Americans for Truth about Homosexuality

In the United States of America, nobody — Christian or otherwise — should ever be forced to support or subsidize immoral homosexual relationships against their moral beliefs. Religious exemptions may appear to be a short-term solution to the problem of “competing rights” between traditional American liberties and newfangled “gay/transgender rights” laws, but in the long run they will not preserve true freedom in America.

From the Becket Fund website (emphasis added). We’ve left the word (same-sex) “marriage” without quotation marks, which we would normally insert to clarify the false notion that two people of the same sex can marry. Also, we would note that the issue of “competing liberties” — as stated below — existed with the passage of the first pro-homosexuality “sexual orientation” law — long before same-sex “marriage” became an issue.

Becket Fund is well intentioned in its advocacy of strong religious exemption laws, but Americans For Truth supports the full repeal of all sexual orientation laws as fundamentally incompatible with historic American freedoms. One problem with religious exemptions is that they leave out the non-religious opponents of homosexuality — essentially creating a new set of “special rights” for religious people — the right to live by one’s moral beliefs. Secular foes of aberrrant sexual and gender behaviors should not lose that same right.

Another problem is that such exemptions give pastors and (officially) religious organizations an incentive to pull out of the cultural struggle over the normalization of homosexuality — even as Christian and religious businessmen are being forced to violate their own freedom of conscience under pro-”gay” laws. Exemptions may appear to be a short-term solution but they are not the answer; reasserting the primacy of historic, genuine American freedoms over newly-theorized “rights” based on homosexual misbehavior and gender nonconformity is. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

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Becket Fund writes Nov. 10, 2008:

Becket Fund Releases Study of Religious Liberty Implications of Same-sex Marriage, Surveys Anti-Discrimination Laws in 50 States

Over 350 separate state anti-discrimination laws would likely be affected by the legal recognition of same-sex marriage, according to a new study by The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.

The Becket Fund surveyed over 1,000 state anti-discrimination laws — specifically those prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender, or marital status — to assess how those laws would affect religious dissenters to same-sex marriage if same-sex marriage were legally recognized.

The study found that all 50 states prohibit gender discrimination in some way, and only 37 states have explicit religious exemptions to these provisions, many of them quite narrow. This lack of robust exemptions could become a problem if (as has happened in some instances) religious objections to same-sex marriage are treated as a kind of gender discrimination. In addition, 33 states prohibit at least some discrimination based on marital status, and only 13 of these states provide religious exemptions, some with a wide latitude of exemption, others with only narrow exemptions. Of the 20 states that prohibit sexual orientation-based discrimination, 18 provide exemptions for religious objection.

Read the rest of this article »

Boy Scouts fought same homosexual law, and won in Supreme Court

E-PERVERSION.COM? Born-again Christian Neil Clark Warren and the company he founded, eHarmony.com, have capitulated to a New Jersey “sexual orientation” complaint using the state’s homosexual “rights” law– by expanding its dating service to homosexuals. The Boy Scouts fought the same law rather than cave on their principles. Click HERE for the settlement and HERE for a news release by New Jersey’s Attorney General. TAKE ACTION: write Warren at ncwarren@eharmony.com. 

Americans For Truth sent out the following e-letter today to: Dr. Neil Clark  Warren, founder of the eHarmony online dating company; eHarmony’s management team; and various pro-family groups and leaders (listed at bottom). We refer you to WorldNetDaily’s story, “eHarmony to Match ‘Gays,’” detailing the company’s capitulation to New Jersey following a “discrimination” complaint by a homosexual activist. Some excerpts from the WND story are at bottom. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

TAKE ACTION: Contact Dr. Neil Clark Warren at ncwarren@eharmony.com. An eHarmony contact page and blog for comments can be found HERE (several management e-mails listed bounced back).

