The Mormon Church’s Gay Rights Chara

Contents:

• MORMON AND GAY: HOW IT’S GOG
• GAY RIGHTS AND THE MORMON CHURCH
• LGBT RIGHTS AI: WILL KENYA BE THE LATT TO PASS ANTI-GAY LAW?
• MORMONS SEEK GOLN MEAN BETWEEN GAY RIGHTS AND RELIG BELIEFS
• THE MORMON CHURCH’S GAY RIGHTS CHARASAME OLDELRS ANNOUNCED TUDAY THEIR PROVISNAL SUPPORT OF CERTA LGBT LEGAL PROTECTNS—WH SOME NDNS. SAMANTHA ALLENUPDATED APR. 14, 2017 12:25PM EDT / PUBLISHED JAN. 28, 2015 5:55AM EST PHOTO ILLTRATN BY E LENDOF/THE DAILY BEASTHERE’S A SIMPLE ALGEBRA EQUATN TO SCRIBE WHAT ’S LIKE TO GROW UP THE CHURCH OF J CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SATS: TAKE THE YEAR, SUBTRACT 20, AND THAT’S THE YEAR REALLY IS SI THE MORMON GERONTOCRACY.WHEN I WAS A CHILD, I WAS TOLD THAT BLACK PEOPLE ULDN’T HOLD LEARSHIP POSNS UNTIL 1978 BEE “JT WASN’T THEIR TIME YET.” TO EXPLA THEIR OPPOSN TO THE EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT, MY PARENTS CED SOME PARANOID LOGIC ABOUT UNISEX BATHROOMS. I HAD LEFT MY FAY’S FAH BY THE TIME CHURCH MEMBERS WERE SUPPORTG CALIFORNIA’S PROPOSN 8 TO THE TUNE OF $20 LN, BUT I STILL REMEMBER SOME OMO MBLGS ABOUT THE SPECTER OF LEGALLY MANDATED SAME-SEX WEDDGS BEG HELD MORMON CHAPELS. THE HORROR.SO WHEN I LEARNED YTERDAY THAT THE MORMON CHURCH IS NOW PROVISNALLY SUPPORTG SOME LGBT LEGAL PROTECTNS, I CLOSED MY EY, UNTED BACKWARD TO 1995 AND WATCHED THE PRS NFERENCE.LET’S START WH WHAT THE ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT. MORMON APOSTLE D. TODD CHRISTOFFERSON MA PERFECTLY CLEAR OM THE BEGNG: “WE ARE ANNOUNCG NO CHANGE DOCTRE AND CHURCH TEACHGS TODAY.” THE MORMON CHURCH IS STILL FIRM S OPPOSN TO SAME-SEX MARRIAGE, THEY ARE STILL TARGETG MORMON DISSINT AND SAME-SEX MARRIAGE SUPPORTER JOHN DEHL WH EXMUNITN, AND THEY STILL REQUIRE THEIR GAY, LBIAN, AND BISEXUAL MEMBERS—OR, THEIR PARLANCE, MEMBERS WHO “STGGLE WH SAME-SEX ATTRACTN”—TO REA OM ALL FORMS OF SAME-SEX SEXUAL TIMACY. THE CHURCH’S MEASURED SUPPORT OF NON-DISCRIMATN ORDANC IS BY NO MEANS A STEP FORWARD TERMS OF LGBT CLN WH THE FAH SELF.NOR IS THE CHURCH’S SUPPORT OF NON-DISCRIMATN ORDANC ENTIRELY NEW. IN 2009, MORMON LEARS PUT THEIR WEIGHT BEHD A SALT LAKE CY NON-DISCRIMATN ORDANCE, BUT ONLY BEE “BALANCE[D] FAIR HOG AND EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS WH THE RELIG RIGHTS OF THE MUNY.” THE ONLY NEWS HERE IS THAT THE CHURCH IS EXPANDG THIS NDNAL SUPPORT OF LGBT PROTECTNS “THROUGHOUT UTAH AND THE NATN AS LONG AS THERE [IS] A BALANCED APPROACH TO PROTECT NSTUTNAL RELIG EXERCISE AND NSCIENCE.”THE RECURRG DISCLAIMERS ABOUT RELIG EEDOM REVEAL THIS ANNOUNCEMENT FOR WHAT REALLY IS: A CRAVEN BID TO HANG ON TO AS MUCH POWER AS POSSIBLE BEFORE FULL LGBT EQUALY BE A POLIL AND CULTURAL