Monday, December 12, 2011

Racism: Still Alive and Healthy

Today I passed along a picture on Facebook I received depicting starving children reaching out their hands on one side with a contrasting picture of women busily stuffing as many toys under arms and into their carriages as they can, with a caption the reads: "Define Necessity".


Apparently my spouse's friend Danielle Cole finds this picture offensive because she's black. To her, white men like myself don't see the plight of these children as disturbing as she does because we don't share the same skin color. Here is what was said to one another:


Danielle Cole · Friends with Raymond Grinnell

People need to stop making these things. Mostly, they don't care about those poor African children. SOME people in America spend way to much and it's a problem (largely middle and upper class people) however, using some sad picture of starving kids who we help to keep starving by how we benefit from their resources in America isn't going to change that. It's a rude way to make a point, by using African children to make you feel guilty while not really doing anything for either super consumerism or for those children. Just saying, they make me cringe and it's kinda offensive.





John Hosty-Grinnell 
Art doesn't always portray beauty, it's supposed to make you cringe. Clearly it got you to think about what it wanted, so the effect intended was created, making this art. Your opinions about why people make "these things" I find interesting. Do you know more about the artist than I? Because what I see is someone who cared enough to remind us all that we could spend a little less on ourselves and a little more on those in need. I shared it hoping to encourage others to give a little more this year, and to remind myself to do the same.








Danielle Cole · Friends with Raymond Grinnell
I see what's called poverty porn using the images of black Africans that next to nobody does anything to care about. The use of these people to make others feel bad does work but it still doesn't create social change and still ignores the ties between what they are showing is a problem and how that problem directly causes this type of experience for people around the globe. But it doesn't say that. It just says a simple message while using that image. I really think racially this is a fucked up thing to do and I can bet money the artist was white and not thinking about what images like these mean to actual Africans. This is not art. This is something to make one group of people feel better about their consumption habits and another to feel guilty, without examining how the U.S. and many of its residents benefit directly from the starvation of these children. I just find it disgusting.









John Hosty-Grinnell You seem to see color in both the children and the image of the artist your mind has brewed up. I see children in need, and it inspires me to help.










Danielle Cole · Friends with Raymond Grinnell
LOL. Well if you're self proclaimed "colorblind" and telling a black woman not to see "color" then we have nothing to discuss because you just won't get it. It's funny how that works but not surprising and this is exactly why I don't like these photos. Cause you "can't" see the color of these children and that completely obscures reality. Plain and simple. Furthermore, you won't be doing anything for those children. Most charities don't do anything to create sustainable economies for their home countries and take large chunks of money donated. This image doesn't inspire change, action or anything. It makes people pat themselves on the back and call it "art" which it really isn't. It's called photoshop which anyone can do, slap two pictures together and paste some words on top of it. But alas...











At this point I've had my fill and the gloves are off:











John Hosty-Grinnell OK, I think you've hit your bitchy quota for the evening, so run along with that racism bullshit and try selling it to someone else.












Danielle Cole · Friends with Raymond Grinnell
Ok. Thanks. White man telling me to run along with that racist bullshit. If you want to cling to your white privilege by patting yourself on the back thinking you've done something nice by posting this shitty, offensive picture, it's cool. But just know who it offends and who doesn't think it's cute. But you won't. You will stick with your Cape Cod circle of other white men doing the same thing and ignoring the reality of millions because it doesn't affect you. I wasn't being bitchy I was simply telling you why this IS OFFENSIVE. You are too good to learn or understand perspectives other than your own I guess.








Just before blocking me as a Facebook friend she had these final words she didn't post publicly:



Danielle ColeHonestly. FUCK YOU for saying I can't see past race because I'm black. You do see the irony in that right? Of course I can't. My whole life I've been reminded of that very fact. That I'm black. Even if I wanted to forget, white people like yourself have never allowed me to forget. Nor will my job prospects, the police, when I go to get an apartment or house or want a job loan. That's not cynical. It's called fucking reality. I see Raymond's brilliance has not rubbed off on you. Quite frankly, as someone who is also queer and understands a lot about that struggle, I find it quite disheartening when gay white men can't see my plight. But you wouldn't because the world sucks your cock for being white. And again, that's not cynical, it's the truth. Live in a bubble in your cape cod comfort for as long as you want but I am no longer associating with you.
Danielle, I feel bad for you. I feel bad for anyone who has poisoned themselves with their own hate to the point where strangers fit into stereotypes and are no longer individuals. Isn't that how racism starts? We predispose ourselves to the idea that we know what to expect from someone based on some immutable trait, like their skin color? Shame on you. Shame because someone who has lived with the stigma of being different like yourself should know you have no right to judge others in a way you do not appreciate. You are a hypocrite, and unfortunately there are all too many people like you who go spouting racist garbage and are left unchallenged. Until you know me better you have no understanding of my motivations, and all the cynical speculations you've thrown about show your character, not mine.

