Ayvaunn Penn: Anti-Gay Christians Deserve Respect Too

We have the right to agree or disagree
when it comes to homosexuality and same sex marriages, but our
political decisions are influenced by religion in a multicultural
multiracial society that has continuously portrayed little room for
heterogeneous beliefs and ideals.

Racism and discrimination should
not be tolerated as it is not only a blanket approach, but a hateful
approach pertaining to differences.
I
am not anti Conservatism nor anti Liberalism. But I am anti-one-track,
which leaves little room for both Conservatives and Liberals to merge
and agree on making decisions that are inclusive.

When religion is a key motivator
behind enforcing policy decisions, I am a huge skeptic, because one
religion does not reflect the great melting pot that we have in this
country. Legislative and Policy decision are very much selfish. They are
voted for or voted against if it is not based on a religious beliefs or
backed by money.

I am aware that politician’s 
ideals are parallel to its party members, which is why many of us choose
parties. Yet, if we are only making decisions based on party ideals, we
are not looking at a broader picture. We are extremely closed when
there is a need to shift or compromise, or even come to an agreement.
This is one of the many problems we have within legislation. If we can
not understand that we “must” consider gay rights, then we can not
speculate why our Congress or our president can not make decisions that
will benefit the rest of 98% or minority groups, Senior Citizens or any
group that has a real need.

I don’t care if Obama is pro or
against gay couples. But I do care if he makes inclusive decisions as a
president. And I do care if legislative decisions are solely backing by
ideals and not reason.
crosspost comment @ http://julene.womenforaction.org

Humans are born every day with limbs, eyes and other body parts missing, they are born with down syndrome, alzheimers and other special or different circumstances. Ms Penn some persons are born with two sex organs. Whoa what happen here? maybe your imaginary friend was having a coffee brake when gays were born, kinda slip by. You said that one of our goal as a species is to futher our genes, you know that may stright people both male and female are unable to have childern a  few pople get married after child bearing age despite this and gays the human species is flurishing. Maybe you remember this from some science class of all the creature larger then a mouse we’re the most numerous and growing so no need to worry about our gene pool. I don’t know if there is a supreme being but I don’t believe he could put a hundred billion stars in our galaxy alone and be confuse about what in those holy books. Christian belive in mariage untill death do his part, We know how well that has work. Muslim believe that a man can have up to four wives. Morman used to belive in multipal mariages,when Utah became a state god let them of the hook, untill 1978 the morman said god revealed to them that black conld’t go to heaven. Right wing  christian, some black denomation have had vicious attack on gays just as some of these group continue to attack  black, brown and women. You have the right in this country to belive in an say whatever you wish, just as being course by Ham and manifest destiny was not a good way to make public policy, neither are religous belief about gays are any better or different. Dr. King one of our greatest leader never turn his back on Bayard Rustin the openly gay man who orgnaize the 1963 march in D.C. Please its border on the same insanity that cused human to be burned at stakes to believe that gays of all the people in the human family  are the only one to chose their defferances   Finally no human on this planet should have ever been opress in the name of anyone are anything. For whomever I’am a 71 yrs old black father of five and straight.   
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Dear Ms. Penn,
     I don’t believe free speech is involved here.  Of course both those “pro-homosexuality and anti-homosexuality” – to use your words – have a constitutional right to speak their opposing opinions.  No one is disputing that.  Neither side however has a constitutionally given right to remain free of “social censure”.  Society and the various religious groups decide what ideas will be politically, socially and religiously censured over time. The “anti-homosexuality” stance has held forth in our Judeo-Christian western society for 2000+ years now.  That is changing right before our eyes. On the night of June 28, 1969 in Greenwich Village, New York City, “homosexuals” rioted in protest of a police raid on a gay bar. That week in New York, a new human rights movement was born that has evolved into this present movement that is now pushing for, among other civil and human rights, gay marriage.  
     Racism, anti-semitism, war mongering and misogyny are ideas that have been present in our society since the beginning and all have been eventually socially censured, to one degree or another.  Christian Scripture has been traditionally quoted to support both opposing sides of every one of these social issues. The southern slave owners, the slaves and the northern abolitionists all sincerely believed that God was speaking to and for their side as they read and quoted “God’s One Holy Word” from the very same Bible. But the North won the war, slavery was abolished and racism was further opposed and eventually “socially censured” after Dr. King and many others fought a long anti-racist struggle.  The north and the south, the slaveholder and the slave and the racists and the civil rights advocates couldn’t just agree to disagree. Both sides could not exist in peace with each other.  The sincerely held Christian religious beliefs of the southern slave holders that upheld their belief in the righteousness of slavery, that they found in the Christian Bible, were in fact hurting another group of God’s children. 
     So because you and others have very sincerely held religious beliefs about homosexual people that you have chosen to accept on faith does not mean that I as a gay person must respect those beliefs and merely agree to disagree with you. I will express my opposition to your beliefs and politically oppose any attempt you make to keep me from enjoying my basic human and civil rights.  The times, I sincerely believe, are moving toward a better understanding of who gay people are.  We are not a threat to the family or the institution of marriage. My relationship with my legal domestic partner here in Washington State, does not threaten anyone’s marriage anywhere.  If you think keeping gay people from getting married will preserve the institution of heterosexual marriage then you are truly in denial of reality.  Check out some marriage statistics and see if the gays are bringing marriage down.  We do not seek to force religious marriages but rather seek civil marriage, the right to serve our country in the military, and all of the other rights and responsibilities of any other citizen.  
     I appreciate the fact that you do not wish to see me physically hurt because I am gay but your “hate the sin but love the sinner” line shows that you really don’t understand what it means to be gay.  You are giving tacit approval to others who do wish to do violence on gay people.  
     To you being gay seems to mean only about where we gay people put our genitals.  Is that what you mean when you say you are in love with someone?  Of course you don’t.  It’s much more deeper than that.  You don’t understand that at this point.  I hope that at some point you can come to some better understanding of gay people.   
     Regarding your refrences to biological science” gay people have been around since the beginning of human kind.  There doesn’t seem to be a threat that the human race isn’t being sustained because of gay people.  And in case you haven’t been keeping up on things, this younger generation of gays want and are having kids.  And again, in case you haven’t noticed, science is telling us that over population is “biologically counterproductive – literally – for the human race by the laws of science.”