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Subject: Dr. Warren et al, you sold your soul (or at least eHarmony’s)…

Importance: High

FR: Peter LaBabera, Americans For Truth

TO: Dr. Neil Warren, founder of eHarmony, and eHarmony’s Management:

Dr. Warren et al, you sold your soul (or at least eHarmony’s)…

… It is a shame that you chose not to follow the lead of the Boy Scouts of America by standing up for your legal rights as a moral company that believes in REAL marriage – one that would not promote homosexuality and ungodly, unhealthy relationships. (You will recall that the Scouts, too, were challenged under New Jersey’s “sexual orientation” law, but New Jersey was overruled by the U.S. Supreme Court.)  I suppose this means you have now officially joined the list of Companies Promoting Immorality (CPI) – a growing list, indeed. How tragic that eHarmony’s resources – and your good name — will be used to advance the cause of homosexual behavior, a changeable sin.

You could have set an example to Christians and freedom-loving Americans everywhere by fighting on principle for your company’s First Amendment right not to be bullied into submission by a politically correct state bureaucracy. Instead, you capitulated. In addition to hurting the cause of Christianity, you have damaged the cause of freedom and particularly religious freedom in America. It appears that eHarmony is no longer a “match” for Integrity.

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Thomasson: “If the court disobeys the constitution by voiding Prop. 8, it will ignite a voter revolt.”

Sacramento, California — In response to today’s decision by the California Supreme Court to hear the challenges to Proposition 8, the California Marriage Amendment, Randy Thomasson, president of Campaign for Children and Families, a leading California-based pro-family organization, issued the following statement:

“It’s unfortunate that the judges are giving time to the mushy, subjective arguments of homosexual activists who reject the clear reading of the constitution and the clear reading of Proposition 8. If the court disobeys the constitution by voiding Prop. 8, it will ignite a voter revolt. It will also threaten the validity of all future constitutional amendments.

“The court is playing with fire by threatening to destroy the people’s vote on marriage. The California Constitution clearly says that the voters have the right to alter the highest law of the land. It’s the beauty of the American system of government. The four Supreme Court justices who unconstitutionally invented homosexual ‘marriages’ — Ron George, Joyce Kennard, Kathryn Werdegar and Carlos Moreno — seem to be ignoring the fact that the people get the last word, not the judges.

“The clear reading of the constitution, as well as California’s legal and legislative history, tells us there is a world of difference between a constitutional amendment and a constitutional revision. Proposition 8 is a single-subject, voter-initiated amendment, not a legislature-initiated, multi-issue, whole-scale revision that alters many sections of the state constitution.

“If Prop. 8 gutted the constitution, why is it only one subject in one section of the constitution? If Prop. 8 doesn’t stand, then our constitution doesn’t mean anything, the people’s vote doesn’t mean anything, marriage has been utterly disrespected, and judges lied when they swore to uphold the constitution. Prop. 8 must stand, because the constitution is above the judges, not the other way around.

Read the rest of this article »

Matt Barber says Prop 8 violence shows ‘gays’ are ‘most hateful among us’

Envelopes with suspicious white powder were discovered at two Mormon temples, including this one in Salt Lake City, and a Knights of Columbus printing plant in Connecticut — probable “gay” terrorist retribution for the Mormons and the Catholic group’s strong support for Proposition 8 in California. “Queer” intolerance for dissent is out of control — but where are the “gay” leaders reigning in their fanatics? When asked on FOX News today about the escalating anger and protests targeting churches, Joe Solmonese of Human Rights Campaign — which has sought to link Christian pro-family groups to “hate violence” against homosexuals — could barely bring himself to say a negative word against the radicals on his side. Americans need to know: are the Justice Department and FBI watching out for coordinated acts of homosexual “hate violence” and churches, synagogues and mosques?

Matt Barber, who is director of Cultural Affairs with both Liberty Counsel and Liberty Alliance Action and associate dean with Liberty University School of Law — and  a Board Member of Americans For Truth — puts all the “queer” anger, intolerance, and even violence in perspective below. Send you comments to Matt at jmattbarber@comcast.net.

