NOM BLOG

Monthly Archives: March 2011

Press Release: NOM Condemns New Calls For The Firing Of Crystal Dixon, Calls on National Gay Rights Leaders To Repudiate Tactics Of Intimidation And Renounce Religious Bigotry

WASHINGTON – In response to efforts by Equality Michigan and other gay rights groups to target Crystal Dixon’s job because she disagrees that the gay rights and the civil rights argument are equivalent, the National Organization for Marriage issued the following statements:

“The gay movement’s tactics smell more and more like Joe McCarthy than Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,” said Brian Brown, president of the National Organization for Marriage (NOM). “Hounding people and going after their livelihoods, because they express a view held by numerous mainstream Christians is mean, intolerant, and unacceptable to most Americans. We call on Joe Solomonese, Evan Wolfson and other mainstream gay marriage groups to call off their dogs, renounce these tactics of intimidation and religious bigotry, and restore the face of their movement into something more resembling tolerance and fair play for all Americans.”

“Since Proposition 8 in California, hundreds of Americans of various faith traditions have faced threats to their livelihoods, their person, or their property solely because they exercised core civil rights to speak, to organize, or to donate on behalf of the idea that marriage is the union of husband and wife,” said Maggie Gallagher, Chairman of the Board of NOM. “Lately we are seeing that a disproportionate share of the victims of this kind of raw hatred are African-American Christians. God bless the black Church for its courage, we are once again in your debt.”

“The gay rights movement is going to have to decide: are they about tolerance and “live and let live”--or do they want to dominate and deprive Americans who disagree with them of their rights? We cannot change what is happening to the face of your movement, only you can,” added Gallagher.

Background

In 2008, Ms. Dixon was wrongly fired from her position as a Vice President of Human Resources at the University of Toledo after publishing a letter to the editor objecting to the idea that gay rights are comparable to the African-American’s civil rights experience.

After she was recently hired as the Director of Human Resources of Jackson County, in eastern Michigan, Equality Michigan, among other LGBT groups, have called for her to be fired and have offered a form letter for the public to send to Dixon’s new superiors that states in part:

“I urge you to rescind Crystal Dixon’s job offer and find a replacement for her in a candidate that has the best interests of all of the city and county’s residents at heart."

To schedule an interview with Brian Brown, President of the National Organization for Marriage, or Maggie Gallagher, Chairman of the Board, please contact Mary Beth Hutchins, [email protected], at 703-683-5004 ext. 105 or Elizabeth Ray, [email protected], at 703-683-5004 ext. 130.

Advancing Marriage in the Heartland - NOM Marriage News (March 31, 2010)

Dear Marriage Supporter,

This week, yet another great victory for marriage: Indiana.

This week the Indiana Senate passed a state marriage amendment by a bipartisan margin of 40 to 10! And this after the amendment passed the House by an astonishing 70 to 26 margin!

Several supporters of gay marriage, in what is, sadly, becoming a too-common recurring theme of lack of respect for the democratic process, started screaming from the gallery, "Stop hating, stop dividing, stop pandering." The Senate had to actually close the gallery and remove all spectators in order to permit the debate to progress. Classy act, that one.

In Indiana, this is only the first step. After an election, both the House and Senate will have to pass this resolution again--and then the future of marriage in Indiana will go to the people in 2014.

NOM Ad in Columbus Republic

Indiana Senate Holds the Line on Marriage Amendment

Indiana Senate passes marriage amendment by 40-10 margin, while opponents disrupt senate session and NOM newspaper ad exposes empty threats of Cummins, Inc. to send jobs elsewhere due to marriage amendment. Read more.

Brian in Iowa

Life and Marriage Part of "The Main Thing" at Iowa GOP Forum

This week I was back in Iowa for Steve King's first annual Conservative Principles PAC forum. Four GOP presidential contenders were there: Newt Gingrich, Michelle Bachmann, Herman Cain, and Haley Barbour... Read more.

DefendDOMA.com

Has Your Congressman Signed on to Co-Sponsor the "Defend DOMA" Resolution?

I cannot tell you how many Washington insiders are trying to silence the GOP on marriage. But thanks to the amazing leadership of Republican Study Committee chairman Congressman Jim Jordan (R-OH), we already have nearly 100 co-sponsors. Read more.

If you haven't done one thing for marriage so far this year, show Jim Jordan you love him by clicking here and telling your Congressman to sign up to defend DOMA!

And pass this message on to a friend, too, would you?

The people united cannot be defeated.

God bless you, and please pray for Jim Jordan and for all the great leaders on the front lines of this historic battle for God's truth about marriage.

Brian brown

Brian S. Brown
President
National Organization for Marriage

P.S. NOM relies on the generosity of people like you! Whether you can give $20 or $200, or perhaps a monthly donation of just $10, know that you are making a difference. We pledge to fight for your values and for the truth about marriage and family.

