Archive for Thursday, November 20, 2008
Radical gay activist group plans more disruptions
Religious organizations are on the watch
for possible protests by radical gay activists who targeted
churches in Michigan and Washington this month.
An extremist group called Bash Back! says it may stage similar
disruptions in the future.
The group claims responsibility for disrupting a Nov. 9 service
at an evangelical church in Delta Township, just outside Lansing.
Members shouted “Jesus was a homo” and “It’s OK to be gay” at
the bewildered congregation.
An affiliated group claims to have poured glue into the locks of
a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ building near
Olympia, Wash., and spraypainted on its walls last weekend.
Bash Back! says to expect more of the same behavior as it
attempts to set up shop in cities across the nation. Churches and
other religious organizations aren’t happy about the prospects of
the group, or others like it, establishing a higher profile.
“These are Nazi-like tactics,” said Bill Donohue, president of
the New York-based Catholic League, a national Catholic civil
rights group. “This is probably the worst of what we’ve been
monitoring around the country.”
Bash Back! is a loosely organized group started about a year
ago. It advertises chapters in cities including Chicago; Milwaukee;
Memphis, Tenn.; Philadelphia; Washington; Lansing and Olympia.
It appears more than a dozen activists disrupted services at
Mount Hope Church outside Lansing earlier this month. Some Bash
Back! members dressed conservatively to fit in with worshippers at
the 4,000-member church, affiliated with Assemblies of God.
Midway through the service, Bash Back! members stood up and
began yelling. Some threw pro-gay fliers in the air. Others
unfurled a banner inside the church. A videotape of the incident
aired on Fox News Channel’s “The O’Reilly Factor” program
appeared to show two women kissing near the center of the church.
Outside, Bash Back! members wearing pink bandanas protested what
the group calls Mount Hope’s “anti-queer agenda.”
The incident was diffused after church leaders called the Eaton
County sheriff’s department. No one has been arrested in connection
with the incident. But state Rep. Rick Jones, a Republican from
nearby Grand Ledge, says he will draft legislation to make
disturbing a religious meeting a misdemeanor punishable by up to a
year in jail with a $5,000 fine.
Mount Hope officials declined interview requests from The
Associated Press. In a posting on their Web page, church officials
said they are reviewing their security procedures and getting legal
advice. The church said it has received “an outpouring of
support” from other churches and organizations.
“The leadership of Mount Hope Church does not attempt to
identify the church as anti-homosexual, anti-choice or right
wing,” the statement read. “The church does take the Bible at
face value and believes what the Bible says to be the truth.
According to the Bible, Mount Hope Church believes fornication,
stealing, homosexuality, drunkenness and lying are sins. No sin
greater than the next.”
An underground “affinity group” supporting Bash Back! claims
to be behind vandalism last weekend at a Mormon church building
near Olympia, Wash. It was one of several incidents in apparent
retaliation for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’
support of Proposition 8 in California.
The measure, approved by voters earlier this month, bans gay
marriage. The measure has sparked protests by homosexual activists
in several states.
A Web posting signed by Bash Back!’s Olympia chapter said: “The
Mormon church (just like most churches) is a cesspool of filth. It
is a breeding ground for oppression of all sorts and needs to be
confronted, attacked, subverted and destroyed.”
The Latter-day Saints office in Salt Lake City issued a
statement last week saying: “Attacks on churches and intimidation
of people of faith have no place in civil discourse over
controversial issues. … We call upon those who have honest
disagreements on this issue to urge restraint upon the extreme
actions of a few that are further polarizing our communities and
urge them to act in a spirit of mutual respect and civility towards
each other.”
Some gay rights groups don’t like the tactics.
“We oppose violence in any form,” said Colette Beighley, a
spokeswoman for the Michigan-based Triangle Foundation. “We hope
civil disobedience to further the cause of civil rights does not
cross that line.”
——
On the Net:
Bash Back! News: http://bashbacknews.wordpress.com
Mount Hope Church of Delta Township, Mich.: http://www.mounthopechurch.org
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: http://www.lds.org
Catholic League: http://www.catholicleague.org
Triangle Foundation: http://www.tri.org