REALY. NOW THAT THE MORMON CHURCH SEEMS MORE OR LS RIGNED TO THE IMPENDG PROBABILY OF NATNWI SAME-SEX MARRIAGE, THIS RENEWED FOC ON DISCRIMATN UNR THE GUISE OF RELIG EEDOM IS THE ONLY THG THEY HAVE LEFT AND BY GOD, J, AND JOSEPH SMH, ARE THEY GOG TO WHE-KNUCKLE .IN FACT, THIS MOVE IS EXACTLY THE SORT OF BA-AND-SWCH I LEARNED AS A MORMON CHILD: PLEDGE BASIC SUPPORT FOR THE HUMANE TREATMENT OF THE MARGALIZED WHILE SUPPORTG THEIR EXCLN THROUGH EVERY OTHER MEANS POSSIBLE.INED, THE MORMON LEARS WHO PARTICIPATED YTERDAY’S PRS NFERENCE SPENT MUCH LS TIME TAILG THEIR SUPPORT OF LGBT PROTECTNS THAN THEY DID CRYG WHAT THEY SEE AS “THE STEADY EROSN OF TREASURED EEDOMS” PERTAG TO MATTERS OF “RELIG NSCIENCE.” THE OFFICIAL PRS RELEASE PLEDG SUPPORT FOR “REASONABLE SAFEGUARDS FOR LGBT PEOPLE—SPECIFILLY AREAS OF HOG, EMPLOYMENT AND PUBLIC TRANSPORTATN” SO LONG AS THE SAFEGUARDS ARE BALANCED WH “RELIG EEDOM PROTECTNS.” BUT AT NO POT DURG THE PREPARED PORTN OF THE PRS NFERENCE DID MORMON LEARS OFFER SPECIFIC ILLTRATIVE EXAMPL OF ANTI-LGBT DISCRIMATN, ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR OWN HISTORY OF ANTI-LGBT POLICY, OR EVEN UTTER ALOUD THE WORDS “BISEXUAL” AND “TRANSGENR.” THE TOKEN FEMALE SPEAKER—SISTER NEILL F. MARRTT, WHOSE SPEECH PATTERNS MAKE JONI ERNST SEEM LIKE CELE DN BY PARISON—EVEN CHIMED WH A HEARTY “HOMOSEXUALS.” REMEMBER: IT’S STILL 1995.THE ANNOUNCEMENT YTERDAY WAS, FIRST AND FOREMOST, AN EXCE TO PLA ABOUT THE CREASG PHBACK THAT PUBLIC FIGUR AND BS FACE WHEN THEY MAKE A BIGOTED REMARK OR EXPLICLY SUPPORT THE DISCRIMATN OF LGBT PEOPLE. IN THE SPAN OF 15 MUT, MORMON APOSTL DALL H. OAKS AND JEFEY R. HOLLAND MANAGED TO WORK REFERENC TO THE OTG OF MOZILLA CEO BRENDAN EICH, THE WHDRAWAL OF STATE FUNDG FOR CHRISTIAN CLUBS AT CALIFORNIA SCHOOLS THAT EXCLU GAY STUNTS, AND THE PRSURE PUT ON MORMON GYMNAST PETER VIDMAR TO CLE HIS PLACE AS THE U.S. CHEF MISSN THE 2012 OLYMPICS OPENG CEREMONI AFTER HE PARTICIPATED ANTI-SAME-SEX MARRIAGE MONSTRATNS.NOT ONLY DO THE MORMON CHURCH HAVE THE GALL TO PRENT THE STORI AS IF THEY REPRENT THE END OF “EE SPEECH” AS WE KNOW —’S CLEAR THAT THEY NEED TO SPEND LS TIME READG THEIR SCRIPTUR AND MORE TIME READG THE CONSTUTN—THEY ALSO GO A STEP FURTHER BY EQUATG THEM WH THE WISPREAD, STUTNAL DISCRIMATN OF LGBT PEOPLE. OAKS BOLDLY ASSERTS THAT “[S]UCH TACTICS ARE EVERY B AS WRONG AS NYG ACCS TO EMPLOYMENT, HOG, OR PUBLIC SERVIC BEE OF RACE OR GENR” BEFORE ADDG THIS PETTY AND FALLAC SWIPE: “IT IS ONE OF TODAY’S GREAT IRONI THAT SOME PEOPLE WHO HAVE FOUGHT SO HARD FOR LGBT RIGHTS NOW TRY TO NY THE RIGHTS OF OTHERS TO DISAGREE WH THEIR PUBLIC-POLICY PROPOSALS.”HERE’S ANOTHER EQUATN THAT MORMONS SHOULD TAKE TO HEART: NOT TOLERATG TOLERANCE IS NOT