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WorldNetDaily.com; posted November 14, 2008

Counterfeit Marriage and its Counterfeit Movement

With a unified voice amplified several million-fold through the ballot box megaphone, African-Americans have spoken on the issues of marriage, family and human sexuality. Whether young or old, male or female, Democrat or Republican, blacks are justifiably fed up with the deceptive antics of the self-described and craftily contrived “gay rights movement.”

For decades now, well-organized, well-funded and highly influential “gay” political pressure groups have, with impertinence, hijacked the language of the authentic civil rights movement. In what amounts to a sort of soft racism, self-styled “queers” have disingenuously and ignobly hitched their lil’ lavender wagons to a movement which, by contrast, is built upon the genuine and noble precepts of racial equality and humanitarian justice.

An illegitimate offspring of the ’60s sexual revolution, the newfangled “gay rights” cult is today’s postmodern, sex-centric cause célèbre. Its core tenets include, among other things, mandated moral relativism, social androgyny and forced acceptance of a pleasure-based, though demonstrably destructive, lifestyle. Apart from practitioners of “the sin that dare not speak its name,” its devotees are in large part institutional fringe elitists confined to blue-state America who almost universally suffer the insufferable pangs of white guilt.

Read the rest of this article »

The following report was sent by John Stemberger, chairman of Florida’s “Yes2Marriage.org” marriage protection amendment that passed by over 62 percent in the state. Congratulations to everyone in Florida and outside of Florida who contributed to this victory — but especially to John Stemberger for his stellar leadership. — Peter LaBarbera

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A Special Report:

Passage of the Florida Marriage Protection Amendment: the Triumph of the Common Man over Cultural Elites

Dear Friend,

We did it — You did it — And ultimately God did it!  After four long years of hard work and some rather stunning opposition along the way, the Florida Marriage Protection Act is now a permanent part of the Florida Constitution under Article I, Section 27.  This is simply a remarkable and historical victory.  Well over four and a half million Floridians comprising 62.1% of the electorate voted for the common sense idea that marriage will remain between one man and one woman.

Read the rest of this article »

Vandals For ‘Gay Marriage’? California family that supports the Proposition 8 amendment — reinstating the natural definition of marriage as between a man and a woman — poses beside their car, which was vandalized by “No on 8″ activists. The family was targeted for their beliefs. Click HERE to watch a Protect Marriage video describing the hateful acts and slanders committed by pro-homosexual “No on 8″ activists.

Dear Americans For Truth Reader,

Please go to the California “Protect Marriage” website and view their compelling video on the desperation of “No on 8″ forces trying to derail the proposed constitutional amendment to preserve the natural definition of marriage as one-man, one-woman.

Note the hypocrisy of the “gay marriage” forces — you know, the ones who like to lecture the rest of us on  “tolerance.” Come to think of it, it looks like the “No on 8″ activists could use some diversity training.

Seriously, it is imperative that California citizens VOTE TODAY on this critically important issue and urge your friends to do likewise! Ditto for voters in Florida and Arizona who also have the opportunity to preserve and protect natural marriage at the ballot box. (Florida’s amendment requires a 60-percent “Yes” vote.)

To everyone else outside those states the message is the same: please vote today, and do not let the liberal media decide this election. If you are in the western half of the country, please do not even consider not voting — even if you have heard that exit polls on the eastern half of the country are running against your candidate or your preferred party! Your vote counts — not just for deciding who will be our next president, but for deciding a host of local races and the composition of the United States House and Senate.

Again, I urge you: don’t throw your vote away by failing to show up on Election Day! America’s fighting men have given their lives to guarantee the freedom to vote for Iraqis in that far away land. Let’s not dishonor their sacrifice by failing to exercise our same precious right here in America. God bless you. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

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Below is a letter from California Proposition 8′s campaign manager, Frank Shubert:

Dear Friend,

With every recent poll showing Proposition 8 slightly leading or surging with support, our opponents are growing increasingly desperate.