Talking With: Zach Wahls

Explanation for Prop 8 Court Status YouTube Video

Monday, December 05, 2011

Tell Me, Christian, That You Hear This Boy


From John Shore at LGBTQNation.com:
Evangelical, fundamentalist Christians — by which I mean, specifically, Christians who believe that being gay is a moral abomination, an appalling affront to God — talk to me, please, about this kid.
Tell me that your belief system didn’t help but the hot tears on this kid’s cheeks. Tell me that the bullies who torment this kid aren’t in any way encouraged or empowered by your tacit approval of their actions. Tell me that the shame this kid feels about himself has nothing to do with the shame that you believe all gay people should feel for themselves.
Tell me that you can’t comprehend the connection between your conviction that God finds homosexuals repulsive, and the fact that this kid finds himself so repulsive that he habitually cuts his own flesh.
Tell me, please, how you love this kid. Tell me how you understand his pain. Tell me how when he cries, you cry.
Tell me how you want to do everything in your power to make sure that no one, ever again, feels free to in any way victimize a young gay person.
A Christian myself, I am pleading with you to be honest with me about this.
Tell me, please, how none of this kid’s anguish has anything to do with you.
I’m listening. I really am.
We all are.

8 Year Old Activist Tells Bachmann "Mommy's Gay But She Doesn't Need Fixing"

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

TruthWinsOut Accused of Murderous Rhetoric by Ex-Gay Leader Greg Quinlan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Wayne Besen, Executive Director
Phone: 917-691-5118
E-Mail: wbesen@truthwinsout.org
Greg Quinlan’s Defamatory Claims Are a Complete Fabrication and a Brazen Attempt to Smear LGBT Organization, Says TWO
Greg_QuinlanBurlington, Vt. – Truth Wins Out reacted with outrage and disgust today to a television interview with Greg Quinlan, President of Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX), who falsely claimed that TWO Executive Director, Wayne Besen, put a hit out on his life. Quinlan is also a lobbyist for the New Jersey Family Policy Council.
On October 7, 2011 Quinlan was interviewed on News-Plus with Mark Segraves (WDCW-TV). The comments, first noticed by Ex-Gay Watch, came to TWO’s attention on Tuesday.
Throughout the show, Quinlan distorts reality and flat out dissembles on several subjects. However, at the 10:38 mark he fabricates an alleged hit on his life. According to Quinlan:
“Truth Wins Out if you look further, including Wayne Besen. He’s asked for people, you know, somebody needs to run Greg over. He needs to be hit with a bus. Somebody should inject him with AIDS. Those are the things that Wayne Besen and Truth Wins Out says about me. That’s pretty hateful rhetoric.”
“The bizarre and defamatory scenario portrayed by Quinlan exists only in his own mind,” said Wayne Besen, Executive Director of Truth Wins Out. “What he said is entirely fabricated and a dishonest and brazen attempt to smear me personally, destroy my reputation, and discredit the good work of Truth Wins Out.”
The integrity of PFOX has long been questioned. Its former president, Richard Cohen, was expelled for life from the American Counseling Association for multiple ethics violations. A key member of the organization’s Speaker’s Bureau, Arthur Abba Goldberg, is a convicted felon sent to prison for financial fraud. In 2010, Quinlan attended a conference organized by Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, a group that is listed as a certified Southern Poverty Law Center hate group. During his speech at the meeting, Quinlan disparaged LGBT people and said that when he used to live as an openly gay man he wasn’t a “flaming faggot.”
“I wasn’t your flaming faggot, you know,” Quinlan told the chuckling crowd. “I can say that because I’ve been there and done that. You know, the one’s whose wrists are so limp that when the wind blows they slap themselves in the face. I wasn’t one of them.”
“It speaks to Quinlan’s character that he lies so easily and simply makes things up,” said TWO’s Besen. “I’d be willing to take a lie detector test to prove my innocence and to show that I’ve never said such vile words. Will Quinlan also take these tests to prove the ‘veracity’ of his calumny? Truth Wins Out is also exploring legal options at this time.”
Truth Wins Out is a nonprofit organization that fights anti-LGBT extremism. TWO specializes in turning information into action by organizing, advocating and fighting for LGBT equality.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

YouTube Star Introduces "Tab for a Cause"



Going by the handle "Kayjen" this young man made a remarkable video mocking the "rationale" against homosexuality that went viral and has now received over 1.7 million hits. He obviously has a genuine love for humanity, hence his new project that I wish to share with those who care enough to listen. Thank you for your valuable time.

