Today is the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In the UN, France is sponsoring a largely symbolic resolution that supports the decriminalization of homosexuality. Nothing more, nothing less. Simply a resolution that protests imprisonment or death for being homosexual. "Eighty-six countries (nearly half the nations on Earth) still have a total ban on male homosexuality and a smaller number also ban sex between women. The penalties in these countries range from a few years jail to life imprisonment. In at least seven countries or regions of countries (all under Islamist jurisdiction), the sentence is death: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Yemen, Sudan, Mauritania and parts of Nigeria and Pakistan." (source)
The Vatican opposes this resolution. Because, you know, if you don't allow people to execute gays, you are forcing churches to marry them.
I am deeply ashamed to report that the US also opposes this resolution. Which has a bitter irony, given Justice Kennedy's decision in Lawrence v. Texas: Gays are "entitled to respect for their private lives. The state cannot demean their existence or control their destiny by making their private sexual conduct a crime." That's the law of the US. Apparently George Bush's government doesn't think it should be the law anywhere else.
Thus, both the US Government and the Vatican prefer to see gays executed, because of a spurious "slippery slope" argument that if you don't kill them, you will have to marry them. Actually, that's the Vatican's argument. I have no idea what the US justification is. (Update: I just thought of a slogan for this point of view. "Better dead than wed.")
Now, let's consider who REALLY believes in a "culture of life".
3 comments:
One positive sign from the U.S. -- Obama has picked his first LGBT appointment -- Transition: Obama to name environmental leader.
"President-elect Barack Obama has selected a deputy mayor of Los Angeles to lead the White House Council on Environmental Quality, transition officials said Wednesday.
"Nancy Sutley is the first prominent member of the gay and lesbian community to earn a senior role in the Democrat's new administration."
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"Sutley supported Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton during the Democratic primary and was a member of her Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender steering committee.
"The deputy mayor for energy and environment in Los Angeles and the mayor's representative on the Board of Directors for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Sutley has a long record of working on environmental and natural resources policy.
"She previously served on the California State Water Resources Control Board, which is responsible for protecting water quality and resources throughout the state, and was the energy adviser to former Gov. Gray Davis. During President Bill Clinton's administration, Sutley was an EPA official, including being a special assistant to the EPA administrator in Washington."
That picture again. It's like a kick in the gut. :-(
Speaking of which, have you heard about this?
You don't actually have to BE gay, to get killed, you just have to SEEM gay.
("Gay"-bashing homicide in NYC---only the guy wasn't actually gay!)
yes, JCF. And we'lls e more of it, as the conservatives define "gay" as terrorist...and thus attempt to legitimize us as a target.
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