# How Religion Is Killing Our Most Vulnerable Youth



## spnadmin (Oct 16, 2010)

*This article was forwarded for posting by forum member Tejwant Singh ji Malik.*

An increasingly popular bumper sticker reads, "Guns Don't Kill People -- RELIGION Kills People!" In light of recent events I would add religion kills young people: gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender young people.

Perhaps not directly, though. And religion is certainly not the only source of anti-gay sentiment in the culture. But it's hard to deny that religious voices denouncing LGBT people contribute to the atmosphere in which violence against LGBT people and bullying of LGBT youth can flourish.

The news is filled with the tragedies of teenaged boys who were gay and decided to end their living hell by committing suicide. Maybe they weren't even gay, but merely perceived to be by their peers, who harassed, taunted, and threatened them unmercifully.

These were real kids with real names. Asher Brown, an eighth grader in Texas, shot himself in the head after endless bullying by classmates and despite attempts by his parents to get school authorities to take his harassment seriously. Seth Walsh hung himself from a tree in his California backyard after relentless bullying by classmates. Asher and Seth were 13-years-old.

Billy Lucas, a 15-year-old high school freshman from Indiana, was only perceived to be gay. But the unrelenting bullying ended with him taking his own life. Seven students in one Minnesota school district have taken their own lives, including three teens.

With the exception of Brown in Texas these suicides are not happening in Bible Belt regions of the country, where we might predict a greater-than-usual regard for religious thought. Instead, they are occurring in states perceived to be more liberal on LGBT issues: California, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Rhode Island.

The case of Tyler Clementi is especially instructive about how far we have to go in accepting our gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender children. Clementi was an 18-year-old freshman at Rutgers University whose roommate secretly filmed a sexual encounter he had with another male student and then posted it on the internet.

Think about it. If Tyler had been heterosexual and instead filmed having sex with his girlfriend, it would still be an inappropriate invasion of his privacy and tasteless to post the video online. And it certainly would have been embarrassing for Tyler and the girl. But chances are he would have been the recipient of some congratulatory remarks from friends about what a stud he was. And if he was straight he likely wouldn't have contemplated -- not to mention successfully accomplished -- his own suicide by jumping off the George Washington Bridge.

No, Tyler was a victim -- not of an inner disturbance of depression or mental illness--but of an external and in part religiously inspired disdain and hatred of gay people.

Despite the progress we're making on achieving equality under the law and acceptance in society for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people, why this rash of bullying, paired with self-loathing, ending in suicide? With humility and heartfelt repentance I assert that religion -- and its general rejection of homosexuality -- plays a crucial role in this crisis.

On the one hand, Religious Right hatemongers and crazies are spewing all sorts of venom and condemnation, all in the name of a loving God. The second-highest-ranking Mormon leader, Boyd K. Packer, recently called same-sex attraction "impure and unnatural" in an act of unspeakable insensitivity at the height of this rash of teen suicides. He declared that it can be cured, and that same-sex unions are morally repugnant and "against God's law and nature."

Just as many gay kids grow up in these conservative denominations as any other. They are told day in and day out that they are an abomination before God. Just consider the sheer numbers of LGBT kids growing up right now in Roman Catholic, Mormon, and other conservative religious households. The pain and self-loathing caused by such a distortion of God's will is undeniable and tragic, causing scars and indescribable self-alienation in these young victims.

You don't have to grow up in a religious household, though, to absorb these religious messages. Not long ago I had a conversation with six gay teens, not one of whom had ever had any formal religious training or influence. Every one of them knew the word "abomination," and every one of them thought that was what God thought of them. They couldn't have located the Book of Leviticus in the Bible if their lives depended on it yet they had absorbed this message from the antigay air they breathe every day.

Add to that the Minnesota Family Council's Tom Prichard recently saying that the real cause of the suicides is "homosexual indoctrination," not antigay bullying, and that the students died because they adopted an "unhealthy lifestyle."

Susan Russell from All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, California, points out how ludicrous these statements are in her "An Inch at a Time" blog:

    Thirteen and fifteen year olds are not 'adopting a lifestyle,' they're trying to have a life! They're trying to figure out who they are, who God created them to be and what on earth to do with this confusing bunch of sexual feelings that they're trying to get a handle on. They need role models for healthy relationships -- not judgment and the message that they're condemned to a life of loneliness, isolation and despair.

On the other hand, what's the role of more mainline, more progressive denominations such as mainstream Christianity, Judaism, and Islam in these recent tragedies? Mostly silence. And just like in the days of the AIDS organization Act Up, "silence equals death."

It is not enough for good people -- religious or otherwise -- to simply be feeling more positive toward gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people. Tolerance and a live-and-let-live attitude beats discrimination and abuse by a mile. But it's not enough. Tolerant people, especially tolerant religious people, need to get over their squeamishness about being vocal advocates and unapologetic supporters of LGBT people. It really is a matter of life and death, as we've seen.

