Gay Rights

A religious and LGBT support group gathers in Harlem to discuss the struggles and joys of being gay and faithful. Leading an open public forum titled “Ain’t no Hurt Like a Gospel Hurt,” the group hosts discussion leading toward healing and understanding. While many in the LGBT community have felt shunned and hurt by guilt and intolerance in their religious communities, many more remain committed to a life of service in the faith of their choice. By gathering to celebrate shared experience and heal from common pain, the forum hopes to advance dialogue toward all faith communities welcoming all faithful followers.

Great to Be Takei and Buddhist

Actor and social media superstar and frankly open gay man George Takei addressed his faith in a recent post on a Buddhist blog. Generally, no one claims to speak for the millions of Buddhists worldwide to stake a position on the issue, but it is true that the ancient world religion has little to say about same-sex relationships or LGBT identity. The core values that the faith affirms support inclusion of all, however. Based on principles of compassion and tolerance, with a focus on an ending to suffering and an understanding of intimate connections between all inhabitants of earth, Buddhist tenets mesh well with acceptance of all individuals regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Alabama Same-Sex Marriage Showdown Takes a Familiar Old Separatist Tone

With threats and counter-threats swirling in the wake of a federal court decision to overturn a gay marriage ban in Alabama, politicians scuffled along the sidelines and the governor wants to turn back the clock 60 years. Mirrored across the nation in ongoing efforts to join the handful of states that have tried to ban same sex marriage, local and state politicians piled on the rhetoric in an effort to stifle the effort to extend civil rights to all.

Alabama’s only openly gay state senator had tough talk aimed for other state elected officials. Many in office in the state have met the court’s decision with fierce threats to forbid all marriage licenses in the state amid the new legal reality requiring issuance of marriage licenses to all couples who apply in keeping with the court ruling. Sen. Patricia Todd promised to reveal all she knows about affairs and sexual indiscretions among the state’s politicians who choose to hypocritically rally under the “family values” banner against same-sex marriage.

Just Like the Good Old Days

Governor Mike Huckabee threatened to shut down the county clerks across the state from issuance of all marriage licenses for anyone regardless of the gender of the betrothed, so as to avoid having to serve LGBT individuals who wish to be legally married. In almost exactly the same manner of executive misrule, Huckabee’s predecessor in the Alabama Governor’s Office shut down all schools in the state rather than integrate children as directed by the Supreme Court in Brown vs. Board of Education back in 1957. In 2015, Huckabee leads his state with divisive tactics in the face of federal directives pointing toward equality for all.

Legions of Local Politicians Come Unglued at Prospect of Marriage Equality

Not to be exceeded in extremist tantrums, an Oklahoma regional politician threatens jail time for any public servant who shows the temerity to sanction a marriage in the state. The politician has proposed a firm ban on any issuing of any marriage licenses in that state, also in response to federal court rulings requiring marriage equality. Wow.

The holy institution of matrimony may come entirely unglued if some civil servants are forced to allow a woman to say vows of marriage to a woman under state license (or, God forbid, men wanting to marry men). Really?

For those who take a deep breath, look across the aisle or the county clerk’s office counter and see human beings standing on the other side, the solution to the problem that has consumed so much political time in America may be reached in no time. Consensus may ideally follow legal authority in coming months, and same-sex marriage may soon be no more controversial than young black children and young white children playing on the schoolyard together. Equality in America is a dream that is still worth pursuing.