 Kayjen, in standing up when so many would not, and in showing your concern for those who suffer you've shown the world what a modern man can and should be. Your continued actions show the courage to dismiss ridicule you find unwarranted, while showing compassion to people in need. The world needs more examples like yours. You are a Good Samaritan whose example Viewers can follow by acting on "Tab for a Cause" themselves.

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." ~Gandhi

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

N.H. panel votes to recommend gay marriage repeal | SeacoastOnline.com

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire committee is asking the House to repeal the state's 15-month-old same-sex marriage law and replace it with civil unions for any unmarried adults including relatives.

The Judiciary Committee voted 11-6 Tuesday to recommend repealing the gay marriage law and establishing civil unions for any unmarried adults competent to enter into a contract.

The bill isn't the same civil unions law that was in effect before gays were allowed to marry. That law granted gays all the rights and responsibilities of marriage except in name. The Legislature changed that to legalize gay marriage.

State Rep. David Bates, the bill's sponsor, said there is no reason to limit civil unions and the legal protections they provide solely to same-sex couples or speculate on the unions' sexual nature.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Anti-Violence Project: Boston Police Lacked Probable Cause for Unlawful Assembly Arrests


From the Anti-Violence Project of Massachusetts
In ordering protestors to leave the Rose Kennedy Greenway early Tuesday morning, the Boston Police Dept. invoked G.L. c. 269, § 1 which empowers the Mayor or police of a city or town to "[command] ten or more persons,  ... unlawfully, riotously or tumultuously assembled [to] immediately and peaceably to disperse [in the name of the Commonwealth] ...." In so doing, the Boston police blatantly disregarded the elements of the offense of "unlawful assembly" under Massachusetts law. As the Massachusetts Appeals Court has held, the crime of "unlawful assembly" requires that the persons so gathered "have formed a common intent to 'engage[] in a common cause . . . to be accomplished with violence and in a tumultuous manner... or 'through force and violence' ...." Commonwealth v. Abramms, 66 Mass. App. Ct. 576, 585-86 (2006)(Cites omitted.) "Thus, an 'essential element' of ... 'unlawful assembly' is 'the intent to commit an act of violence.'"Id. (Emphasis added." Only violent assemblies may be dispersed by order of the police under Massachusetts law. "[P]eaceful assemblies, [but] not violent gatherings, are protected by the First Amendment [and the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights art. 19]." Id. at 587.
The Occupy Boston demonstrators on the Rose Kennedy Greenway were assembled peaceably. The only force employed on the morning of October 11, 2011 was that of Boston police officers dispersing a non-violent protest without a legal basis for declaring an "unlawful assembly." In invoking the "unlawful assembly" statute without probable cause and using force against citizens exercising constitutional rights, the Boston Police themselves violated "clearly established" federal and state constitutional rights, as embodied in the Abramms decision. See Glik v. Cunniffe, No. 10-764, slip op. (1st Cir. 8/26/2011.) In so doing, each and every police officer who participated in the forcible break-up of the assembly on the Rose Kennedy Greenway may have exposed him or herself to personal liability under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.



Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Police Use Violence Against Peaceful "Occupy Boston"