I learned this in my dealing with racism. It's not enough to be tolerant of other races. I benefit from a racist society just by being white. I don't ever have to use the "n" word, treat any person of color with discourtesy, or even think ill of anyone. But as long as I am not working to dismantle the systemic racism that benefits me, a white man, at the expense of people of color, I am a racist. And my faith calls me to become an anti-racist -- pro-active, vocal, and committed.

Some progressive religious groups -- the United Church of Christ, Unitarians, Metropolitan Community Church -- have long been advocates for LGBT people. The Evangelical Lutheran Church of America has recently made great strides in welcoming gay clergy. And my own Episcopal Church has put itself at great risk on behalf of full inclusion of LGBT people in electing two openly gay priests to be bishops.

Still, even in these progressive churches, there is much to be done.

Cody J. Sanders, a Baptist minister and Ph.D. student in pastoral theology and counseling at Brite Divinity School in Fort Worth, Texas, recently wrote on the Religion Dispatches website about how important it is for churches to act:

Ministers who remain in comfortable silence on sexuality must speak out. Churches that have silently embraced gay and lesbian members for years must publicly hang the welcome banner. How long will we continue to limit and qualify our messages of acceptance, inclusion and embrace for the most vulnerable in order to maintain the comfort of those in our communities of faith who are well served by the status quo? In the current climate, equivocating messages of affirmation are overpowered by the religious rhetoric of hatred. Silence only serves to support the toleration of bullying, violence and exclusion. In the face of what has already become the common occurrence of LGBT teen suicide, how long can we wait to respond?

As good Christians and Jews we must work to change the religious thinking, rhetoric, and practice that communicates to our LGBT children that they are despised by their Creator. We must learn to object to anti-gay jokes the way we learned to tell our friends that we would not tolerate racist jokes. We must demand that our schools not only have antibullying policies, but that they follow through on stopping the practice of bullying. We need to lobby our congressional representatives for the Student Non-Discrimination Act (SNDA, H.R. 4530, S. 3390). And we must proclaim openly, loudly, and often that we love our children unconditionally in the way that God does -- always wanting the best and most healthy lives for them.

These bullying behaviors would not exist without the undergirding and the patina of respect provided by religious fervor against LGBT people. It's time for "tolerant" religious people to acknowledge the straight line between the official anti-gay theologies of their denominations and the deaths of these young people. Nothing short of changing our theology of human sexuality will save these young and precious lives.

The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson is the Ninth Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire and a visiting Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, Washington, D.C.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bishop-gene-robinson/how-religion-is-killing-o_b_764568.html


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## kds1980 (Oct 16, 2010)

These type of articles are totally biased in nature.In India so many Youngsters end their lives because of pressure of studies so studies are responsible for Deaths.Similarly it is regular news to hear among lovers that either boy or Girl ended their lives after their partners left or refused to marry them so Love is also responsible for deaths.

The fact is society all over the world irrespective of Religion could hardly tolerate people Who are different from them.Even very small things like if you are 4-5 inch shorter than average population of that area make you a butt of joke.


Rich discriminate against poor,educated discriminate against uneducated, Tall people discriminate short persons, strong discriminate weak etc.


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## Tejwant Singh (Oct 16, 2010)

Kanwardeep Singh said:


> These type of articles are totally biased in nature.In India so many Youngsters end their lives because of pressure of studies so studies are responsible for Deaths.Similarly it is regular news to hear among lovers that either boy or Girl ended their lives after their partners left or refused to marry them so Love is also responsible for deaths.
> 
> The fact is society all over the world irrespective of Religion could hardly tolerate people Who are different from them.Even very small things like if you are 4-5 inch shorter than average population of that area make you a butt of joke.
> 
> ...




Kanwardeep Singh ji,

Guru Fateh.

This is the beauty of Sikhi which makes us open minded so that we can  discuss various subjects and some we may not agree with, but it is all  part of the learning process, hence we are called Sikhs.

Pardon my ignorance but I  have no idea what  you mean by,*"These type of articles are totally biased in nature".* Your justification about this does not hold any water either. Your blanket statement although right and with which I happen to agree with  has nothing to do with what the article is about. It is based on the recent events in the US.You should  Google Bishop Eddie Long if  you have not already to get the clearer picture.

I have no idea if you know this or not but the guy who filmed Tyler Clemente twice and made it possible for all to witness what was happening is of Indian origin. His actions made the poor chap commit suicide. I have no idea what religion the Indian student belongs to. Do you think his bigotry is based on his own religious background?

You may think the writer's opinion is biased, which is fine because it  is your opinion  but please explain it in specific terms how it is  biased and elaborate how religion- here we are talking about the  Christian right in the US- has not influenced this bigotry.