THE SAME THG AS TOLERANCE SELF.BUT OAKS N’T AFFORD TO BE TOO MEAN TO LGBT PEOPLE BEE THE CHURCH’S “FAIRNS FOR ALL” APPROACH IS, ODDLY ENOUGH, AN ATTEMPT TO UPLE THE POSSIBILY OF ANTI-LGBT DISCRIMATN TO LGBT NONDISCRIMATN ORDANC THEMSELV. TWENTY YEARS AGO, WHEN THE MORMON CHURCH’S POLICS ALIGNED MORE CLOSELY WH AMERI’S CENTER, THEY WERE POWER AND LGBT PEOPLE WERE ON THE ROP. BUT NOW, THE MORMONS WANT TO BE 1995 AGA SO BADLY THAT THEY’RE WILLG TO THROW THEIR HAT WH THE -VOGUE LGBT MUNY AS LONG AS THEY N STILL REFE TO, SAY, MAKE THEIR WEDDG K. WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, CHURCH LEARS WOULDN’T BE UGHT AD G A WORD LIKE “MORY” TO REFER TO THEMSELV BUT YTERDAY’S PRSER, OAKS WAS MORE THAN WILLG TO IMPLICLY REFER TO BOTH MORMONS AND LGBT PEOPLE AS “UNPOPULAR MORI.” YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAY: IF YOU N’T BEAT ’EM, JO ’EM AND THEN TRY TO UNRME THEM EVERY STEP OF THE WAY.THE MORMON CHURCH HAS ALREADY PROVED THAT ’S NOT ABOVE -OPTG A CIVIL-RIGHTS AMEWORK TO GET WHAT THEY WANT. AT THIS POT, THEY HAVE A TRACK RERD OF HIDG BEHD THE LANGUAGE OF CIVIL-RIGHTS MOVEMENTS ORR TO ASSERT THEIR RIGHT TO DISCRIMATE ON RELIG GROUNDS. IN A 2009 SPEECH LIVERED AT BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSY-IDAHO, OAKS PARED THE VANDALISM OF SOME CHURCH FACILI AFTER THE PASSAGE OF PROPOSN 8 TO “THE WELL-KNOWN AND WILY NMNED VOTER TIMIDATN OF BLACKS THE SOUTH THAT PRODUCED RRECTIVE FERAL CIVIL-RIGHTS LEGISLATN.” I’M NOT SURE THEY MAKE EQUIVALENC ANY FALSER THAN THAT ONE.AND SPEAKG OF CIVIL RIGHTS LEGISLATN, HERE’S A STORY ABOUT THE MORMON CHURCH’S HISTORIC STANCE ON THAT ISSUE: ACRDG TO GLEN W. DAVIDSON’S 1965 ARTICLE THE CHRISTIAN CENTURY, A LOL CHAPTER OF THE NAACP FALLY SECURED A MEETG WH TOP CHURCH LEARS 1965, WHO RELUCTANTLY AGREED TO WRE AN EDORIAL—ALBE AN UNSIGNED ONE— SUPPORT OF AN EMPLOYMENT AND HOG BILL. THEY NEVER WROTE THE EDORIAL. INSTEAD, ONE MORMON APOSTLE SAID: “WE HAVE CID TO REMA SILENT.” BUT THEY N CERTALY SPEAK UP FORTY YEARS LATER WHEN THEY HAVE THE OPPORTUNY TO PARE BROKEN WDOWS TO THE SYSTEMIC DISCRIMATN OF AN ENTIRE RACE.COMG OM THE MORMON CHURCH, A HALF-HEARTED AND NDNAL SUPPORT FOR LGBT RIGHTS ISN’T JT TOO LTLE, TOO LATE—’S BS AS UAL. TRADG SHELTER AND EMPLOYMENT FOR THE RIGHT TO DISCRIMATE ON RELIG GROUNDS IS A VIL’S BARGA G OM MEN WHO BELIEVE THEY SPEAK FOR GOD. THIS ISN’T A “FAIRNS FOR ALL” APPROACH—’S A MEAN OLR SIBLG DRAWG A CHALK LE DOWN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROOM. AND WHAT WE’RE WNSG NOW IS NOT A SLOW STEP FORWARD BUT RATHER MORMON BIGOTRY S ATH THRO, AS THE CHURCH TRI VA TO RI THE LEGAL ATTAILS OF THE VERY PEOPLE THEY HAVE BEEN PUTTG DOWN FOR SO LONG. SAMANTHA ALLEN
• GAY RIGHTS

