Americans for Truth

Pro-family attorneys to challenge ruling on AG Jerry Brown’s biased summary language

California Attorney General Jerry Brown redefined the state’s pro-traditional marriage amendment description as taking away people’s rights — even though the so-called “right” to “same-sex marriage” as created by the state’s high court will be only a few months old when voters go to the polls in in November.

From the news site OneNewsNow of the American Family Association:

Judge upholds redefined Prop. 8 ballot language

By Jeff Johnson - OneNewsNow - 8/8/2008
Click HERE to listen to the audio story on OneNewsNow

Pro-family attorneys are vowing to go back to court to get biased, pro-homosexual language removed from the ballot title and summary for the California marriage protection amendment.

The amendment states that “only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” But somehow, Attorney General Jerry Brown reinterpreted that as eliminating “the right of same-sex couples to marry.” Timothy Chandler, legal counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), was in Superior Court in California Thursday arguing that Brown’s editorializing is illegal.

“The issue before the voters is whether or not California should define marriage as between one man and one woman,” Chandler explains. “And rather than presenting it that way to the voters, the attorney general got political with it.”

Instead of providing a neutral and unbiased ballot title and summary, says the ADF attorney, Brown bowed to “political pressure” and “gave a biased and prejudicial summary” — in effect failing to follow his obligation under state law. “The attorney general is required by law to provide an objective summary of what the proposition would do to the law,” Chandler explains.

But the Superior Court disagreed Friday, ruling that Brown was within his rights to define the amendment as taking away rights, even though those alleged rights were only recently created by the California Supreme Court.

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By J. Matt Barber, Liberty Counsel, July 29, 2008

I’m always mystified when allegedly intelligent, bottom-line-obsessed corporate types abandon the fiscally secure milieu of political neutrality and take sides, officially, on deeply polarizing, socio-cultural issues of the day.

That’s exactly what the formerly family-friendly McDonald’s Corporation recently did. In an apparent effort to pierce the hyper-demanding good graces of the radical homosexual lobby, these clowns (pun intended) have thrown the vast majority of potential Mickey D’s customers, worldwide, under the bus. Because of this colossal corporate blunder, the hamburger giant is now facing an embarrassing and ever-growing international boycott.

McDonald’s self-inflicted woes started back in March, when the company paid $20,000 to have Richard Ellis, McDonald’s “out and proud” homosexual vice president of communications, placed on the board of the innocuously tagged “National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce.” NGLCC is an extremist, “gay” activist organization that lobbies for leftist causes, such as “gay marriage,” and pushes for other policies that would grant special privileges to certain individuals who define themselves based upon unhealthy, traditionally immoral and changeable sexual behaviors.

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Diane and Phil Magnan of Biblical Family Advocates.

We’re just getting back from a trip that offers more evidence why homosexuality is wrong and harmful to children. Meanwhile, take a read of Phil Magnan’s report, “15 Reasons Why Homosexuality is Wrong and Hurts Society.” Phil is the founder of Biblical Family Advocates, based in San Diego. I just met him in person for the first time and came away impressed by his love for people, including those practicing homosexuality, and his love for God’s truth and His heart on this issue. Check out BFA’s report. — Peter LaBarbera

Apparently California’s homosexual activists are afraid of a vote in November on an amendment that would ban same-sex “marriage” in the state. Hopefully, that’s a good indication that they will lose that crucial vote. The “gay” attempt to deny democracy is nothing new: for years, homosexual militants have attempted to deny popular votes on homosexual issues in various states, at times resorting to dirty tactics like harassing pro-family petition-gatherers for state ballot initiatives. To them, the end justifies the means. — Peter LaBarbera

The San Francisco Chronicle reports today:

State high court refuses to remove same-sex marriage ban from ballot

The state Supreme Court refused today to remove a proposed ban on same-sex marriage from the November ballot.

The initiative, Proposition 8, is a state constitutional amendment that would overturn the court’s May 15 ruling allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry in California.

Gay-rights advocates sued June 19 to block a vote on Prop. 8, arguing that the measure would destroy fundamental rights that can’t legally be abolished by an initiative.

Noting that the Supreme Court’s ruling relied on the constitutional rights of privacy and equal protection, they argued that a repeal would amount to a revision of the Constitution - something that requires approval of two-thirds of the state Legislature before going to the voters.

Sponsors of Prop. 8 replied in court papers that their opponents were trying to deprive Californians of their right to change their own Constitution.

The court dismissed the case today in a unanimous order, without comment.