Thanks and regards

Tejwant Singh


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## kds1980 (Oct 16, 2010)

Tejwant singh ji

The title of Article itself is very biased.It says how RELIGION IS KILLING MOST VULNERABLE
The author itself is trying to blame Religions for the Deaths of few  gay students,he could have said that bullying is killing most vulnerable ,but no he said How RELIGION  so Authors main target is Religion.


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## Tejwant Singh (Oct 16, 2010)

Kanwardeep Singh said:


> Tejwant singh ji
> 
> The title of Article itself is very biased.It says how RELIGION IS KILLING MOST VULNERABLE
> The author itself is trying to blame Religions for the Deaths of few  gay students,he could have said that bullying is killing most vulnerable ,but no he said How RELIGION  so Authors main target is Religion.



Kanwardeep Singh ji,

Guru Fateh.

The author is right. Christian fundamentalists are killing these people with their anti gay propaganda and homophobia. When we say religion in the US, it is implicit that we are talking about Christianity, not any other religion if not specified.

Regards

Tejwant Singh


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## sunmukh (Oct 16, 2010)

Ek Onkaar Sat Naam



> Nothing short of changing our theology of human sexuality will save these young and precious lives.


 
There is usually no problem at all with the original, root, theology. Any problems that do arise (with respect to tolerance) are generally through a combination of lack of understanding of the religion claimed to be followed by current claimants, and efforts by the mind to self-satisfy. 

Mortals are presented with mountains to climb if they are expected  to break free from these bonds, and suddenly become virtuous in every respect. They have so much working agains them, ranging from inter-alia ignorant preachers, misinterpreted scriptures,  peer pressure,  media pressure, economic pressure, political pressure, family pressure. These are all affecting their thinking all the time, to the point that they are deeply attached. Any attempt to live outside of society's "norms" are often seen as  "insane" moves, or counter society. Some people are branded as revolutionaries, some terrrorists, some fanatics, some villainous, some just so weird that they deserve intense scrutiny and quarantining from rest of society (like gays).  
They are bullied by society as a whole, and humiliated. The ego of these affected people suffers severe setbacks. The rejected people seek support. They attempt to group and attempt to carry on against the onslaught. Some manage to do it, and hence we have wars between peoples with different outlooks on life.  Some of those who can't attach to any society that shares their point of view, either continue in intense suffering, simply commit suicide, or commit suicide taking out other people with them, that they perceive as enemies that lead them to their fragile frame of mind.

Solution: Follow Sikhi  with a purpose. Listen, contemplate, meditate, understand and practice detachment. Think before reacting. Try to change one's mindset from one who is ensnared by 5 evils, to that of one who is is detached. Do this before one hits any obstacle, such as social bullying, humiliation and persecution.   Past Sikhs did and current sikhs can do it. However it is hard to beat worldy forces, but knowing that it means one must do more than passively relying on God's grace. Make one's effort as part of the Lord's Hukam. 
When one is detached, then there will be no ego to take any hit. 

There are also other religions that can assist with attaining the same detached frame of mind, if one does not understand Gurbani or does not know how to practice aspects of Sikhi that can lead to loss of self-identity. 

Sat Sri Akal


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## kds1980 (Oct 16, 2010)

Tejwant Singh said:


> Kanwardeep Singh ji,
> 
> Guru Fateh.
> 
> ...



Well the author have mentioned the name of all abrahmic religions and If he really meant christian Fundamentalist then His could have been different.I don't Think the author has some good views about indic Religions

As the Death of clemente is concerned ,what i just read about it  and I don't find role of any Christian fundamentalist.It was just behaviour of some students.Many times heterosexual MMS or videos are distribuited  or photo's of students are distribuited by their friends.Many times in societies like India the result could be the same but only diffrence is that it is going to be girl
So from where the religion here comes into?

Now suppose if some sikh boys commit suicide in USA because of bulling either by Atheist,agnostic or christian students then whom the Author blames?


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## Tejwant Singh (Oct 16, 2010)

Kanwardeep Singh said:


> Well the author have mentioned the name of all abrahmic religions and If he really meant christian Fundamentalist then His could have been different.I don't Think the author has some good views about indic Religions
> 
> As the Death of clemente is concerned ,what i just read about it  and I don't find role of any Christian fundamentalist.It was just behaviour of some students.Many times heterosexual MMS or videos are distribuited  or photo's of students are distribuited by their friends.Many times in societies like India the result could be the same but only diffrence is that it is going to be girl
> So from where the religion here comes into?
> ...



Kanwardeep Singh ji,

Guru Fateh.

I am sorry to say but you have missed the whole point. The author himself being a Christian is challenging his own people and Jews are part of that to stop this homophobia because young kids are committing suicides. The radical Christians and Jews use  their churches and synagogues as The Bully Pulpits  to incite hatred rather than creating understanding that we all belong to ONE SOURCE.As you do not live in the US, you would not know despite the internet, the homophobia created by both Abrahamic religions.Case in point is of Carl Paldinio, the tea party candidate for the Governor election in New York and his homophobic statement at the gathering with the Hasidic Jews. 