MORMON AND GAY: HOW IT’S GOG

Jt two years ago, the church received much public praise for rcdg a 2015 policy, ntroversial among Mormons at the time, that clared the mor children of gay people uld not be baptized to or jo the church as members—at least not until they were 18 years old, and only then if they would nounce their parents’ marriage and nmn their sexualy. Given how ntent the qutn of gay rights has been among Mormons sce the church threw s whole weight behd California’s anti-gay-marriage Proposn 8 2008, the post-2019 perd has been one of wele relative quiet om the church.

GAY RIGHTS AND THE MORMON CHURCH

Mormonism is now facg a world which not only the majory of outsirs, but also a signifint portn of their own membership—cludg s own universy’s faculty—seem to regnize that doctre for what is: a list of proposns phrased as irrefutable tths, issued by a group of men who grew up wh homophobia suffg every stutn their liv.

The same day Holland issued his revanchist addrs to the faculty, BYU’s admistratn was openg and publicizg s new Office of Belongg, a long-sought-for refuge not only for BYU’s growg number of openly gay stunts, but also s relig and racial mori, who are reported to face wispread bias and prejudice on mp, acrdg to a report issued by an ternal Commtee on Race, Equy, and Belongg.

Still, today, the church funnels members who nfs to feelg “same-sex attractn” to support groups that enurage members to enter heterosexual marriag, wh promis that the gay feelgs will be overe after sufficient fahfulns, or at least, ath. Mormons Buildg Bridg is a muny of Latter-day Sats dited to nveyg love and acceptance to all those who intify as LGBTQI and those who experience same-sex attractn or genr Fay Fellowship is a service and support group for Mormons wh gay and lbian fay members.

LGBT RIGHTS AI: WILL KENYA BE THE LATT TO PASS ANTI-GAY LAW?