Going After Crystal Dixon

In 2008, Crystal Dixon was fired from the University of Toledo for expressing her view that equating gay rights with civil rights is wrong.

Now, Equality Michigan (which is funded by the Arcus foundation) is trying to get her fired from her next position, too - this one in Jackson, Michigan.

They say a "public leader" with a record like Crystal "is unacceptable anywhere in our state."

Here's an excerpt of what Crystal wrote in the Toledo Free Press that got her fired:

First, human beings, regardless of their choices in life, are of ultimate value to God and should be viewed the same by others. At the same time, one’s personal choices lead to outcomes either positive or negative.

As a Black woman who happens to be an alumnus of the University of Toledo’s Graduate School, an employee and business owner, I take great umbrage at the notion that those choosing the homosexual lifestyle are "civil rights victims."

My final and most important point. There is a divine order. God created human kind male and female (Genesis 1:27). God created humans with an inalienable right to choose. There are consequences for each of our choices, including those who violate God’s divine order. It is base human nature to revolt and become indignant when the world or even God Himself, disagrees with our choice that violates His divine order. Jesus Christ loves the sinner but hates the sin (John 8:1-11.) Daily, Jesus Christ is radically transforming the lives of both straight and gay folks and bringing them into a life of wholeness: spiritually, psychologically, physically and even economically. That is the ultimate right.

What Equality Michigan and the Arcus Foundation is doing to Crystal is just mean.

See Crystal tell her story in her own words in this video produced by the Thomas More Law Center:

Video: Trump tells O'Reilly "I'm against gay marriage", predicts Obama will come out in support of SSM

The Donald entered the No Spin Zone last night and had this to say when asked about same-sex marriage (jump to the 4:47 mark in the video):

YouTube censors video of pro-marriage group harassed at Brown U.

Kathleen Gilbert at LifeSiteNews:

A conservative group demonstrating support for traditional marriage met with violent opposition in Rhode Island last week.

Volunteers from the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family, and Property (TFP) visited Brown University during their statewide tour for traditional marriage in Rhode Island on March 23. While peacefully demonstrating on the Ivy League campus, their pro-family banner was vandalized and a volunteer was spat upon in the face.

“What we faced at Brown University, an Ivy League university, had the flavor of a religious persecution,” said TFP Student Action Director John Ritchie. “Dozens of pro-homosexual students screamed, spat, taunted, and even attempted to destroy our traditional marriage banner.”

... Days after the videotaped incident was posted on YouTube, the video sharing website pulled down the footage, leaving a message stating: “This video has been removed because its content violated YouTube’s Terms of Service.”

Youtube ... which is owned by Google Inc., has consistently declined to provide explanations for why such videos were removed.

ADF represents counselor in 11th Circuit fired for referring gay client to colleague

From the Alliance Defense Fund press release:

ADF attorneys are appealing a federal court ruling issued last March against Marcia Walden–a licensed associate counselor who was fired after she referred an individual seeking same-sex relationship counseling to a colleague. In order to avoid providing a service that would conflict with her sincerely held religious beliefs, Walden made a professional decision to refer the potential client to another counselor. Walden later learned that the counselee filed a complaint even though the counselee said she was very satisfied with the work of the other counselor.

“A counselor who is a Christian shouldn’t lose her job for upholding the highest professional standards,” said Campbell. “It is unlawful to punish a Christian for abiding by her faith, particularly when she made every effort to accommodate the interests of a potential client.”

The complaint occurred in 2007 when a woman employed at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sought counseling regarding a same-sex relationship from Walden, a counselor at Computer Sciences Corporation.  Walden realized that providing counseling on that topic would conflict with her values, and as a result, Walden referred the individual to a colleague.

Walden had no religious objection to counseling someone who is involved in a same-sex relationship, so long as the client did not seek counseling to directly affirm or promote that relationship.  Standing on her religious beliefs, Walden felt she could not use her talents as a counselor to encourage or strengthen such relationships.

After meeting with the client, Walden’s colleague told her that she had done “the right thing” by referring the woman to him. However, after the referred client complained, her supervisors proceeded with an investigation and religiously based questioning--leading to her termination. ADF filed the suit Walden v. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on her behalf in 2008.

HRC: NOM has made marriage a 2012 GOP litmus test

From the Human Rights Campaign - the richest gay lobbying organization in the U.S.:

"Very far-right groups like the National Organization for Marriage have effectively made opposition to marriage equality a litmus test for the Republican nomination and were in Iowa this weekend urging activists to hold candidates “accountable” and to “lead” on the issue of marriage." (www.hrcbackstory.org)

It’s always refreshing to hear agreement on the inevitability of a pro-marriage (anti-SSM) GOP presidential candidate in 2012, especially from unlikely places.