Following is the clip:
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/vide...sexuality-is-not-a-successful-option-11847220

The author is talking about the  environment  created by these 2 religions and he belongs to one of them. Religion plays a great part in the US to shape the psyche of the people and the ones who are suffering  are the ones who need to be helped the most by the same entities who stone them from their Bully Pulpits. It is the culture created by his own religion about which the author is talking about, that encouraged the filming of  Tyler Clemente which resulted in his death. 

So, if you say the author is biased in this sense, then you are right because he is biased against his own religion. He is scolding the people of his own belief system and urging them to wake up.

Lastly, regarding your hypothetical,*"Now suppose if some sikh boys commit suicide in USA because of bulling either by Atheist,agnostic or christian students then whom the Author blames"?*, I would like to say that no one has the answer, not even you, for that.

Regards

Tejwant Singh


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## findingmyway (Oct 17, 2010)

Regardless of the whether the author is biased, the fact remains that a section of society felt victimised. Having been at the receiving end of much rascism I can sympathise with them. 

ALL the causes of bullying need to be identified and tackled as it is NOT acceptable behaviour. 

Whether we agree with another persons lifestyle or not is irrelevant. The main point is to ensure that we do not discriminate according to our standards but create an environment around us that where other people do not feel they have to hide. Just because there are many reasons for discrimination does not make it ok in any form. Whether that discrimination is religious, sexist, rascist, cultural or due to any other reason IT HAS TO STOP yellingsardarni


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## kds1980 (Oct 17, 2010)

Tejwant Singh said:


> Kanwardeep Singh ji,
> 
> Guru Fateh.
> 
> ...



Tejwant singh ji

It does not matter whether the author is Christian or not.Many times people do hold positions in Religions despite no belief in Religion.Christians spreading anti gay propaganda is different issue.If Groups of Radical christian will attack
gays then I would agree to his views.but the cases in the article mentioned I read about them and I don't find that mention of involvement of radical Christian bullies.

The root cause of suicides here is bullying and This should have been the main target ,not the Religion.There is no proof that bullying does not exists in societies where there are no christians or Society like China where there is least influence of Christians accept gays with open arms


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## kds1980 (Oct 17, 2010)

findingmyway said:


> Regardless of the whether the author is biased, the fact remains that a section of society felt victimised. Having been at the receiving end of much rascism I can sympathise with them.
> 
> ALL the causes of bullying need to be identified and tackled as it is NOT acceptable behaviour.
> 
> Whether we agree with another persons lifestyle or not is irrelevant. The main point is to ensure that we do not discriminate according to our standards but create an environment around us that where other people do not feel they have to hide. Just because there are many reasons for discrimination does not make it ok in any form. Whether that discrimination is religious, sexist, rascist, cultural or due to any other reason IT HAS TO STOP yellingsardarni



Are we living in an ideal society?The fact is discrimination is very much their in society.

Once on another sikh forum a discussion started about sikh youths which are facing tough time in UK.Some sikhs from other countries asked Sikhs from Uk why they don't help them and soon the topic turned into Uk sikhs vs Indian sikhs.blame like Indian sikhs don't have manners,they consider UK sikh girls loose blah blah started for many readers of that forum reading that type of thing was quite surprising.


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## spnadmin (Oct 17, 2010)

This is what the pastor is asking in the original post. *Why do Christian fundamentalists carry on as they do. Why don't moderates speak out more than they do*? It is not enough to accept differences. In the eyes of the Christian God is also important to speak out against killing in the name of God.

So the core issue is about bullying of groups other than LGBT, because the Christian right has for decades created a moral context to make homicide OK as long as you can conjure up a reason to hate them. In other words, there is the law of the land, and then there is the Law of Jerry Falwell or the preacher down the block.  
*
This questions will  give us some focus: You have to ask yourself . . .”why?”

Why are the leaders of the Christian Right so belligerent when it comes to recognizing the social and civil equality of gay and lesbian Americans?* 


This article may help clear doubts and keep comments focused on the topic. 


*Kill gay couples: A sign of the times?
By Mel Seesholtz, Ph.D.
Online Journal Contributing Writer
* 

Aug 6, 2010, 00:20

        It’s no secret that the radical Christian Right’s most often quoted “psychologist,” discredited Paul Cameron, has been advocating killing gays for decades.

At the 1985 Conservative Political Action Conference, [Paul] Cameron announced to the attendees, “Unless we get medically lucky, in three or four years, one of the options discussed will be the extermination of homosexuals.” According to an interview with former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, Cameron was recommending the extermination option as early as 1983. --Mark E. Pietzyk, _The News-Telegraph,_ March 10, 1995

More about Cameron’s “final solution” is available here and here.