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The Mormon church announced a mpaign Tuday for new laws that protect gay, lbian, bisexual and transgenr people om discrimatn while somehow also protectg people who assert their relig beliefs. " The First Amendment's protectn of relig eedom "do not give any of the right to harm others, and that's what sounds like the proposal om the Mormon church would do - would allow a doctor to refe to re for a lbian bee of his relig beliefs, for example, " said Jam Esseks, who directs the LGBT project of the Amerin Civil Liberti mpaign is the latt example of a shift tone on gay rights by The Church of J Christ of Latter-day Sats, which unts 15 ln members worldwi.

Oaks, another lears still want to hire and fire workers based on their relig beliefs as well as behavr standards known as honor s, which require gays and lbians to rema celibate or marry someone of the oppose sex. And gay rights groups seekg job and hog protectns have faced an uphill battle the more polilly and religly nservative has changed sce Mormons led a fight agast same-sex unns the "current ntent atmosphere that exists among people of different views on the subjects, " Oaks said, "we wish to promote a more Christian, a more civil and nsirate tone.

MORMONS SEEK GOLN MEAN BETWEEN GAY RIGHTS AND RELIG BELIEFS

16, 2022The Church of J Christ of Latter-day Sats gave s support on Tuday to a feral bill that would provi creased protectns for same-sex marriage, a limed but notable step om a church that historilly has aggrsively opposed gay rights.The move me on the same day senators announced a relig eedom amendment to the legislatn hop of securg broar support. People, acrdg to the Public Relign Rearch Instute.The church’s latt posn shows s long and slow parture om s public support of Proposn 8 California, which banned gay marriage the state and was later stck down urt. This likely reflects the effect of the “Utah Compromise” of 2015 and LDS lears’ attempts the last several years to publicly support nondiscrimatn laws while also ntug to teach that homosexual behavr is wrong.

Overall, then, Mormons have broaned their support for LGBTQ rights three key areas, though they still lag the natn supportg the right of gay upl to get married — or to walk to any bakery the untry and buy themselv a weddg ke.

"We want to prohib everythg to do wh homosexualy, " Mr Kaluma tells me, addg that his bill will be much broar than the legislatn passed by Uganda's parliament and approved by Print Yoweri Meveni May.