They have aired two new commercials this weekend that are nothing short of shameful. In one, they compare people who believe in traditional marriage to those responsible for the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. And in another they call backers of traditional marriage, “intolerant” and “offensive.”

Did you ever dream that because you believe marriage is between a man and a woman you’d be called “intolerant,” “offensive” and have it suggested you are racist to boot?

Do the tactics of our opponents anger you? They anger me. But let’s not lash out. Let’s use this as motivation to maximize our get-out-the-vote efforts so that we send a powerful message on Tuesday: Proposition 8 will pass because traditional marriage matters.

Read the rest of this article »

Folks, this is an outstanding piece by my good friend Brian Camenker – who is in my view the most principled and effective pro-family advocate in (the People’s Republic of) Massachusetts.  Please read it carefully and disseminate it as widely as possible.  This is also a tutorial of sorts on the cascading ill effects of a state embracing homosexuality as a “civil right.”  Please support the fine work of MassResistance. God bless.—Peter LaBarbera, www.americansfortruth.com

P.S. Check out this AFTAH article to see the face of real diversity, as people of various ethnicities and religions unite to oppose a homosexual “special rights” law in Hamtramck, Michigan.

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Oct. 21, 2008

MassResistance Update

“In a time of universal deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
- George Orwell

What same-sex “marriage” has done to Massachusetts

It’s far worse than most people realize

by Brian Camenker

[Note: As the debate on this issue rages in states across the country, most people are unaware of what's really happened here. Get ready for an eye-opener.]

Anyone who thinks that same-sex “marriage” is a benign eccentricity which won’t affect the average person should consider what it has done in Massachusetts. It’s become a hammer to force the acceptance and normalization of homosexuality on everyone. And this train is moving fast. What has happened so far is only the beginning.

Read the rest of this article »

Counterfeit marriage campaign pushes hard for $$$ amidst new polls showing Prop 8 ahead

The following was reported by the Gay and Lesbian Leadership SmartBrief regarding the California Marriage Protection Amendment, Proposition 8, and the No on 8 homosexual counter-campaign to defeat it (emphasis is added). Patrick Guerriero, a Massachusetts homosexual activist who used to run the Log Cabin Republicans, is now on loan to “No on 8″ from the Gill Action Fund, which has worked to take out Republican pro-family legislators across the nation. All this provides more evidence that Log Cabin, with its tiny membership of 20,000 nationwide, sees its strategic priority as advancing homosexuality first, and the Republican Party second. And what a shocker this: the California Teachers Association and Hollywood elites oppose traditional marriage:

Guerriero: LGBT Californians must give to stop marriage ban

Veteran activist Patrick Guerriero, who is the new director of California’s “No on 8″ campaign, said the key to defeating the constitutional marriage ban lies with securing the financial backing of the state’s estimated 1 million LGBT residents. “If every single LGBT adult would, over the next couple of days, make a donation to this campaign, we will win,” he said. “And if they don’t, we will lose.” Advocate.com (10/15)

Hollywood, teachers union muster funds to defeat Proposition 8: Barbra Streisand and actor-director Rob Reiner are among the Hollywood celebrities expected to attend a $25,000-a-plate fundraiser to support the “No on 8″ effort on Tuesday at the Los Angeles home of billionaire Ron Burkle. In related news, the California Teachers Association, the state’s largest teachers union, has pledged $1 million to the campaign to defeat the marriage ban, and producer Steve Bing is giving $500,000, the biggest individual donation thus far from the entertainment industry. Yahoo!/Reuters (10/16) , Washington Blade/The Associated Press (10/16) , Variety/Wilshire & Washington blog (10/15) , San Jose Mercury News (Calif.) (10/15)