Of course, most the “Christian” leaders of the anti-gay movement distance themselves from such outright murderous statement, preferring instead to run workshops to teach children as young as 14 to hate gays. [1]

Perhaps the kids and other attendees that participate in LaBarbera’s workshop will be treated to the “Christian” music of You Can Run But You Can’t Hide, the frontman for which is Bradlee Dean [2]
*
Parallel example, not main point**, but inserted to make a point*

“Muslim countries that execute LGBTs are ‘more moral than even the American Christians.’” One has to assume, therefore, that Christian
fundamentalist Bradlee Dean is also okay with how Islamic fundamentalists treat women:

The Taliban pounded on the door just before midnight, demanding that Aisha, 18, be punished for running away from her husband’s house. Her in-laws treated her like a slave, Aisha pleaded. They beat her. If she hadn’t run away, she would have died. Her judge, a local Taliban commander, was unmoved. Aisha’s brother-in-law held her down while her husband pulled out a knife. First he sliced off her ears. Then he started on her nose. This didn’t happen 10 years ago, when the Taliban ruled Afghanistan.It happened last year. . . .

*Main point*

How does one respond to American “Christians” who call for –or sanction – the coldblooded murder of fellow citizens? How does one respond to people like Peter LaBarbera whose sole purpose in life is to inspire hatred and bigotry? And how does one respond to concocted, bogus unsupportable statements such as “On average, they [gays] molest 117 people before they’re found out”?

Well, click here to see how Larry Adams of Cross Bearer Ministry in Indianapolis, Indiana responded. This bible-thumping, “good Christian” wants to get out the nooses and hang gay couples . . . in the name of “God,” of course. (Read the firsthand report see the sign at The Bilerico Project.)

One has to wonder why Mr. Adams isn’t crusading for the other death sentences ordered by the murderous “God” of the Old Testament. You know, all those blasphemers who work on the Sabbath, wear clothing made of two different threads and, of course, all those non-virgin brides. Mr. Adams couldn’t be acting on anything Jesus taught because Jesus never said a word about homosexuality. He did, however, talk a lot about love and loving one’s neighbor as one’s self and, of course, treating others as you would want to be treated. Guess in his rush to buy rope for the nooses to hang gay couples Mr. Adams missed those parts of the Bible.

Mr. Adams and his sign appeared at one of the stops of the National Organization for Marriage’s “One Man, One Woman” bus tour. NOM claims
to be “pro-marriage,” but actually they’re anti-marriage in much the same way Christian Right groups that claim to be “pro-family” are really anti-family when they work as hard as they can to demean, denigrate and deny gay families social, economic and legal recognition.

NOM’s July 26, 2010 Indianapolis “rally,” graced by Mr. Adams, was a bust (photos tell the tale): “NOM embarrassed (yet again): Equality supporters triple NOM turnout in Indianapolis.”

Another NOM rally turned into a real dog and pony show (with video): “Pastor Speaks In Tongues At NOM Rally, And Apparently It Is Suppose To Be Special.”For other blatantly fraudulent uses of glossolalia for social, political and financial purposes, check out _Jesus Camp_ and Bill Mahr’s _Religulous._

Frank Schaeffer’s “Will the Right Turn (More) Violent?” and B.E. Wilson’s “Christian Book Touting Manly Aggression Inspires Violent Fundamentalist Meth Trafficking Cult” have commented on the growing trend toward violence in the Christian Right. Prominent members of the anti-gay Christian Right have been linked to and been supportive of Uganda’s proposed “kill gays” legislation:Family Research Council supports death 

By James Withers, contributing editor, 365Gay Blog 06.04.2010


*The Family Research Council** is a sponsor of murder. That is not Friday morning hyperbole. * Joe, at Joe. My.God, found out FRC walked the halls of Congress fighting a resolution that denounced Uganda’s proposal to legally lynch gays. Two lobbyists were paid $25,000 to lobby the Senate and the House. Apparently their work wasn’t successful in the Senate because that body passed its resolution on April 13. However, it “remains languishing in the House almost four months after being referred to the Foreign Affairs Committee. Did the FRC’s lobbying kill it?”

This support for state sanctioned murder should not surprise. Remember when Ugandan MP David Bahati said he had private support from American evangelicals? More than likely he meant these kooks. And who can forget FRC’s Peter Sprigg? He wants gay sex to be a criminal offense and ‘mos deported. Sprigg is the same “scholar” who said gay rape would increase if DADT was removed.

You have to ask yourself . . .”why?”

Why are the leaders of the Christian Right so belligerent when it comes to recognizing the social and civil equality of gay and lesbian Americans?

Since Jesus said absolutely nothing about homosexuality, and the Old Testament mandates death for a whole host of “offenses” -- none of which are championed or promoted by those who use the Old Testament to advocate killing or denying gays civil equality -- one has to consider the obvious: the power and profit incentives of hate-mongering.