THE MORMON CHURCH’S GAY RIGHTS CHARASAME OLDELRS ANNOUNCED TUDAY THEIR PROVISNAL SUPPORT OF CERTA LGBT LEGAL PROTECTNS—WH SOME NDNS. SAMANTHA ALLENUPDATED APR. 14, 2017 12:25PM EDT / PUBLISHED JAN. 28, 2015 5:55AM EST PHOTO ILLTRATN BY E LENDOF/THE DAILY BEASTHERE’S A SIMPLE ALGEBRA EQUATN TO SCRIBE WHAT ’S LIKE TO GROW UP THE CHURCH OF J CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SATS: TAKE THE YEAR, SUBTRACT 20, AND THAT’S THE YEAR REALLY IS SI THE MORMON GERONTOCRACY.WHEN I WAS A CHILD, I WAS TOLD THAT BLACK PEOPLE ULDN’T HOLD LEARSHIP POSNS UNTIL 1978 BEE “JT WASN’T THEIR TIME YET.” TO EXPLA THEIR OPPOSN TO THE EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT, MY PARENTS CED SOME PARANOID LOGIC ABOUT UNISEX BATHROOMS. I HAD LEFT MY FAY’S FAH BY THE TIME CHURCH MEMBERS WERE SUPPORTG CALIFORNIA’S PROPOSN 8 TO THE TUNE OF $20 LN, BUT I STILL REMEMBER SOME OMO MBLGS ABOUT THE SPECTER OF LEGALLY MANDATED SAME-SEX WEDDGS BEG HELD MORMON CHAPELS. THE HORROR.SO WHEN I LEARNED YTERDAY THAT THE MORMON CHURCH IS NOW PROVISNALLY SUPPORTG SOME LGBT LEGAL PROTECTNS, I CLOSED MY EY, UNTED BACKWARD TO 1995 AND WATCHED THE PRS NFERENCE.LET’S START WH WHAT THE ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT. MORMON APOSTLE D. TODD CHRISTOFFERSON MA PERFECTLY CLEAR OM THE BEGNG: “WE ARE ANNOUNCG NO CHANGE DOCTRE AND CHURCH TEACHGS TODAY.” THE MORMON CHURCH IS STILL FIRM S OPPOSN TO SAME-SEX MARRIAGE, THEY ARE STILL TARGETG MORMON DISSINT AND SAME-SEX MARRIAGE SUPPORTER JOHN DEHL WH EXMUNITN, AND THEY STILL REQUIRE THEIR GAY, LBIAN, AND BISEXUAL MEMBERS—OR, THEIR PARLANCE, MEMBERS WHO “STGGLE WH SAME-SEX ATTRACTN”—TO REA OM ALL FORMS OF SAME-SEX SEXUAL TIMACY. THE CHURCH’S MEASURED SUPPORT OF NON-DISCRIMATN ORDANC IS BY NO MEANS A STEP FORWARD TERMS OF LGBT CLN WH THE FAH SELF.NOR IS THE CHURCH’S SUPPORT OF NON-DISCRIMATN ORDANC ENTIRELY NEW. IN 2009, MORMON LEARS PUT THEIR WEIGHT BEHD A SALT LAKE CY NON-DISCRIMATN ORDANCE, BUT ONLY BEE “BALANCE[D] FAIR HOG AND EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS WH THE RELIG RIGHTS OF THE MUNY.” THE ONLY NEWS HERE IS THAT THE CHURCH IS EXPANDG THIS NDNAL SUPPORT OF LGBT PROTECTNS “THROUGHOUT UTAH AND THE NATN AS LONG AS THERE [IS] A BALANCED APPROACH TO PROTECT NSTUTNAL RELIG EXERCISE AND NSCIENCE.”THE RECURRG DISCLAIMERS ABOUT RELIG EEDOM REVEAL THIS ANNOUNCEMENT FOR WHAT REALLY IS: A CRAVEN BID TO HANG ON TO AS MUCH POWER AS POSSIBLE BEFORE FULL LGBT EQUALY BE A POLIL AND CULTURAL REALY. NOW THAT THE MORMON CHURCH SEEMS MORE OR LS RIGNED TO THE IMPENDG PROBABILY OF NATNWI SAME-SEX MARRIAGE, THIS RENEWED FOC ON DISCRIMATN UNR THE GUISE OF RELIG EEDOM IS THE ONLY THG THEY HAVE