Taken from occupyboston.com:
Boston Police Brutally Assault Occupy Boston
At 1:30 this morning hundreds of police in full riot gear brutally attacked Occupy Boston, which had peacefully gathered on the Rose Kennedy Greenway. The Boston Police Department made no distinction between protesters, medics, or legal observers, arresting legal observer Ursula Levelt, who serves on the steering committee for the National Lawyers Guild, as well as four medics attempting to care for the injured.
Earlier in the day, an estimated ten thousand union members, students, veterans, families, men, and women of all ages marched from the Boston Common to Dewey Square, and then to the North Washington Bridge to demand economic reform on Wall Street and the end of special interest influence in Washington.
Following this massive outpouring of public support, dozens of police vans descended on the Greenway, with batons drawn, assaulting protesters and arresting more than one-hundred people. Members of Veterans for Peace carrying American flags were pushed to the ground and their flags trampled as the police hauled them away.
Following the raid, Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis made no mention of veterans, organized labor, students, or families, nor did he issue an apology for his department’s aggressive tactics. Since the beginning of its occupation, Occupy Boston has worked tirelessly and successfully to maintain a positive working relationship with city officials. Today’s reprehensible attack by the Boston Police Department against a movement that enjoys the broad support of the American people represents a sad and disturbing shift away from dialogue and towards violent repression.
Despite the city’s attempt to silence us, Occupy Boston remains, and bears no ill-will towards the men and women of the Boston Police Department who were simply following orders. We hope that someday the peaceful pursuit of economic justice will not provoke the beating of elderly veterans and the arrest of medics and legal observers. We encourage everyone who continues to feel as strongly as we do about limiting the influence of Wall Street on our democracy to join us tomorrow, and in the future, down in Dewey Square.
“We will occupy. We are the 99 percent and we are no longer silent.”
###
Occupy Boston is the beginning of an ongoing discussion about reforming Wall Street and removing special interests from government. The continuing occupation of Dewey Square (outside South Station) is just one of more than 120 separate Occupy encampments in cities across the nation and a symbol for “Occupiers” everywhere who support real and lasting change. Video: http://youtu.be/ZpttXetMX78.

Monday, October 10, 2011

FactCheck.org Catches Bachmann Spinning More "Truth"

From FactCheck.org:


Michele Bachmann is wrong to say allowing illegal immigrants in Texas to pay in-state tuition is “an abuse of an executive power.” Gov. Rick Perry did not impose the policy by executive fiat. The Legislature overwhelmingly passed the bill in 2001, and Perry signed it.
Minnesota Rep. Bachmann — who has criticized Perry’s executive order on HPV vaccines as an inappropriate use of power — made her statement in a Web video posted Sept. 29.
Bachmann, Sept. 29: We can’t settle for a president who would encourage more illegal immigration through magnet policies, like tuition breaks for illegal aliens or their children. That’s an abuse of an executive power.
That’s just not true. The change in tuition policy followed the usual legislative process.
The bill passed by votes of 142-1 in the House and 27-3 in the Senate. The Houston Chronicle wrote: “The surprise at such potentially polarizing issues passing the House and Senate is surpassed only by wonder at the ease with which they have been approved.”
Of course, Perry could have chosen not to sign the bill. But he signed it on June 16, 2001 — four months after it was introduced. “We want bright, new Texans to stay here, and contribute great things to our future,” he said in a speech six days after signing the bill.
– Eugene Kiely
POSTED BY EUGENE KIELY ON FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2011 AT 5:27 PM FILED UNDER THE FACTCHECK WIRE. TAGGED WITH .

Monday, October 03, 2011

Weekly Presidential Address, October 1, 2011

Hello, everyone.  It’s been almost three weeks since I sent the American Jobs Act to Congress – three weeks since I sent them a bill that would put people back to work and put money in people’s pockets.  This jobs bill is fully paid for.  This jobs bill contains the kinds of proposals that Democrats and Republicans have supported in the past.  And now I want it back.  It is time for Congress to get its act together and pass this jobs bill so I can sign it into law. 

Some Republicans in Congress have said that they agree with certain parts of this jobs bill.  If so, it’s time for them to tell me what those proposals are.  And if they’re opposed to this jobs bill, I’d like to know what exactly they’re against.  Are they against putting teachers and police officers and firefighters back on the job?  Are they against hiring construction workers to rebuild our roads and bridges and schools?  Are they against giving tax cuts to virtually every worker and small business in America? 

Economists from across the political spectrum have said that this jobs bill would boost the economy and spur hiring.  Why would you be against that?  Especially at a time when so many Americans are struggling and out of work. 

This isn’t just about what I think is right.  It’s not just about what a group of economists think is right.  This is about what the American people want.  Everywhere I go, they tell me they want action on jobs.  Every day, I get letters from Americans who expect Washington to do something about the problems we face. 

Destiny Wheeler is a sixteen year old from Georgia who wants to go to college.  She wrote to me saying, “Now-a-days it is hard to see myself pushing forward and putting my family in a better position, especially since the economy is rough and my starting situation is so poor.  Yet, the American Jobs act gives me hope that I might start to receive a better education, that one day job opportunities will be open for me to grasp, and that one day my personal American Dream will be reached.”  Destiny needs us to pass this jobs bill. 