T*ed Haggard (who frequented a male prostitute) and George Alan Rekers (who vacationed with a RentBoy male prostitute) are testimonials to the tactic. Both became rich men pontificating against gays and working against civil equality. So too have the other leaders of the anti-gay Christian Right who make a very comfortable living hate-mongering in the name of religion.
*
Money and Power. They seem to be the only answers to why leaders of the Christian Right continue to use gays to rally the sheeple and to raise funds for their organizations and, ultimately, themselves.

But their campaigns have, as noted above, engendered new calls for violence against gays. To be sure, there have been previous cases in which
“God” supposedly told the righteous to kills gays. [3-4]

Where would these religious zealots get such ideas? From the Bible? Likely. But then again, the Bible calls for the murder of a variety of transgressors: those who work on the Sabbath, wear clothing made of two different threads, and non-virgin brides just to name a few. So why aren’t these murderous religious fanatics going after them?

Could it be that they were “inspired” to focus their hate and rage against gays by the vitriolic anti-gay rhetoric of sanctimonious Christian Right leaders?


Moreover, the leaders of the Christian Right have turned their religion into one big dour cauldron of negativity. In explaining why she quit Christianity, Ann Rice captured the essence of what the Christian Right has done to Christianity:

For those who care, and I understand if you don’t, I quit being a Christian. I’m out. In the name of Christ, I refuse to be anti-gay. I refuse to be anti-feminist. I refuse to be anti-artificial birth control. I refuse to be anti-Democrat. I refuse to be anti-secular humanism. I refuse to be anti-science. I refuse to be anti-life. . . . It’s simply impossible for me to “belong” to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious, and deservedly infamous group.

The sign Mr. Adam proudly displayed suggesting gay couple be hanged is the “natural” result of the Christian Right’s selling and thriving on hatred.

*Notes*

1. Cliff Kincaid Added to LaBarbera’s Anti-Gay Hate-Fest

2. Target’s Financial Backing of Anti-Gay Politician

3. God Told Me To Kill Gays

4. God told me to kill them

http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_6196.shtml


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## findingmyway (Oct 17, 2010)

Kanwardeep Singh said:


> Tejwant singh ji
> Society like  China where there is least influence of Christians accept gays with open  arms



My Chinese friends tell me a very different story. Their culture also puts much emphasis on family and having a family. They even have arranged/assisted marriages and are not friendly towards homosexuals in their community.



Kanwardeep Singh said:


> Are we living in an ideal society?The fact is discrimination is very much their in society.
> 
> Once on another sikh forum a discussion started about sikh youths which are facing tough time in UK.Some sikhs from other countries asked Sikhs from Uk why they don't help them and soon the topic turned into Uk sikhs vs Indian sikhs.blame like Indian sikhs don't have manners,they consider UK sikh girls loose blah blah started for many readers of that forum reading that type of thing was quite surprising.



No we are not living in an ideal society and that is why action has to be taken. Mudslinging helps no-one. Looking at the reasons why for each type of bullying and tackling that does help. The place to start is within our own community. Just because it has always been like that doesn't make it right. Guru Nanak Dev Ji didn't endorse behaviours that had been the status quo for centuries so why should we discriminate or allow discrimination!


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## findingmyway (Oct 17, 2010)

*Chilling call to murder as music attacks gays*                                    Jamaican rights activist's death is officially said to be motivated by robbery, but campaigners point to pop-fuelled homophobia

In the heat of January in Jamaica 30,000 people came to the Rebel  Salute concert in St. Elizabeth to hear some of the nation's most  popular singers deliver a chilling call. With Capleton and Sizzla  singing almost exclusively about gay men, the call went out from the  stadium: "Kill dem battybwoys haffi dead, gun shots pon dem ... who  want to see dem dead put up his hand" (Kill them, the queers have to  die, gun shots in their head ... put up your hand if you want to see  them dead.)  

Two weeks ago Jamaica's most prominent gay activist,  Brian Williamson, was murdered at his home. Mr Williamson, a co-founder  of Jamaican Forum for Lesbians, All-sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG), was  found with multiple stab wounds to his neck and his face and his throat  cut. With his safe missing and his room ransacked, the police  insist that it was a robbery and have one person in custody. Jamaica's  gay activists and human rights campaigners are not so sure. They fear Mr  Williamson could have been targeted because of his sexual orientation.   

"Given the climate that exists in Jamaica there is high  possibility that Brian's murder is a hate related crime and we don't  want the police to rule that out," said a representative of J-FLAG, who  did not wish to be named for fear of reprisals. Brian was one of the few  people who felt comfortable enough to go public with his  homosexuality. "Indeed, last May Mr Williamson wrote to the  national newspaper, the Jamaica Observer, explaining: "We who are  homosexuals are seen as 'the devil's own children' and passed by on the  other side of the street or beaten to death by our fellow citizens." 