LEFT AND BY GOD, J, AND JOSEPH SMH, ARE THEY GOG TO WHE-KNUCKLE .IN FACT, THIS MOVE IS EXACTLY THE SORT OF BA-AND-SWCH I LEARNED AS A MORMON CHILD: PLEDGE BASIC SUPPORT FOR THE HUMANE TREATMENT OF THE MARGALIZED WHILE SUPPORTG THEIR EXCLN THROUGH EVERY OTHER MEANS POSSIBLE.INED, THE MORMON LEARS WHO PARTICIPATED YTERDAY’S PRS NFERENCE SPENT MUCH LS TIME TAILG THEIR SUPPORT OF LGBT PROTECTNS THAN THEY DID CRYG WHAT THEY SEE AS “THE STEADY EROSN OF TREASURED EEDOMS” PERTAG TO MATTERS OF “RELIG NSCIENCE.” THE OFFICIAL PRS RELEASE PLEDG SUPPORT FOR “REASONABLE SAFEGUARDS FOR LGBT PEOPLE—SPECIFILLY AREAS OF HOG, EMPLOYMENT AND PUBLIC TRANSPORTATN” SO LONG AS THE SAFEGUARDS ARE BALANCED WH “RELIG EEDOM PROTECTNS.” BUT AT NO POT DURG THE PREPARED PORTN OF THE PRS NFERENCE DID MORMON LEARS OFFER SPECIFIC ILLTRATIVE EXAMPL OF ANTI-LGBT DISCRIMATN, ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR OWN HISTORY OF ANTI-LGBT POLICY, OR EVEN UTTER ALOUD THE WORDS “BISEXUAL” AND “TRANSGENR.” THE TOKEN FEMALE SPEAKER—SISTER NEILL F. MARRTT, WHOSE SPEECH PATTERNS MAKE JONI ERNST SEEM LIKE CELE DN BY PARISON—EVEN CHIMED WH A HEARTY “HOMOSEXUALS.” REMEMBER: IT’S STILL 1995.THE ANNOUNCEMENT YTERDAY WAS, FIRST AND FOREMOST, AN EXCE TO PLA ABOUT THE CREASG PHBACK THAT PUBLIC FIGUR AND BS FACE WHEN THEY MAKE A BIGOTED REMARK OR EXPLICLY SUPPORT THE DISCRIMATN OF LGBT PEOPLE. IN THE SPAN OF 15 MUT, MORMON APOSTL DALL H. OAKS AND JEFEY R. HOLLAND MANAGED TO WORK REFERENC TO THE OTG OF MOZILLA CEO BRENDAN EICH, THE WHDRAWAL OF STATE FUNDG FOR CHRISTIAN CLUBS AT CALIFORNIA SCHOOLS THAT EXCLU GAY STUNTS, AND THE PRSURE PUT ON MORMON GYMNAST PETER VIDMAR TO CLE HIS PLACE AS THE U.S. CHEF MISSN THE 2012 OLYMPICS OPENG CEREMONI AFTER HE PARTICIPATED ANTI-SAME-SEX MARRIAGE MONSTRATNS.NOT ONLY DO THE MORMON CHURCH HAVE THE GALL TO PRENT THE STORI AS IF THEY REPRENT THE END OF “EE SPEECH” AS WE KNOW —’S CLEAR THAT THEY NEED TO SPEND LS TIME READG THEIR SCRIPTUR AND MORE TIME READG THE CONSTUTN—THEY ALSO GO A STEP FURTHER BY EQUATG THEM WH THE WISPREAD, STUTNAL DISCRIMATN OF LGBT PEOPLE. OAKS BOLDLY ASSERTS THAT “[S]UCH TACTICS ARE EVERY B AS WRONG AS NYG ACCS TO EMPLOYMENT, HOG, OR PUBLIC SERVIC BEE OF RACE OR GENR” BEFORE ADDG THIS PETTY AND FALLAC SWIPE: “IT IS ONE OF TODAY’S GREAT IRONI THAT SOME PEOPLE WHO HAVE FOUGHT SO HARD FOR LGBT RIGHTS NOW TRY TO NY THE RIGHTS OF OTHERS TO DISAGREE WH THEIR PUBLIC-POLICY PROPOSALS.”HERE’S ANOTHER EQUATN THAT MORMONS SHOULD TAKE TO HEART: NOT TOLERATG TOLERANCE IS NOT THE SAME THG AS TOLERANCE SELF.BUT OAKS N’T AFFORD TO BE TOO MEAN TO LGBT PEOPLE BEE THE CHURCH’S “FAIRNS FOR ALL” APPROACH IS, ODDLY ENOUGH, AN ATTEMPT TO