Africa Is Burning: How Clinton's Speech Has Inflamed Nigeria And The Homophobia Exporters.

Being gay is not a Western invention; 

it is a human reality.

And Even Rick Perry got into the act.:

“Just when you thought Barack Obama couldn’t get any more out of touch with America’s values, AP reports his administration wants to make foreign aid decisions based on gay rights.

We can see the flames from Africa now, and they are not coming from bonfires declaring liberty for LGBTQ people. They are the flames coming from countries like Uganda and Nigeria. They are the flames of anger and vengeance being wreaked upon gay communities. Where the fires came from, however, is something that should concern everyone in America, because, like some perverted Prometheus, America's Christian Right gave Africa it's fires. Clinton was right to say being gay was not a Western invention, however, she should also have said that homophobia was certainly a Western invention, promoted in Africa by Christian Right leaders such as Scott Lively, Lou Engle and, to a certain extent, Rick Warren. 


The Christian Right's exportation of homophobia has been happening over a number of years, well ahead of the "Kill-the-gays" bill in Uganda. 

Think Progress has a good list of Christian Right reactions including Rick Santorum, Peter LaBarbera (Americans for Truth About Homosexuality), Peter Sprigg (Family Research Council), Matt Barber (Liberty Counsel) and Pat Robertson, who warned of God's wrath and claimed that it's really Christianity that's being persecuted (see below).

"I kissed a girl and liked it - 
and I got ten years in jail."


Nigeria has reacted so strongly to Clinton's speech that it purportedly added MORE offenses in its anti-gay bill. "To hell with them," said lawmaker Jakari Mohammed, referring to other denouncing the bill. It could  be argued that Nigeria has seen same-sex "marriages" for centuries (actually as part of a surrogate tradition, with a woman marrying another woman for her husband), but somehow traditions have a way of disappearing and appearing when according to expediency. 


According to the current bill, kissing in public would be an offense punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Anti-gay vendettas - like those in Uganda - will become rife in the most corrupt country in the world. 


And Nigeria has never been alone in its attitudes about gays. Here is a list of countries that could definitely be cut off from American aid:

     Algeria  Angola  Botswana  Cameroon  Egypt  Gambia  Ghana  Guinea*  Lesotho  Liberia  Libya        Malawi*  Mauritania  Mauritius   Morocco  Nigeria  Senegal   Sierra   Leone   Somalia  South Sudan Sudan   Swaziland   Tanzania   Togo  Tunisia  Uganda  Zambia   Zimbabwe  

*carry the death penalty for homosexuality.

THE SPEECH


Clinton's speech was concise and eloquent (a full transcript is HERE), and the group gave her a standing ovation, so what did she say in particular that inflamed so many Africans and "social conservatives" like Rick Perry? 

1. Many LGBT Americans have endured violence and harassment in their own lives, and for some, including many young people, bullying and exclusion are daily experiences.

Notice the inclusion of "bullying." Clinton has taken on the newest, most sensitive issue facing the Christian Right: it opposes anti-bullying laws unless dispensations are made for religious beliefs. And while Tony Perkins screams "we're not not the ones who cause teen suicides," people are beginning to note just how many cases are connected to "you're going to hell" accusations.

2. Now, raising this issue, I know, is sensitive for many people and that the obstacles standing in the way of protecting the human rights of LGBT people rest on deeply held personal, political, cultural, and religious beliefs. So I come here before you with respect, understanding, and humility.

It's the last part they can't stomach, because they don't believe the Left has anything but disrespect, ignorance and hubris when it comes to Christian Right dictums.

3. The third, and perhaps most challenging, issue arises when people cite religious or cultural values as a reason to violate or not to protect the human rights of LGBT citizens. This is not unlike the justification offered for violent practices towards women like honor killings, widow burning, or female genital mutilation.

How dare she compare discrimination against gays to hideous acts like widow burning! She's talking about pagan, anti-Christian practices!