The  hatred has followed him to the grave. "We've had one or two well  wishers from the straight community," said the J-FLAG representative.  "But many more have said things like: 'This is what you get for sin' or  'we should get them one by one.'" Human rights campaigners say  that while the precise motive of Mr Williamson's killers may never be  known, his death provides a timely opportunity for the government to  address the problem. "We have called on the Jamaican authorities to use  this time to make a public statement condemning homophobia and calling  for people to respect the rights of lesbian and gay men," said Michael  Heflin, of Amnesty International in the United States.

  This is  not likely to happen soon. From Buju Banton's Boom Boom Bye Bye, which  threatened gay men with a "gunshot in ah head", to Beenie Man's "I'm a  dreaming of a new Jamaica, come to execute all the gays", Jamaica's  popular music scene is steeped in homophobia. Concern that his lyrics  could incite violence against gays and activists led to the cancellation  of a concert by Beenie Man in London earlier this week.  

But  songs are not the only place where homophobia is blatant. At a state  level, article 76 of the nation's offences against the person act  criminalises the "abominable crime of {censored}y" with up to 10 years  imprisonment, while article 79 punishes any act of physical intimacy  between men in public or private with up to two years in jail and the  possibility of hard labour. A recent poll showed 96% of  Jamaicans were opposed to any move to legalise homosexual relations. And  while the police do not condone homophobic violence, they are often  unsympathetic to the victims.  

One man described to J-FLAG how  six men blocked a road in order to beat up a local gay man. "The crowd  stood around watching, chanting 'Battyman, battyman, battyman', before  gathering around him as he lay on the sidewalk. The crowd punched and  kicked him. They threw garbage on him, all the while shouting 'Battyman,  battyman'. They then dragged him down the road for half a kilometre ...  The crowd was saying 'Give him to us! Let us kill him! He's a  battyman'. "At least five gay Jamaicans have successfully  claimed asylum in Britain on grounds of homophobia. "I had to leave  because of the pressure," said one 26-year-old Jamaican who settled in  Britain in 2000 and asked to remain anonymous. "I had been beaten up and  chased and the police would not help you. Once I went to hospital after  I was badly beaten up and they refused to treat me."  

Few can  agree on the source of such homophobia. *But most agree the church plays a  crucial role. "Evangelical Christianity is very strong, and there is a  prudishness and hypocrisy that comes with that," said a representative  of J-FLAG. "They ignore the part that says don't have sex out of wedlock  and focus on gays."  *

Others claim the sheer geographical size of  islands in the Caribbean makes them more socially conservative. "So  long as you are stuck living close to your family then you never really  get the space to make the kind of choices about your life that will  challenge the values and practices you've been brought up with," said  Erin Greene, a member of the Rainbow Alliance of the nearby Bahamas.  

The  particularly violent expression homophobia has found in Jamaica, most  agree, reflects a particularly violent society. In 2002 1,045 people  were murdered, and according to Amnesty International, Jamaica has the  highest number of police killings per capita in the world. In the  national paper, the Daily Gleaner, the murder count is updated daily,  between the weather forecast and the lottery numbers.  
"The worst  thing is when you see children of three or four singing songs about  killing the Chi Chi [gay] man," said one J-FLAG representative. "They  are learning from an early age that violence against gay people is  acceptable."                  


http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2004/jun/26/gayrights.arts


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## spnadmin (Oct 17, 2010)

*Hate Crimes Motivated By Sexual Orientation Bias*
US statistics through 2008

The following are the number of hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation bias as reported by the Federal Bureau of Investigation under The Hate Crimes Statistics Act of 1990:

2008: 1,617 ate crime offenses based on sexual-orientation bias were reported by law enforcement agencies. Of these offenses:

    * 58.6 percent were classified as anti-male homosexual bias.
    * 25.7 percent were reported as anti-homosexual bias.
    * 12.0 percent were prompted by an anti-female homosexual bias.
    * 2.0 percent were the result of an anti-heterosexual bias.
    * 1.7 percent were classified as anti-bisexual bias.

2007: 1,460 hate crime offenses based on sexual-orientation bias were reported by law enforcement agencies. Of these offenses:

    * 59.2 percent were classified as anti-male homosexual bias.
    * 24.8 percent were reported as anti-homosexual bias.
    * 12.6 percent were prompted by an anti-female homosexual bias.
    * 1.8 percent were the result of an anti-heterosexual bias.
    * 1.6 percent were classified as anti-bisexual bias.

2006: 1,415 hate crime offenses based on sexual-orientation bias were reported by law enforcement agencies. Of these offenses:

    * 62.3 percent were classified as anti-male homosexual biased.
    * 20.7 percent were classified as anti-homosexual biased.
    * 13.6 percent were classified as anti-female homosexual biased.
    * 2.0 percent were classified as anti-heterosexual biased.
    * 1.5 percent were classified as anti-bisexual biased.

