Addison & Jace ::: en route

I wish I was posting some awesome photos from our wedding or more great shots from our honeymoon with this post, but I’m not. Instead, I have to post this disgusting letter sent from SC Senator Jim DeMint to religious leaders throughout the state. Here it is:

Subject:  Hate Crime Legislation Must Be Stopped!

Dear Pastors and Religious Leaders:

The long debate over the “separation of church and state” has convinced many religious leaders that their opinions are not welcome in political debates.  Many pastors hesitate to explain that government policies have helped cause the decline of America’s culture, morality and spirituality.  Many people of faith have given up their freedom of speech and the freedom to practice their religious principles in all areas of their lives.

I am writing to you today to remind you that religious principles and biblical teachers produced the values and policies that made America exceptional, prosperous, and good.

In recent decades, Congress and the courts have adopted policies that have proved destructive to faith, families, and freedom in America, but no one action has been as damaging as the “hate crime” legislation will be.  This hate crime legislation will replace “equal justice under law” with arbitrary justice based on the race, religion, or sexual orientation of criminals and their victims.  More importantly, it will lead to the criminalization of biblical truth as “hate speech.”

Under this legislation, a pastor who teaches that homosexuality is wrong could be accused of a hate crime or charged with “inducing” a violent crime against a gay person.

Please tell your congregation this legislation is not about “hate” (all violent crimes are hateful); it is about taking away your freedom to speak and preach biblical truth.  It will take away your right to say that some things are wrong.  We need millions of Americans to call and email their Senators, especially Democrat Senators who are pushing this legislation.  Majority Leader Harry Reid has promised to pass this legislation in the next few weeks (the House already has).

To learn more about the “hate crimes” legislation, refer to Family Research Council’s reference page on the topic, www.frc.org. And to find out the email addresses and phone numbers of your Senators, link to www.senate.gov, or call the Capitol operator at 202-224-3121.  Please act this week.

Sincerely,
Jim DeMint
U.S. Senator

I am so appalled and angered by this letter that I can barely see straight. This man is lying. Plain out lying to people. And in doing so, he’s destroying the memory of so many gay kids who were beaten to death because of their sexual orientation.

Here are some excerpts from an email written by SC Equality Board President, Dr. Ed Madden, and sent out to the SC Equality mailing list. It explains exactly what DeMint is lying about and why his words are so damn offensive.

DeMint says the law will “criminalize biblical truth as ‘hate speech,’” that pastors will be prosecuted for hate speech, and that the law takes away freedom of speech.  He says the law will “take away your right to say some things are wrong.”  THIS IS SIMPLY NOT TRUE.  NO PASTOR WILL BE ARRESTED FOR TEACHING THAT HOMOSEXUALITY IS WRONG.  The law includes language that explicitly prevents this, guaranteeing that it cannot be used to inhibit freedom of speech.  DeMint’s claims are wrong, and only perpetuate lies currently used by the anti-gay right.

DeMint further assumes religious leaders condemn homosexuality and oppose hate crimes legislation.  THIS IS NOT TRUE.  We know that many faith leaders support gay and lesbian civil rights and support hate crimes legislation.

DeMint claims that homophobic “religious principles and biblical teaching” are responsible for America’s goodness and prosperity.  He implies that legislation protecting gay and lesbian people and our families will contribute to the decline of our country.  THIS IS OFFENSIVE.  We know that America’s success is based on beliefs in freedom, democracy, separation of church and state, and fundamental human rights, not on religious teachings or the suppression of gay and lesbian people.

At the end, DeMint cites the Family Research Council as an important source of information on hate crimes.  THIS IS MISLEADING.  The Family Research Council is a prominent anti-gay organization that supports “the traditional family unit” and most recently opposed President Obama’s extension of federal benefits to same-sex couples.  Indeed, the FRC is one of the organizations sponsoring a “Values Voter Summit” in Washington in September that will focus on “protecting marriage” and will include such speakers as Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee, and Laura Ingraham. For a useful resource on hate crimes legislation and what it will and will not do, please visitMatthewShepard.org.

I’m tired of this kind of bullshit in this state and in this country. Why can’t we, for once, protect gays and lesbians? Through DOMA and DADT, we’ve taken all their rights away. Can’t we at least protect them from hate crimes?

-Jess

I’ve been a little bummed out lately. You see, last week I was meeting with some wonderful folks from the South Carolina Equality Coalition (SC’s statewide organization devoted to advancing civil rights for the GLBT community) about joining their Board of Directors. During this brief meeting (where I had a delicious salad from California Dreaming—yummy), I was informed that the SC Republicans will most likely attempt to pass an anti-gay adoption bill in the state. This bill (which probably wouldn’t pass until 2010) would prohibit any unmarried couple from adopting a child in SC. Not surprisingly, it has quite a bit of support in the conservative state of South Carolina.

Currently, gays and lesbians cannot file jointly to adopt a child in SC. There is no law officially prohibiting it; the state just doesn’t allow it. Gays and lesbians can file as single individuals in order to adopt, but this typically requires the adopter to deny being GLBT. This new anti-gay adoption law would prohibit any single person—GLBT or straight—from adopting. Basically, the law asserts that only a married man and woman are equipped to raise a child. Not even a straight, single, successful 40-year-old career woman could adopt—much less a lesbian couple.

A law like this would be a tremendous blow to Addison and me. We want to start a family in a few years, and under a law like the one detailed in the anti-gay adoption bill, I would not be able to pursue second-parent adoption if Addison had our children, and she and I would not be able to adopt together as a couple. Effectively, we would have no way to have equal legal custody of our children. This is incredibly frustrating. We’re watching some states move forward, and it’s amazing. Vermont and Iowa have just allowed for gay marriages to be performed in their states, and it’s an exciting, wonderful time. But it feels like South Carolina is moving backward. We’re headed toward the passing of a law that would take away even more rights from the GLBT community. We’re headed in the wrong direction.

The South Carolina Equality Coalition (SCEC) is working hard, and they’ve had some significant successes. But it won’t be easy to fight the anti-gay adoption bill. Florida has had one for years. Arkansas passed theirs in November 2008. What can we do to stop one from passing here? I’m not sure what exactly, but I can’t sit around and watch anymore. I have to join the fight. I am officially beginning the process to join the Board of SC Equality. I can’t sit back any longer while the GLBT community is beaten down. I must fight back.

I don’t know what Addison and I will do if we lose the fight against this anti-gay adoption bill. I have to be honest and admit that she and I will have to seriously consider whether SC is where we want to start our family. With no relationship recognition and no adoption rights, it’s almost impossible to see how SC could be right for us. But we won’t make these tough decisions just yet. The fight has barely begun, and I am excited to be joining the ranks of the passionate people at SCEC committed to making a difference for our community.

-Jess