Alice Johnson is an Oregon native who, along with her husband, has been looking for a job for about two years.  She writes, “I have faithfully applied for work every week…Of the hundreds of applications I have put in, I received interview requests for about 10…I too, am sick of all the fighting in Washington DC.  Please tell the Republicans that people are hurting and are hungry and need help, pass the jobs bill.”  Alice Johnson needs our help. 

Cathleen Dixon sent me pictures of the aging bridge she drives under when she takes her kids to school in Chicago every day.  She worries about their safety, and writes, “I am angry that in this country of vast resources we claim that we cannot maintain basic infrastructure.  How can we ever hope to preserve or regain our stature in this world, if we cannot find the will to protect our people and take care of our basic needs?”

I also heard from Kim Faber, who told me about the small carpet business her husband owns in New Jersey.  “We hang on by a shoe String,” she writes, “my husband worries every day about if checks might bounce, he uses our home loan to put money in the business so they will be covered.  Please pass this jobs bill! This is the job creating we need right now! It breaks my husband’s heart when he has to let people go! Pass the bill!”

Kim said it best: Pass the bill.  I know one Republican was quoted as saying that their party shouldn’t pass this jobs bill because it would give me a win.  Well this isn’t about giving me a win, and it’s not about them.  This is about Destiny Wheeler and Alice Johnson. It’s about Cathleen Dixon’s children, and the Fabers’ family business.  These are the people who need a win, and I will be fighting for this jobs bill every day on their behalf.  If anyone watching feels the same way, don’t be shy about letting your Congressman know.  It is time for the politics to end.  Let’s pass this jobs bill.   

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Tea Party Not About Racism? Think Again...

 This comment was taken from Facebook, and serves as an example of just how out of control the racism and hatred has gotten in our country towards our President:

Sheila Ingram-Schroeder
It's past time for the arrogant president of the USA to be IMPEACHED!!! He continues to do what he wants, when he wants, and it makes no difference if he is breaking the law or not. He is the worst presient this country has ever had! We ...need to get his black A.. out of office and his aunt and uncles blacks a.... out of this country...he can go along with them. Send them back to Africa where they belong, they cerainly do not belong here. the president MAY be legal, which I doubt, but he does not deserve to even be in this country much less the president! If he prefers Oreo, like the black woman said the other day, or a malato...which ever. He is not black or white, but a mixture of both. So call him what he is, not what he isn't. His arrogance is unbelievable, and that he gets away with breaing the law like this...it sure would not happen for any of US born citizens. IMPEACHMENT IS THE ONLY ANSWER TO THIS VERY MUCH UNQUALIFIED PRESIDENT THAT IS IN OFFICE!!! WHY WAIT UNTIL 2012...GET HIM OUT NOW! HE SEEMS TO LOVE CALING OTHER PEOPLE NAMES, KNOCKING THEM DOWN WITH HIS SPITEFUL WORDS, HOW DOES HE LIKE HAVING IT DONE TO HIM??? I'M EMBARASSED TO EVEN CALL HIM THE PRESIDENT OF THIS GREAT NATION THAT HE IS SO TRYING TO DESTROY.........

FactCheck.org Keeps Catching GOP Lies

Taken from FactCheck.org:


Nine Republican ring wraiths presidential candidates debated for two hours in Orlando, Fla., and they served up more exaggerations and falsehoods — about Obama, each other and even Thomas Jefferson.

  • Perry claimed Romney supports Obama’s Race to the Top education initiative. In fact, while Romney has praised some of the program’s goals, he said those kinds of issues ought to be handled at the state level, not federal.
  • Romney falsely accused Obama of saying “nothing about the Palestinians launching rockets into Israel” during a 2009 speech to the United Nations. In fact, Obama said those who suffer include “the Israeli girl in Sderot who closes her eyes in fear that a rocket will take her life in the middle of the night.”
  • Perry falsely claimed Romney had once written that “Romneycare” is “exactly what the American people needed.” Romney never wrote that. On the contrary, he said after he signed the bill that “certain aspects” of the state’s law might work “better in some states than others.”
  • Bachmann quoted Thomas Jefferson in defense of her previous assertion that separation of church and state is a “myth.” But the 1802 letter she cited is the very one in which Jefferson said the First Amendment erects “a wall of separation between Church & State.”
  • Perry said the U.S.-Mexico border needs more “boots on the ground” to stop illegal immigration, and claimed that “the federal government has not engaged in this at all.” In fact, the number of border security agents has more than doubled over the last decade.
  • Cain said the EPA has “gone wild” and will regulate “dust” as of Jan. 1. But there’s no new dust regulation set to go into effect on that day, and EPA says it has no plans for one.
And we found other factual problems as well. Former New Mexico Gov. Johnson claimed the government is borrowing 43 cents of every dollar spent. It’s really 37 cents. Bachmann denied suggesting the HPV vaccine can cause mental retardation or is “potentially dangerous.” And Cain even resurrected the old “death panel” falsehood about the new health care law, claiming he would be “dead under Obamacare” because “bureaucrats” would somehow have delayed diagnosis and treatment of the cancer he fought in 2006.

