Updated April 22.
(I'm bumping this up because it deserves more attention.) Can you imagine the uproar from LGBT activists and the banner headlines in LGBT media if Republicans did this: Clinton and Obama Appear at Religious College that Categorizes Homosexuality with Stealing, Adultery & Sexual Abuse. This self-describe "Compassion Forum" was held at Messiah College in Grantham, Pennsylvania. Messiah is a Christian college that urges gay students to seek reparative therapy immediately. Neither candidate mentioned their support for gay nondiscrimination-except-as-regards-marriage.
Clinton and Obama's appearance at this venue was largely ignored by LGBT media and by LBGT activists, and this Friday's LGBT papers seem to have ignored it too. Yet John McCain's speech at Liberty University year's ago still is raised as a supposed indication that any gay person who supports him is a traitor to the cause.
Added: Here's a quote from Chris Crain that makes my point:
It's true that McCain doesn't pander to the right with rhetoric about "traditional family values," even last week when he was trying to win over conservatives as the presumptive GOP nominee. Many moderates and libertarians still love McCain for calling out Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell as "agents of intolerance" back in 2000. But let's not forget how McCain sucked up to both of them in advance of this presidential run, even speaking at Falwell's Liberty University, which routinely expels gay students. (emphasis added)
The ramifications of the fact that so many LGBT activists and so much of LGBT media have been so thoroughly co-opted by a party that sees gay people as votes to collect and pockets to pick, giving back the absolute minimum in return, haunts our cause and will continue to do so for many years to come.
Semi-related, sort of. Are gay voters a cheap political date?
Furthermore. The latest anti-McCain attack ad?
11 Comments for “An Alternate Reality?”
posted by Bobby on
When are people going to realize that all politicians are whores, and will talk to anyone just to get a vote?
Obama needs to go to places like that, specially after telling a San Francisco audience that people in the midwest are a bunch of frustrated people that cling to their guns and their religion as a way to deal.
Frankly, the more I know about Obama, the more I like McCain.
posted by tristram on
Was the ‘compassion forum’ sponsored by Messiah College? No. Did the candidates endorse the College or its ‘community covenant’? No. Is ‘Liberty College’ in fact Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University, and did the Dems assiduously suck up to Falwell or others of his ilk. Did they deliver the commencement address to a class of graduates who were charged to go forth and save the family from the ‘gay agenda’? Any attempt to equate McCain’s appearance at Liberty with the Dems’ participation in the CNN forum at Messiah is utterly specious.
And read that ‘community covenant’ – it’s less hostile to gays than the last two Republican national platforms and most likely this year’s platform as well.
posted by Marcus on
It’s unfortunate, but understandable, that the gay community (if such a thing exists anymore) has felt the need to align itself with (or be “co-opted” by) one of the two major political parties.
It is of no surprise, however, that they have chosen the Democratic party. This can be explained less by what the Democrats have or haven’t done for the gay community, and more by the Republican party’s official demonization of the group.
posted by Southern Decency on
The reason that gay activists are giving Democrats a pass on things like this, despite James “Liberals are hypocrites because they won’t date me” Kirchick’s and Stephen H. Miller’s complaints, is that at the end of the day, liberal Democratic politicians generally do come down on the side of gay rights, while conservative Republicans don’t. The votes on the Federal Marriage Amendment, the Employment Nondiscrimination Act and stated positions on repealing “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” are evidence of this.
“Yet John McCain’s appearance at Liberty College year’s ago still is raised as a supposed indication that any gay person who supports him is a traitor to the cause.”
McCain’s appearance at Liberty U was news because years before he specifically denounced its founder as an agent of intolerance. Clinton and Obama have not denounced anti-gay Christian churches in general as agents of intolerance, Obama merely stated that they are wrong on this one issue. In particular, Obama specifically said he wants to meet with people he disagrees with. Thus, the assertion of moral equivalence between Clinton/Obama and McCain is invalid.
posted by Eric on
Does liberal hypocrisy really need all that much more attention by any of us?
posted by cnner on
To be clear Bobby, the Compassion Forum was sponsored by Messiah College, not by CNN. The forum was going to happen anyway, CNN just televised it.
posted by Bobby on
I stand by my statements, most politicians are whores that seek votes wherever they can. Hillary for example sent her own daughter in a tour of Philadelphia gay bars to meet people, talk to them, and later give a speech. Some of the comments people left online about that story where horrendous, and it wasn’t the free republic website, it was the very mainstream msn.hotmail. People said stuff like “the Clinton’s are scum so its naturally they’d meet with scum.”
posted by Richard on
Least we forget, that we only have two viable choices.
posted by Michigan-Matt on
Stephen, bravo! I think our community is readily inclined to not be just slave-voters on the Democrat Plantation, but willing to pimp for their Masters by claiming they represent ALL gays… one monolith, one voice, one opinion. Kind of like the StonewallDemocrats, HRC et al. And they’ll look everywhere but at the bottomline when it’s time to be accountable for that sell-out… repeated sellout.
That’s why sites like this and GayPatriot and others can and ought to make a huge difference in the discussion of what really is important to gay Americans. But as you know, it’s still difficult to even raise the objection to that notion of the gay monolith without the GayLeft getting all tight in the shorts about it.
posted by Brian Miller on
The Democrats aren’t only cozying up to religious anti-gay institutions.
Barack Obama has brought on the principal architect of the military’s anti-gay ban, former Democrat Senator Sam Nunn, to head up his campaign. It was Nunn who famously declared that “homosexuality is incompatible with military service” — creating the language that now sits in the Republican Party platform on the issue.
http://outrightlibertarians.blogspot.com/2008/04/another-gay-basher-for-obama.html
posted by Brian Miller on
The prior message should say “to head up his campaign office on military strategy.”