4. I am also pleased to announce that we are launching a new Global Equality Fund that will support the work of civil society organizations working on these issues around the world.

Taxpayer money used to forward a perverted agenda!

We will be hearing about reactions to this speech for quite some time, with politicos screaming about how the Obama administration is pandering to gays and how this foray into world cultures will signal Armageddon.

Stay in your seats. The circus performances are just starting.

A Ministry Unraveling, A Call For Murder, A Convicted Sex Offender: We're Not Making This Stuff Up!

"...take 'em all out and 

shoot 'em with a scatter shot gun."

Perhaps it's just the evolution of hate speech.

Written at 12:30PM:


I knew, as did many people, that it would come to this: a mega-church preacher overtly calling for the death of gays. Who now says that what he said was wrong and that he was The MP4 was yanked from YouTube, but Joe Jervis (Joe.My.God) was able to save both his initial speech and the more "gentle" speech. You can compare them. 

Fire up your printers and create some awesome posters.

Owens is in the midst of a nationwide speaking tour. Why don't we show him what we think of his "slip"? The schedule is posted here. The list goes into 2012 and covers at least 30 Baptist churches in the U.S. and Canada. Would it be fair to say that any of the Baptist churches espouse his views? Protests in each town should spark debate. Maybe his tour could be "shortened" by cancellations.

Here's a transcript of his short, but exceedingly vicious tirade:

In America we need to stop burnin’ flags and start burnin’ fags. It’s about time somebody said what needs to be said, it’s vile, it’s reprobate, and AIDS is a curse sent from God. It’s a curse sent from God. You say that “you shouldn’t say that” Well (indecipherable) it’s my turn. (prolonged cheering). We need hunt-a-homo week. We do! Straighten it up and put it on television. Put it on television. That’ll put em’ back in the closet. I’ll tell you somethin’  - those that are yellin’ ‘n screamin’ ‘n shoutin’ the reason they came out of the closet ‘cause there weren’t enough men on the other side of the closet to keep ‘em in! If you’d been a man, you wouldn’t have that problem. Ya know, we should take ‘em all out ‘n shoot ‘em with a scatter shotgun.

Written at 8:30PM:


Pastor Owens has been hit with a barrage of phone calls, emails, whatever. He's written an apology, recorded it and posted it on his website. It seems that he had delivered that sermon in about 1995 when he was "young."

I no longer preach like that and I purposely teach and train others to preach and behave properly as well. The hurtful words in that sermon tape were erased many years ago and somehow have resurfaced much to my disappointment and embarrassment. I realize I have disappointed many who have heard those words in that sermon. May I include my disappointment in myself. Once again, I offer my humble apology.

"I no longer preach like that." That remains to be seen. Last year Owens delivered his "Sodomy Sermon"and while it avoids the calls to kill, it's just as venomous. Listen to it on YouTube, it's divided into 7 parts. Listen to it and count all the buzz-attack words, faulty reasoning, and outright b.s. Listening to the sermon (Sodomy, Part Five) makes for a depiction of depraved and sinful people. According to Owens, most people who are gay are simply bored with normal sexual relations. (?!). The irony: it was recorded on Christmas Eve. Absolutely no good will towards men. None. 

Defense of his words and actions rests almost entirely on his "youth" and "stupid(ity)" And he evidently thinks that some people will believe that, but a little research into his career shows us that he was PREACHING FOR TWENTY YEARS when his tirade was delivered. 

Note to Pastor Jeff Owens:

Pastor Owens: Where were you in 1995? I know where I was: volunteering for the AIDS Emergency Fund in San Francisco. The epidemic was churning out victims at an alarming rate, but people were no longer dying in the streets. By that time it was known that AIDS could not be caused by casual contact, but people like you (TWENTY YEARS INTO YOUR MINISTRY) continued to stoke the fires of fear and hate with your "AIDS is a curse sent by God" mantra. A great many people were kicked out of their homes while they were sick and dying. Even when you were only abou 26 years old, And let's not forget that NINE YEARS INTO YOUR MINISTRY (1981),  God gave you a fantastic opportunity to practice your belief in compassion...and you blew it.

