounted the unhappy tale of Moses and the Pharaoh. Tragically, Jehovah told Moses that He would screw with Pharaoh’s mind (free will) so that Pharaoh would refuse Moses’ request to let the Hebrew slaves go free, and then Jehovah would punish Pharaoh for refusing the request.
Ya, that one was particularly fun to give to the J. Witnesses.
Another one was emblazoned with “The Bible Is A Horrible Book” in huge letters on the front panel, and the inside was filled the Bible horrors along with a few appropriate woodcuts of Christian brutality.
That one merited an invite for a free IHOP breakfast from the Sunday School Superintendant of the next town’s First Baptist Church, who’s pastor I had tangled with in the local newspaper’s editorial section. Turns out they wanted me to talk to their Sunday School class, but at the last minute, the pastor nixed the idea.
Gee, that was way back in the early 1990’s. I almost didn’t get the 2000 copies out of the local printing shop; the owner’s daughter took one look at the proof and her face turned like she had soaked it overnight in vinegar. “Money is sweeter than vinegar,” as they say, and a few $$$ got my pamphlets out of the shop and into the deserving hands of True B’leevers.
Nowadays American Atheists and FFRF offer pamphlets for similar purposes. Mine were engineered to be more offensive, ’cause that’s I really don’t care about the feelings of Christians who think it’s a virtue to slander me and my friends.
Terry E
@Pookie:
Pookie, This sounds like just one more try for sympathy in a long line of cries for sympathy. The facts are that while you may not know the exact tribe of your origins, we do know the areas that the Arab traders picked from. Just which chiefs were willing the sell their people for a few trinkets. Case in point, there are very few people from the Zulu tribe because the Zulus were warriors and who would sell a warrior? Africa was considered a very dangerous place by the few whites who went to Africa. That is why Dr Livingston was able to disappear for so long. Stanley was considered crazy for going to look for him. Whites only inhabited the coastal ports, they wouldn’t go inland. Arab Traders brought the slaves out to the ports. So your DNA can be traced and a few AAs have done this and discovered just where and who they came from.
Terry
Terry E
@Steve<@Steve:
Maybe that’s why. The cops wern’t needed!
Glenn Dickson
These extreme intolorant born again biggots should be swiftly delt with. No one of any perticular faith should be on the street
proselotizing and condemning others because of their sexual
oritation or what faith they belong to. For too long now we have allowed these so-called christian knuckle-heads to spread their hate and intolorance toward others. They have spread inuendows and lies about the official Mormon LDS Church: distorting its teaching,persauding others that they are an evil cult. This practice with the born-again Church has been going on for many years and its leaders must stop condemning other faiths. It hurts me to see so many people wounded through fear mongering and biaist judgement. Perhapst tolorance and understanding will once again come to the forefront of excepting those who worship in different ways regardless of whether they believe or not.
Lulu Petry
They were not targeting gays. They were preaching the Gospel of salvation. A sinner is a sinner, doesn’t matter if you are gay, straight, black, white, rich, poor, atheist, catholic etc. Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the inside of what is in a person’s heart, and what God sees in the heart of humans is darkness, hate, wickedness and sin. Sin needs to be punished and so all mankind is doomed to punishment after this life. But God sent his Son Jesus to die on the cross and take the place of sinners so that mankind can be made free. It is a gift of God available to every sinner who will repent and turn away from their sin.
For God so loved the World that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever (that means you!) believes should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16