FROM NOM'S NATIONAL NEWSLETTER: Indiana Senate Holds the Line on Marriage Amendment

This week the Indiana Senate passed a state marriage amendment by a bipartisan margin of 40 to 10! And this after the amendment passed the House by an astonishing 70 to 26 margin!

Several supporters of gay marriage, in what is, sadly, becoming a too-common recurring theme of lack of respect for the democratic process, started screaming from the gallery, “Stop hating, stop dividing, stop pandering.” The Senate had to actually close the gallery and remove all spectators in order to permit the debate to progress. Classy act, that one.

We published a full-page ad in the Columbus (Ind.) Republic going after Cummins, Inc. for its ludicrous claim that defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman would somehow interfere with its ability to compete. A Cummins exec actually threatened to punish the people of Indiana by failing to expand jobs if they passed the marriage amendment--even as the company was announcing plans to expand in nearby Tennessee, which HAS a marriage amendment.

NOM Ad in Columbus Republic

(Thanks to Micah Clark and the American Family Association of Indiana for co-sponsoring the ad.)

The amendment, identical to amendments passed in nearby states, says simply:

“Only a marriage between one (1) man and one (1) woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in Indiana. A legal status identical or substantially similar to that of marriage for unmarried individuals shall not be valid or recognized.”

Congrats to the people of Indiana! Kudos to all the groups in Indiana who worked so hard for so many years to make this great victory possible. And thank you, my friend, for all that you've done to make this new victory possible. You are the reason NOM is able to win incredible victory after incredible victory.

In Indiana, this is only the first step. After an election, both the House and Senate will have to pass this resolution again--and then the future of marriage in Indiana will go to the people in 2014.

Only one Republican jumped ship, believing the opposition's line: Rep. Ed Clare, a new member. He's the only Republican in about six votes in the last ten years to come out against protecting marriage.

And the Democrats who voted to protect marriage will, no doubt, face attacks from within.

Indianans will have to work to protect and extend this victory in 2012--and not only in Indiana!

FROM NOM'S NATIONAL NEWSLETTER: Life and Marriage Part of “The Main Thing” at Iowa GOP Forum

Gingrich, Bachmann and Cain spoke passionately about the social and economic issues. On the panel I was on, Connie Mackey called Gov. Barbour out for seeming to suggest that the social issues are not part of the “main thing” we need to keep our eyes on. “The main thing I want to say,” Emmett McGroarty chimed in, is that life and marriage “are part of the main thing we need to keep the main thing.”

The night before the event I went to a nearby steakhouse and ran into Speaker Gingrich. I thanked him for his help in the Iowa judicial elections, and he told me this was a very important fight. From the podium Newt reiterated that marriage and values are fights we can't surrender.

 

“This is a defining moment for conservatism--this election will reverberate and have an effect far beyond 2012 on the future of our country,” I told the jam-packed hall.

“You, the people of Iowa, changed the course of human history this last election by doing something elites said was going to be impossible: defeating three sitting supreme court justices.” (The rest of my carefully written line was drown out in wild standing applause from the audience.)

What surprised me most was the kind of awe which struck the crowd when I told them, “We are 31 for 31 public votes on marriage. Every single time the people of this country have been allowed to have a free and fair vote they've voted to protect marriage as the union of a man and a woman.”

Here we are with the grassroots base in Iowa--and our folks don't know our own victories.

You and I know the good news: The people are still with us.

“The bad news,” I went on, is that “elites--many Democrats but some Republicans--think we should somehow throw in the towel on marriage issues. Don't be deceived: 'truce' means unilateral disarmament.”

The other side is not calling for a truce; they are working in our schools, they are working in the legislature to redefine marriage, and we have to stand up and protect it.

I had one big message about the state and national elections in 2012: “Hold these candidates accountable, and do not accept the lie that same-sex marriage is inevitable. You've already proved them wrong once--prove them wrong again!”

FROM NOM'S NATIONAL NEWSLETTER: Has Your Congressman Signed on to Co-Sponsor the “Defend DOMA” Resolution?

Nationally, the big question on the table is: Has your congressman signed on to co-sponsor House Con Res 25, the “Defend DOMA” resolution?

Fight back today--get your Congressman on board by clicking here to send an email telling him or her: Co-sponsor HCR 25, the Defend DOMA resolution.

As of today, thanks to the amazing leadership of Republican Study Committee chairman Congressman Jim Jordan (R-OH), we have nearly 100 co-sponsors--but we need more.

I cannot tell you how many Washington insiders are trying to silence the GOP on marriage. Let me tell you, we should never forget the courage of great leaders like Jim Jordan on the Hill. And we need to give him the ammo to fight all the way to victory.

