U.S. Exports: Homophobia UP Civil Rights for All DOWN

Today’s Boise Weekly included an article on how the United States is exporting its “homophobia” to African countries, such as Uganda. This mass export of ideological hatred has resulted in persecution, torture, and death in Uganda. I wonder what Jesus would have to say about this “modified” form of “love the sinner, but not the sin?” Currently, Uganda is considering an anti-homosexuality bill that would mean genocide for gay and lesbian Ugandans.

Of the situation in Uganda, the Boise Weekly writes:

Although homosexuality has been illegal in Uganda since the colonial era, there has been an unprecedented escalation of hatred fueled by Uganda’s pending Anti-Homosexuality Bill of 2009. If passed in its present form, the wide-ranging legislation calls for the death penalty for gays and lesbians who engage in sex and are HIV positive, have committed the offense of homosexuality more than once, have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol during a sexual encounter or one partner has a disability. For other, less “aggravated” offenses, they face life in prison.

The bill also affects heterosexuals. Nongovernmental organizations including human rights, advocacy or aid organizations will be prosecuted if any material or advocacy support is provided to or on behalf of LGBT people. This includes family members, friends, medical professionals and clergy. There will be nowhere to run for Yiga or his friends.

So, how does this impact the United States? Well it just so happens that during an economic downturn, America has another export that conservatives in other parts of the world are grappling to purchase — HOMOPHOBIA. In regards to the Ugandan situation the Boise Weekly explains how the U.S. is exporting its views on homosexuality:

America’s influence in African politics goes back centuries, but this most recent anti-homosexual movement can be traced, in part, to a three-day seminar in Kampala in March 2009 called “Exposing the Truth behind Homosexuality and the Homosexual Agenda.” It was led by Scott Lively–a conservative known for his Holocaust revisionist book, The Pink Swastika, which claims homosexuals founded the Nazi party and were responsible for many death camp atrocities–and fellow evangelicals Caleb Lee Brundidge and Don Schmierer.

Therefore, although IBM, MSFT, ACHN, and other stocks might not be producing the returns you expected this year, you might want to invest in homophobia, because it appears that the demand is up and the supply is for the taking.

It is truly a sad day for religion when it becomes the source of hatred and bigotry. Gay and lesbian people around the world must stand in solidarity with their gay brothers and sisters throughout the world. Queer Faith News (QfN) encourages you to contact the Ugandan Mission to the United Nations and tell them that you will not stand silently while the prospects of genocide wade in the future. You may also want to contact the exporters of hate in the United States and let them know that you would be very supportive of them producing love as an alternative.

Read the entire article on the Boise Weekly’s website.

Today’s Church Bulletin: September 4, 2010: A non-profit confronts religion-based bigotry, PCUSA won’t marry GLBT Christians, and HRC religion institute

Here are a few headlines from today’s news feed that are worth exploring.

The first article Faith in America non-profit confronts religion-based bigotry by A. Latham Staples explores a non-profit organization – Faith in America – which seeks to confront religious bigotry head-on. Here is an interesting excerpt:

“I had publicly derided gays and lesbians under the banner of Christianity. Soon though, I realized the hostility wasn’t at the center of my Christian beliefs, it was being instilled in me by the church itself,” Childers [Executive Director of Faith in America] said. “For centuries various leaders have used the Bible to preach slavery and segregation, to promote sexism, and to decry interracial marriage.

“The Bible has a divine place for the spiritual life of a person, but you can’t get past the fact that it was written by individuals and has gone through various translations and interpretations,” Childers said. “The teachings in it are a wonderful example of how one should lead their life but shouldn’t be taken literally.”

In 2006 Faith in America gained national attention after the organization disseminated a series of educational campaigns that stirred controversy in a number of communities across the nation. The newspaper ads, radio spots and billboards featured the image of Jesus Christ along with Biblical passages such as “Jesus affirmed a gay couple (Matthew 8:5-13),” “Jesus said some are born gay (Matthew 19:10-12)” and “The early church welcomed a gay man (Acts 8:26-40).”

According to Childers, polling in each community where the ads ran showed an increase in acceptance levels of the LGBT population in comparison to polling completed prior to the running of the ads.

The organization reminds me of another organization, Soulforce, which organizes the annual equality ride that visits religious-schools around the country that deny GLBT students equal standing and protections. Learn more about Soulforce on their website. Read the entire article about Faith in America online at San Diego Gay & Lesbian News.

A second article is an interesting discussing about the Presbyterian Church’s (PCUSA) position on gay marriage. Read the article online at Get Religion.

And today’s winning article comes from Religion Dispatch. Rebecca Alpert provides a guest blog entry regarding the Human Rights Campaign’s Summer Institute for LGBT graduate students studying religious studies. Though this blog is not a fan of the HRC for a variety of reasons — largely because it represents rich, white, gay men — this Institute seems rather interesting based on the coverage provided by Alpert. Read about the Summer Institute on Religion Dispatch.

Gay-friendly Rosh Hashanah: Places to Celebrate the High Holy Days and a Word from Rabbi Greenberg

As the High Holy Days in Judaism draw nearer, here is the first in a series that will provide inspiring and useful information for GLBT Jews. If you have any resources that you think might be helpful, please post them in the comments.

Looking for a place to celebrate the high holy days without sacrificing your identity?

If you are in the New York City area, you might want to consider Congregation Beit Simchat Torah which welcomes GLBT Jews to celebrate the high holy days with them. This link provides details regarding service times and location.

Here is a beautiful video by Rabbi Steve Greenberg (a gay Orthodox Rabbi) discussing the hope that Rosh Hashanah brings.

Rabbi Steve Greenberg: Rosh Hashana Brings Hope
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