Fast-food chain echoes homosexual activists’ smear

Why does McDonald’s equate defenders of marriage and Judeo-Christian morality with “hate”? TAKE ACTION: Call McDonald’s to let them know about your decision to boycott at 1-800-244-6227 (or 630-623-3000; fax: 630-623-5004). For more information about AFTAH’s Wednesday press conference at McDonald’s world headquarters, write americansfortruth@comcast.

Dear Readers,

Americans For Truth has called a press conference outside of McDonald’s world headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois, this Wednesday, July 16, in support of American Family Association’s (AFA) boycott of the fast-food giant. Joining AFTAH and AFA will be representatives of Liberty Counsel, Illinois Family Institute, AFA of Pennsylvania, Culture Campaign and other pro-family advocates — including some moms who will explain why they won’t be taking their children to McDonald’s until the corporation stops promoting homosexuality and “gay” activism.

Note McDonald’s unfortunate choice below of the word “hate” as applied to critics of the company’s pro-homosexual policies. When we’ve reached the point where belief in the Bible and traditional morality is routinely equated with hatred, America has become hostile territory for people of faith. Sadly, pro-homosexual “diversity” is becoming a code-word for anti-Christian bigotry, as we at AFTAH have experienced before. (See our story about the founder of DiversityInc magazine, Luke Visconti, outrageously equating this writer (and Americans For Truth) with racist pro-slavery advocates of the past. Click HERE for African American ex-lesbian Charlene Cothran’s response to Visconti’s ugly and, yes, hateful analogy.)

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TAKE ACTION: stand against Massachusetts exporting counterfeit “gay marriages” across the nation: click HERE. Our good friends at MassResistance.org report:

Mass. Legislature poised to export our “gay marriage” across the country by repealing “1913 Law.” National “gay” groups pouring in money to lobby. Pressure needed NOW to stop Senate vote Tuesday - (see our new fax feature!)

The national homosexual movement is funding a huge lobbying effort over the next few days to persuade the Massachusetts Legislature to repeal the “1913 Law” which would allow out-of-state “gay” couples to legally “marry” in Massachusetts — and then cause havoc in their home states. Currently, out-of-state couples can not marry in Massachusetts if that marriage would be illegal in their home state. (See our report with the language of the bill.)

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HRC uses 11 criteria to rank corporations — including shunning pro-family groups

By Peter LaBarbera

McDonald’s Corporation scored an 85 percent ranking on the Human Rights Campaign’s (HRC) “Corporate Equality Index.” HRC, the nation’s leading homosexual lobby group, publishes the corporate survey every year. The following are the 11 criteria used by HRC to evaluate whether a major company is sufficiently pro-homosexual and pro-transsexual; note that McDonald’s passed all but one test (a gender-identity ‘nondiscrimination’ policy– criterion 2a). (AFTAH has endorsed a nationwide boycott of McDonald’s.) See important explanatory notes at bottom:

2008 Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index Ratings and Breakdown:

• Criterion 1a: [McDonald’s: YES] Prohibits Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation (15 points)
• Criterion 1b: [McDonald’s: YES] Provides Diversity Training Covering Sexual Orientation (5 points)
• Criterion 2a: [McDonald’s: NO] Prohibits Discrimination Based on Gender Identity and/or Expression (15 points)
• Criterion 2b: [McDonald’s: YES] Provides Diversity Training Covering Gender Identity OR Has Supportive Gender Transition Guidelines (5 points)
• Criterion 2c: [McDonald’s: YES] Offers at Least One Transgender Wellness Benefit (5 points) +
• Criterion 3a: [McDonald’s: YES] Offers Domestic Partner Health Insurance (15 points)
• Criterion 3b: [McDonald’s: YES] Offers Domestic Partners Dental, Vision, COBRA and Dependent Coverage Benefits (5 points)
• Criterion 3c ++: [McDonald’s: YES] Offers at Least Three Other ‘Soft’ Benefits for Domestic Partners ++ (5 points)
• Criterion 4: [McDonald’s: YES] Has Employer-Supported Employee Resource Group OR Firm-Wide Diversity Council (15 points)
• Criterion 5: [McDonald’s: YES] Engages in Appropriate and Respectful Advertising, Marketing or Philanthropy (15 points)
• Criterion 6: [McDonald’s: YES] Exhibits Responsible Behavior Toward the GLBT Community; Does Not Engage in Action That Would Undermine GLBT Equality. Employers Found Engaging in Such Activities Will — Have 15 Points Removed From Their Scores. (—) +++

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Josh Baker of the Institute of Marriage and Public Policy (iMAPP) writes:

After a busy month of May, June was a fairly quiet month for marriage-related cases and law review articles. The June 2008 Marriage Law Digest, edited by Bill Duncan, is now available at http://www.marriagedebate.com/pdf/MarriageLawDigest.June2008.pdf.