OK ,so we have a pastor who said some despicable things 15 years ago and who is still  demonizing gays and lesbians albeit with less overtly menacing rhetoric. He's apologized, but that apology looks very weak in the light of his present "Sodomy Sermons."

But Wait - There's More!!


From The Seminal:

Jeremiah Daniel Owens pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault charges from an eight-count indictment handed up in October 2007 that charged him with sexual assault and sexual abuse against two girls, ages 15 and 13, and that stemmed from separate incidents earlier that year.

Owens had been had been convicted before of burglary, but with these particular crimes, he will be a registered sex offender.

According to a previous report, the mother of the 13-year-old, whose name will not be published to protect her identity, said her daughter met Owens at the Shenandoah Bible Baptist Church in Martinsburg where Owens’ father is the pastor.

... AND MORE!!!

Dr. Jeff Owens has written a children's booklet. The title, however is confusing: it's marketed as Character Lessons for Children although the book cover is pictured with the title Obedience Lessons For Children. Presumably, the title with "Obedience" is too strong, even to the pastor-father of a child molester. Owens' book is available for sale now.

Now Icing On Top: REAL homophobes love gay porn

One articlethat came out of the recent Rekers scandal pointed out that a study done of virulently homophobic men showed them to be aroused by gay porn. (!?) It left the door wide open to the possibility that "practicing homophobes" were really epic cases of gay men steeped in denial and self-loathing. Hmmm. So could Pastor Jeff be...

But he apologized! Remember the fracas that ensued when Jimmy Swaggart  told his congregation:

"I've never seen a man in my life I wanted to marry."  (shouts, applause) "And I'm gonna be blunt and plain, if one ever looks at me like that I'm gonna kill him and tell God he died." (laughter, applause) "In case anybody doesn't know, God calls it an abomnation (sic).  It's an abomnation (sic)!  It's an abomnation (sic)!"  (applause) Swaggart later apologized and laughed it off as a joke.

A spokesperson of HRC at the time had this to say about Swaggart's apology and it applies to Pastor Jeff Owens as well:

"Apologies don't discourage violence - action does. We hope that he takes action. His language only encourages an environment where hate crimes occur."

A thirtyfour year ministry preaching against homosexuality. A twenty year history of telling people to kill homosexuals. An apology. A children's book on obedience. A son in jail for sexually molesting a 13-year-old girl. Owen's life is sick...and sad.

Warren: "Uganda Have Heart!" Uganda: "Damn Yankees!"

When Exporting Homophobia Backfires

(14 hours ago) Ugandan mobs call for passing "Kill Gays" bill

Led by religious leaders, Ugandan protesters marched to demand that the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill be passed.

Several hundred people demonstrated in the Ugandan capital Kampala on Tuesday against gays and lesbians, and expressed support for the country’s impending tough anti-homosexual law.

The protesters, led by born-again clerics, cultural leaders, and university undergraduates, marched to the parliament where they presented a petition.

"Ya know, it's like you can help some guys a lot, but when YOU need something, it's like talk to the hand, ya know?"

That's my inner Chicagoland self-assessing the Rick Warren/Uganda situation. While in my inner self, I can look at everything as either black or white, but this new situation with Rick Warren and the upcoming vote for a law that puts harsher punishments on gays in Uganda is so complicated I've had to wade through it as if I were slogging through a swamp.

In terms we mere mortals can understand:

• Rick Warren gains popularity in Uganda by assisting in obtaining AIDS medical supplies and other necessities.
  