2005: 1,171 hate crime offenses based on sexual-orientation bias were reported by law enforcement agencies. Of these offenses:

    * 60.9 percent were anti-male homosexual.
    * 19.5 percent were anti-homosexual.
    * 15.4 percent were anti-female homosexual.
    * 2.0 percent were anti-heterosexual.
    * 2.3 percent were anti-bisexual.

http://gaylife.about.com/od/hatecrimes/a/statistics.htm


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## findingmyway (Oct 18, 2010)

Multiculturalism has failed: Merkel

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been a long-time opponent of xenophobia. Now, however, she appears to be embracing it, for reasons of political expediency. Merkel has branded Germany's attempts to build a multicultural society  an "utter failure" in an unprecedented speech designed to revive her own  and her conservative party's flagging popularity and regain the  initiative in an increasingly hostile public debate about immigration.

Ms Merkel, who normally scrupulously avoids courting xenophobic opinion,  bluntly told a meeting of young members of her ruling Christian  Democratic party that the "Multikulti" notion of people from different  cultural backgrounds living happily side by side simply did not work. "This approach has failed, utterly failed," she told applauding young  conservatives gathered at a conference in Potsdam outside Berlin on  Saturday. Instead she urged Germany's 16 million immigrants to do more  to integrate into society and to learn German.

 Earlier, in a  reference to Germany's 2.5 million Turkish immigrant population, she  told delegates: "In the beginning of the Sixties, we called on foreign  workers to come to Germany and now they live in our country." She added:  "We kidded ourselves for a while by saying they won't stay, sometime  they will be gone, but this isn't reality." Ms Merkel's remarks were  both a response to a surge of anti-immigrant feeling in Germany and an  attempt to counter her vulnerable position in her own party.

   Disastrous opinion polls and right-wing dissatisfaction with her  perceived "left-wing" conservatism have led to an open discussion about  an early replacement for Germany's first woman leader.  The right-wing conservatives' favoured candidate is Karl-Theodor zu  Guttenberg, the 38-year-old conservative defence minister. Yesterday Mr  zu Guttenberg and his glamorous wife Stephanie were pictured on the  front cover of Der Spiegel magazine as "The fabulous zu Guttenbergs".

   Ms Merkel's broadside against multiculturalism followed a recent and disturbing survey about Germans' attitudes to foreigners, calls for a  ban on Muslim immigration, and a best-selling book by a former Central  Bank member which claims that Muslims are linked to crime and welfare  payments. 

Last week an opinion poll conducted by the left-leaning Friedrich Ebert  foundation concluded that more than 30 per cent of Germans thought that  their country was "overrun by foreigners"; 55 per cent thought Arabs  were "unpleasant". The poll was published a day after Horst Seehofer, the Bavarian  conservative leader, whose party is a sister organisation to Ms Merkel's  Christian Democrats, insisted that multiculturalism was "dead" and  called for a ban on future immigration by Turks and Arabs.

The increasingly heated debate about immigration and integration was set  in motion in August with the publication of the unashamedly xenophobic,  yet hugely popular, book Deutschland schafft sich ab - which means  "Germany is doing away with itself" - by a former German central bank  member and Berlin city councillor called Thilo Sarrazin. Despite being virulently anti-Muslim and having been condemned as akin  to Nazi propaganda by Germany's Jewish organisations, the book is  Germany's No1 non-fiction bestseller. The author's public readings are  packed by what one newspaper described as "well-heeled, greying members  of the bourgeoisie". 
   At a reading in Munich, a journalist and a university professor were  shouted down despite being invited to present findings which  contradicted the book.

   For Ms Merkel, the runaway immigration debate is the latest in a string  of unwelcome developments which have seen the popularity of her ruling  conservative-liberal coalition sink to record lows over the past three  months. Ms Merkel's left-wing brand of conservatism has been attacked by the  right wing of her party with some members declaring that they fear the  possibility of a breakaway hard-line conservative party forming in  Germany. Her failure to take the initiative on immigration has  exacerbated the situation, they say.

In an article in the respected conservative Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper last week, several unnamed Christian Democrat politicians were  quoted as saying they considered Mr zu Guttenberg, who is rated Germany's most popular politician, as Ms Merkel's most obvious  replacement. "If Merkel loses Baden-Wrttemberg [a conservative stronghold], then she will be out of the picture," a senior party member said.


http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10681337


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## kds1980 (Oct 18, 2010)

> No we are not living in an ideal society and that is why action has to be taken. Mudslinging helps no-one. Looking at the reasons why for each type of bullying and tackling that does help. The place to start is within our own community. Just because it has always been like that doesn't make it right. Guru Nanak Dev Ji didn't endorse behaviours that had been the status quo for centuries so why should we discriminate or allow discrimination!



I am not saying that it O.K to bully LGBT.I am just saying the author should not overblame Religions for the Death of few guys  just because they were gay and bullied


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