So Christian pastors held their hate speech rally yesterday, where they tried to prove the recent passage of the Matthew Shepard Act would violate their religious freedoms. They failed.
Led by the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission’s Gary Cass, folks like World Net Daily columnist and pro-life activist Janet Porter took to the podium in Washington D.C., in front of the Justice Department, and somehow believed exercising their First Amendment rights to spew hatred — and, more importantly, outright lies — would get them arrested. They were talking to you, AG Eric Holder! It’s the same message Pat Robertson has been sending.
But was the Washington Post‘s Dana Milbank reports, which as much succinct sarcasm objective reporters can get away with, there were no arrests.
Conservative Christian ministers from across the land, determined to test the bounds of a new law punishing anti-gay hate crimes, assembled outside the Justice Department on Monday to denounce the sin of homosexuality and see whether they would be charged with lawbreaking.
Anything other than sex “between a male and his wedded wife,” announced the Rev. Paul Blair, “is a perversion, and the Bible says that homosexuality is in fact an abomination.”
No arrest was made.
The Rev. Rick Scarborough, quoting Scripture, listed “homosexual offenders” along with thieves, drunkards, swindlers and idolators as those unwelcome in the kingdom of God. “To fail to call homosexuals to repent of their sin and come to Jesus is the highest form of cowardice and sin,” he said.
No charges were filed.
“Had people listened to our plea, there would be tens of thousands of people who had not died of a dreaded disease,” contributed the Rev. Jim Garlow. “This breaks our heart to see people die of AIDS.”
No hands were cuffed. In fact, the few cops in attendance were paying no attention to the speakers, instead talking among themselves and checking their BlackBerrys.
Honestly, we’re a little disappointed with the rally. Where were the calls for violence? Where was the incitement for attacks on gays? C’mon, zealots, that’s how you get arrested. Pussies.
How about we take this to the next level?
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Cam
So according to them… “Anything other than sex “between a male and his wedded wife,” announced the Rev. Paul Blair, “is a perversion”
Hmm, Senator Vitter, Carrie Prejean, Newt Gingrich, Rush Limbaugh, Oral Roberts, and many many other people that these pastors love and support have broken that rule. Isn’t it funny that they don’t seem to be attacking adulterers nearly as much, perhaps they are afraid that their bigoted hypocritical congregations would all flee if THEY actually had to start living by all the religeous dictates they pretend to support as an axcuse for their bigotry.
Mike L.
Wow you can tell she’s a closet case.
naghanenu
Look enough already..
Its childish, petty and dishonest. I see no difference between this rally and any other pro gay rally that has gone down. It is a group speaking out on their beliefs. It is their right. They were not inciting violence or hate attacks so why should they be arrested. Because they do not share your opinions.
Stop witch hunting and bad mouthing people who do not support you. This is why ur cause keeps losing when it comes to popular vote. It also makes it hard to get people to support your cause. You cannot keep on fighting religious gropus of every race and culture that is not how civil rights is won.
I mean you claim there is a similarity between black civil right movement and yours…but this is the area of severe differences. Black movement had tremendous religious backing…duh Martin Luther King was a reverend. It is not impossible to get religious support, its not. But you cannot do it this way.
Please see the light…it is not helping. I mean lets be for real..you cannot tell me that in all 31 states that you lost in it is only old folk that voted…i mean c’mon. You dont believe that. There are just as many young people who dont support gay marriage as do.. that is the ones that are honest.
Get your heads outta your asses and think of a new strategy next year
Cam
No. 3 · naghanenu said…
Look enough already..
Its childish, petty and dishonest. I see no difference between this rally and any other pro gay rally that has gone down. It is a group speaking out on their beliefs. It is their right. They were not inciting violence or hate attacks so why should they be arrested. Because they do not share your opinions.
__________________________
Give me a break. THIS rally is talking about dehumanizing an entire group of people, stripping them of their rights and arresting them for their behavior. Pro-Gay rights rallies are about gays getting the right to spend time with the ones they love when they are injured, or sick, being able to plan funerals for our loved ones, marrying and paying taxes as one couple. If you can’t see the difference then that could only be because you are a bigot. Just becuase it is somebody’s religeous view does not make it right. I don’t see Congress lining up to support Strict Muslims right to beat their wives just because the Koran says it is ok, I don’t see Congress stepping up to support the Old Mormon view that Blacks were the children of sin stamped with the mark of Caim making them inferior. Nope, the only religeous bigotry they seem to take seriously is that aimed at gays. So again, unless you’re willing to support all the religeous dictates out there, stop trying to attack us for NOT letting people attack us.
Jon
Holy fuck! Is she a dyke or what?!?!
John
Tax them.
jarvisbearcub
Dammit Janet! How dyke-y is she?
Did she say that someone was threatened with 47 years in prison for passing out tracts? This is so insulting in so many ways. So, so sad.
I also like how Oklahoma has to be “reclaimed.” Cause it’s soooo gay-friendly.
“Conversation and dialogue is what we are about.” Just after the Bible being proclaimed “inerrant and infallible.”
A church that can afford to pay a six-figure RICO fine I’m sure doesn’t pay much in taxes either. And they were charged under that statute for their ACTIVITIES (not just speech) outside of abortion clinics over a prolonged period of time, having nothing to do with gay marriage.
sam
lol @naghanenu did you read the articles? ora nythign queerty ever posts on rallies like these? we all agree theyre entitled to say what they want 😛
this article isn tsaying they cant say what they said…THE PEOPLE IN QUESTION ARE THE ONES WHO ARE…falsely at that
I lol at them
a. mcewen
And by the way, naghanenu, you really don’t know that much about the African-American civil rights movement, do you? While King WAS a reverend, the black church leadership such as Baptist Conventions mostly stayed out of it.
You also forget that one of his closest advisors and the architect of the 1963 March on Washington was an openly gay black man, Bayard Rustin.
In the future please don’t try to school some of us on something you know nothing about – and this is coming from a black gay man.
mark
I wouldn’t have bothered with Gary Cass in DC, show our disgust at his saying he will test the Hate Crimes Bill,(which means Hate speech followed by acts of violence against queers)at his family home in San Diego. When One queer that gets bashed or murdered because of this MAGGOT inciting violence against us, he and his family will see OUR REACTION where they live, not DC.
mark
naghanenu,
THESE putrid maggots are who said they would test the Hate Crimes Bill and be arrested for doing it.
That means BOTH Hate Speech followed by violence against a queer.
The fact the chickened out doing THAT….this time, doesn’t make them just free speech advocates….they aren’t. They are hate mongers who just don’t have the balls TODAY to attack us, don’t think we will take our eyes off them for a second, and we’ll sue them when they cross the line IMMEDIATELY.
mark
Janet rang EVERYONE’S lez-dar…..off the hook
I’d wager there are chaps in that tired old hag’s CLOSET.
jessi
Nag Can you just get lost already. If you hate us gays so much why do you continuously troll this website. GET A LIFE!
Marcia E
I want to see more of this Chuck Fazio guy.