• Warren curries favor with Ugandan President Museveni and his wife. He also meets Martin Ssempe whose sole mission in life seems to be the obliteration of evil by killing as many homosexuals as possible. They strike up a friendship and for the next several years, Ssempe is invited to squeak at Warren's Saddleback Church.
• Ssempe, of course, is overwhelmed by the whole package: a multimillion best-seller (second to his own beloved Bible), a megachurch that doesn't look like a church (unless African churches have skateboard parks), respect, prestige and money $.
• Something happens between the two mega-personalities and Ssempe drops out of Warren's radar range.
• The Kampala anti-gay conference begins in March.
• Exodus, International attends the conference then later withdraws from ideologies encompassing the genocide of gays.
• By Sept. 15, an anti-gay bill is circulating the nation. Consequently, news of the draft is leaked out of the country, at which time Rick Warren would have known about it (if not before)
• By Nov. 15, definite sides have formed: Uganda clerics calling for quick passage of the bill, while statesmen are denouncing it. The bill's links to American evangelical groups and politicians prove that those groups are exporting homophobia.
• Nov. 30 - Rick Warren refuses to denounce the bill.
• Dec. 15 -Rick Warren, under pressure, finally delivers "encyclical video" denouncing he bill.Under pressure.
  

Martin Ssempe responds to Rick Warren's denunciation

"As you yourself have said, '..the Bible says evil has to be opposed. Evil has to be stopped. The Bible does not say negotiate with evil. It says stop it. Stop evil'. (12/2007) Since homosexuality is evil, you cannot possibly be against a law that seeks to stop it unless you have misunderstood it."

And in a letter from 20 prominent Uganda pastors:

"We note with sadness the increasing levels of accepting of the evil of homosexuality," they state. "In these increasingly dark days, we encourage you not to give into the temptation to water down what the Bible says so as not to offend people."

The text of the "Kill Gays" bill is HERE.

Now the Uganda Christofascists want an apology from Warren:

Christian Post:

"Your letter has caused great distress and the pastors are demanding that you issue a formal apology for insulting the people of Africa by your very inapropriate (sic) bully use of your church and purpose driven pulpits to coerse us into the 'evil' of Sodomy and Gaymorrah (sic)," the pastors, which include Martin Ssempa, state in a letter emailed to Warren.

From RH Reality Check

Martin Ssempe's letter to Rick Warren:

Africa101: Homosexuality is illegal, unnatural, ungodly and un-African: In Uganda as most of the global South, homosexuality is an “evil and repugnant sexual act” ...

We are harrassed by a massive invasion of rich Europeans and Americans groups who are scorning our traditional African view of marriage and family, bullying and threatening to cut off “aid” if we dont legalise the sins of Sodom and Gommorrah! We are troubled by some members western media which is obsessed with homosexuality.

When you came to Uganda on Thursday, 27 March 2008, and expressed support to the Church of Uganda’s boycott of the pro-homosexual church of England, you stated; “The Church of England is wrong, and I support the Church of Uganda”.

You are further remembered to say, “homosexuality is not a natural way of life and thus (its) not a human right. We shall not tolerate this apect at all”.

Let's see Rick Warren gets out of this one! He won't. He'll offer vague platitudes to both sides, but Christianity in America ( as well as humanist/secular groups) and the Christian Right in Africa will look askance at Warren from now on: he will eventually be forgiven, but they will never forget.

"My influence in that nation has been greatly exaggerated by the media."

THIS LAST STATEMENT:

... belies the fact that, according to Rev. Kapya Kaoma (an Anglican pastor from Zambia and the author of a recent report on gays in Africa) Warren has immense influence among Uganda's political élite, and the First Lady. "He eats with them, he knows what goes on, they respect him," said Kaoma in a conference call.

So Rick Warren is now, as they say, between a rock and a hard place. He and the rest of the Christofascist Right gambled on a gullible public in one country and an uninformed public in another. Now they're success in exporting homophobia is coming back to bite them.

Bite hard, Uganda, bite HARD!