Fear, Faith, Diversity and Discrimination
by Dr. David Eller
Whatever else it may be, America is a diverse nation.
It contains Christian and non-Christian, male and female, black and
white and Hispanic and Asian and Native American, able-bodied and
disabled, gay and straight. America is also a free nation, where differences
are accepted and no one constituency is allowed to impose its views
and values on the rest, no matter how strongly they may hold them.
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This is what is so disturbing about the reaction of
groups like Focus on the Family to the announcement by the Big Brother
Big Sisters organization that it is going to enforce equal treatment
of gay and lesbian volunteers in their programs. James Dobson, founder
of Focus, calls it a "dangerous and troubling policy." Why?
There are two perceived dangers by this fundamentalist group-that
homosexuals will abuse our children and that they will convert them
to their gay lifestyle. |
There is, however, no evidence at all that homosexuality
is "catching" or that being in the company of gay men or
lesbian women makes anyone more likely to "turn gay." In
all likelihood, homosexuality is genetic. There is also no evidence
that gays and lesbians do any harm to society. In fact, it would appear
that there is considerably less threat to children from gays than
from heterosexual predators, close family and friends, and the clergy
themselves. I wonder if, in the light of the ongoing scandal of Christian
preachers abusing minors, Dobson and his people would agree that "matching
fatherless young boys, starving for attention, with [religious] men
is reckless and irresponsible, not to mention a recipe for disaster"?
And why do they only care about boys? |
The unseemly reaction to a simple policy of toleration
and inclusion is truly sickening, but it highlights a larger and scarier
problem. The opposition of groups like Focus on the Family is not
directed solely toward gays and lesbians but toward atheists and freethinkers,
humanists, scientists, all non-Christians, even other Christians sects,
and sometimes even non-white minorities and women. In a word, they
are enemies of diversity, which means anyone who does not think the
way they do. Bill McCartney, for example, the founder of Promise Keepers,
has stated that Christianity is the only path to salvation but that
he did not want to judge other religions. Well, he just did.
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The imminent danger to this country is not that a few
gays and lesbians will spend time with our children but that a climate
of ignorance and bigotry will make it unsafe for everyone, including
fundamentalist Christians. They forget that they may not be in charge
of the new policy of discrimination and exclusion when it comes down;
they may as easily be the victims as the victimizers. Surely, religions
have victimized each other throughout history, which is why we advocate
toleration. Whatever you think of homosexuality, you should be alarmed
when you hear any group preaching hate, lies, and sectarianism under
the guise of "protecting society." This nation is too diverse
to allow anyone to dictate the terms of acceptability. Toleration
and inclusion of what is different-and even what you don't like-is
the only option for a diverse and free nation. Incomplete toleration
is intolerance, and incomplete inclusion is exclusion. |
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