Radical gay activist group plans more disruptions

LANSING, Mich. -

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.”

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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

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