Use the link provided to read the article in full, and be sure to visit back any time you want to ensure you know the truth about something you've heard. Double checking facts is not a waste of time, it is a patriotic responsibility. We need less uninformed voters now more than ever since people have started to count on the fact that the general public can be easily fooled. 

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Wall Street Protesters Maced By Police



You make the call, but to me it looks like the women who got the worst part of the mace were complying with the police by staying on their side of the barrier. 

Monday, September 26, 2011

DADT Destroys Air Force YouTube Video



If you can't laugh with them on this then you need to get that stick out of your but! Enjoy!

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Tufts University Medical School Representative Proclaims Chaz Bono a Dangerous Example to Children


Taken from the Tufts Daily:

...Keith Ablow, an assistant clinical professor at the Tufts School of Medicine, wrote for Fox News stating that children should not be allowed to watch a television show that cast a transgender individual.
Ablow published a Sept. 2 editorial in FoxNews.com's "Opinion" section titled "Don't Let Your Kids Watch Chaz Bono On ‘Dancing With the Stars,'" in which he states that parents should not let their children watch the ABC show "Dancing With the Stars," which premiered last night, because Chaz Bono, the transgendered son of Cher and Sonny Bono, appeared on the program.
Ablow's editorial warns that children — particularly those in the stages of puberty of who are questioning their sexualities — might be encouraged by Bono's appearance on "Stars" to change their own gender through gender reassignment surgery.
"It is a toxic and unnecessary byproduct of the tragic celebration of transgender surgery that millions of young people who do watch ‘Dancing with the Stars' will have to ponder this question: Maybe my problems really stem from the fact that I'm a girl inside a boy's body (or a boy inside a girl's body)," Ablow said.

To clarify, this professor of Medicine and representative of the Tufts School of Medicine went on national television and used his position to qualify his opinions that Transgender people like Chaz Bono and a danger to the public, not because of their law abiding actions, but simply by example, and that we should shield children from being exposed to that example rather than educate them properly in diversity.

This is the same argument made against GLBT rights across the country. It is not our actions, which are lawful, but simply our example people fear will harm children. What happened to free will? What happened to freedom of self expression? Has all of America invested so deeply into the fear industry that they can't even question the fears presented them anymore, like our Constitution and justice system demands?

Here is another fine example of why I fight for the full equality of all freedoms of expression and equal rights for all citizens.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Protesting Exodus "International" in New Hampshire 09.17.2011



September 17, 2011 brought us a crisp but sunny morning, and those of us who live in New Hampshire came dressed to greet the cold temperatures. We also came prepared with a message for Exodus "International"; hate won't be sold to us.

Protesters started gathering prior to 8:00 AM even though the conference wasn't starting until 9:00 AM. As I pulled up to our location I started to smile realizing that our numbers already were healthy, and this protest has succeeded. Each person came with a hand made sign that lovingly invited Exodus conference members to remember that God loves them just the way He made them.

We later gathered at the corner of the half empty parking lot and listened to some speakers give their testimony while Exodus members peered at us from a distance. Two representatives came over and made clear that we were welcome to come in and join them, to which we declined. Here are some of the testimonials heard:







Judging by the head count we did as people rode in there could not have been more than forty or so participants, church regulars included, at this "North Atlantic Regional Conference". Wayne Besen explains why:


We also had a little run in with a church volunteer that stopped to tell us that we were on private property, which we knew to be untrue, and was later confirmed by the police captain who stopped by to let us know everything was OK. Here's a video of the exchange with that volunteer, who would not give his name:



Many thanks to all those who came out, pun intended. Peace and love to one and all!