If you haven't done one thing for marriage so far this year, show Jim Jordan you love him by clicking here to tell your Congressman to sign up to defend DOMA!

And pass this message on to a friend, too, would you?

The people united cannot be defeated.

Video: Pastor Garlow - African Americans are saving us from the bondage of SSM

Dr. Jim Garlow speaks with Dr. Dobson on "Family Talk" and gives a shout-out to pro-marriage African Americans:

Misleading SSM poll touted by Indiana D's paid for by Indiana Equality Action

In the wake of yesterday's victory for Marriage in the Indiana Senate (which saw three Democrats join every single Republican in voting to allow the people of Indiana a chance to vote on the issue in 2014), we thought it would be helpful to set the record straight about a poll, paid for by Indiana Equality Action, that tried to claim almost half of Hoosiers oppose defining marriage as between one man and one woman in their state constitution. This from one of our friends in the state:

"I'm not sure if everyone knows this yet or not, but I believe the poll that Senate Democrats keep bringing up showing that 47% of Hoosiers oppose the Marriage Amendment was paid for by the lead gay marriage activist lobby, Indiana Equality Action. They totally control everything about the poll and can't even get a majority of their 400 sample group to oppose marriage. Also, 66% of those polled were Democrats or Independents, only 34% were Republicans (there are other issues as well with the methodology of the poll if you even want to get into the weeds of a poll paid for by the opponents of HJR 6). If pro-marriage folks had paid for a poll like this, liberal Senators would have scoffed at it as ridiculously biased."

We would add, in terms of the sampling by party affiliation, In 2008 Indiana voted 36% R, 41% D and 24% I (=101% due to rounding). In 2010 Indiana voted 42% R, 31% D, 27% I.

Thus it appears this poll undersampled Republicans and oversampled Independents: 34% R, 30% D, 36% I.

Getting further into the weeds, the phrasing of the question posed about the marriage amendment used classic tactics to flavor the response, including the common red herring of saying the marriage amendment preserving the definition of one-man, one-woman marriage would "make gay marriage illegal."

Even with such phrasing, more Hoosiers strongly favor (35%) a marriage amendment than strongly opposed (34%), 12% somewhat oppose it while 8% somewhat favor it, and a whopping 11% said they didn't know or refused to answer. Maggie has already written before about how more and more people are likely choosing to keep their views on marriage private rather than be treated or perceived as a "bigot" by the pollster.

The only actual "poll" which matters, a free and fair vote of the people, in every state, has consistently demonstrated that the American people are for marriage, as the Hoosiers will once again confirm should they be given the chance to do so in 2014.

Gay Press follows Crystal Dixon, fired by U. of Toledo in 2008 for "antigay column"

The Advocate - a prominent gay newspaper - notes that Crystal Dixon has a job again:

Crystal Dixon, who was fired from her job at the University of Toledo in 2008 for writing a newspaper column that argued being gay is a choice and not a matter of civil rights, has been hired to lead a county human rights department in Michigan.

The Associated Press reports on the move published in the Jackson Citizen Patriot. Dixon will start work next month as director of a joint human resources department for the city of Jackson and Jackson County. She will be classified as a county employee.

In 2008, Dixon lost her university job as associate vice president for human resources over a column she wrote in the Toledo Free Press called “Gay Rights and Wrongs: Another Perspective.” Her column was a response to an opinion written by the newspaper's editor-in-chief.

This is the column that was found offensive enough to get her fired from her job.

CA Bill requiring public schools to teach LGBT history, psychology, political science, and communication makes progress

From Becky Yeh of OneNewsNow:

A California bill mandating that public school textbooks be re-written to encourage "gay," lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) lifestyles passed the Senate Committee on Education Wednesday.

Senate Bill 48, proposed by openly homosexual senator Mark Leno of San Francisco, passed the committee in a 6-3-1 vote. The bill would require that teachers and textbooks present alternate lifestyles in a positive light, with instruction in subjects such as history, psychology, political science, and communication in public school classrooms. The ten-member committee, comprised mainly of Democrats, unanimously favored the bill, backed by Equality California and the Gay Straight Alliance Network.

Gov. Cuomo to LGBT Leaders: I Expect Vote on SSM in ‘6 to 8 Weeks or Maybe Sooner’

From a New York Magazine blog:

According to Marriage Equality New York head Ron Zacchi, Governor Cuomo has told state LGBT leaders he expects a vote on a marriage-equality bill in the State Senate in "six to eight weeks, or maybe sooner."

Even though the math doesn't look good for such a bill's passage (advocates would need to swing a small number of Republicans, all of whom voted against the bill last time), Cuomo is fresh off strong-arming the state legislature into a budget deal, and he still has sky-high popularity strengthening his hand.