UPLE THE POSSIBILY OF ANTI-LGBT DISCRIMATN TO LGBT NONDISCRIMATN ORDANC THEMSELV. TWENTY YEARS AGO, WHEN THE MORMON CHURCH’S POLICS ALIGNED MORE CLOSELY WH AMERI’S CENTER, THEY WERE POWER AND LGBT PEOPLE WERE ON THE ROP. BUT NOW, THE MORMONS WANT TO BE 1995 AGA SO BADLY THAT THEY’RE WILLG TO THROW THEIR HAT WH THE -VOGUE LGBT MUNY AS LONG AS THEY N STILL REFE TO, SAY, MAKE THEIR WEDDG K. WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, CHURCH LEARS WOULDN’T BE UGHT AD G A WORD LIKE “MORY” TO REFER TO THEMSELV BUT YTERDAY’S PRSER, OAKS WAS MORE THAN WILLG TO IMPLICLY REFER TO BOTH MORMONS AND LGBT PEOPLE AS “UNPOPULAR MORI.” YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAY: IF YOU N’T BEAT ’EM, JO ’EM AND THEN TRY TO UNRME THEM EVERY STEP OF THE WAY.THE MORMON CHURCH HAS ALREADY PROVED THAT ’S NOT ABOVE -OPTG A CIVIL-RIGHTS AMEWORK TO GET WHAT THEY WANT. AT THIS POT, THEY HAVE A TRACK RERD OF HIDG BEHD THE LANGUAGE OF CIVIL-RIGHTS MOVEMENTS ORR TO ASSERT THEIR RIGHT TO DISCRIMATE ON RELIG GROUNDS. IN A 2009 SPEECH LIVERED AT BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSY-IDAHO, OAKS PARED THE VANDALISM OF SOME CHURCH FACILI AFTER THE PASSAGE OF PROPOSN 8 TO “THE WELL-KNOWN AND WILY NMNED VOTER TIMIDATN OF BLACKS THE SOUTH THAT PRODUCED RRECTIVE FERAL CIVIL-RIGHTS LEGISLATN.” I’M NOT SURE THEY MAKE EQUIVALENC ANY FALSER THAN THAT ONE.AND SPEAKG OF CIVIL RIGHTS LEGISLATN, HERE’S A STORY ABOUT THE MORMON CHURCH’S HISTORIC STANCE ON THAT ISSUE: ACRDG TO GLEN W. DAVIDSON’S 1965 ARTICLE THE CHRISTIAN CENTURY, A LOL CHAPTER OF THE NAACP FALLY SECURED A MEETG WH TOP CHURCH LEARS 1965, WHO RELUCTANTLY AGREED TO WRE AN EDORIAL—ALBE AN UNSIGNED ONE— SUPPORT OF AN EMPLOYMENT AND HOG BILL. THEY NEVER WROTE THE EDORIAL. INSTEAD, ONE MORMON APOSTLE SAID: “WE HAVE CID TO REMA SILENT.” BUT THEY N CERTALY SPEAK UP FORTY YEARS LATER WHEN THEY HAVE THE OPPORTUNY TO PARE BROKEN WDOWS TO THE SYSTEMIC DISCRIMATN OF AN ENTIRE RACE.COMG OM THE MORMON CHURCH, A HALF-HEARTED AND NDNAL SUPPORT FOR LGBT RIGHTS ISN’T JT TOO LTLE, TOO LATE—’S BS AS UAL. TRADG SHELTER AND EMPLOYMENT FOR THE RIGHT TO DISCRIMATE ON RELIG GROUNDS IS A VIL’S BARGA G OM MEN WHO BELIEVE THEY SPEAK FOR GOD. THIS ISN’T A “FAIRNS FOR ALL” APPROACH—’S A MEAN OLR SIBLG DRAWG A CHALK LE DOWN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROOM. AND WHAT WE’RE WNSG NOW IS NOT A SLOW STEP FORWARD BUT RATHER MORMON BIGOTRY S ATH THRO, AS THE CHURCH TRI VA TO RI THE LEGAL ATTAILS OF THE VERY PEOPLE THEY HAVE BEEN PUTTG DOWN FOR SO LONG. SAMANTHA ALLEN

The Ugandan law is regard as one of the harsht anti-LGBTQ laws the propos life imprisonment for anyone nvicted of homosexualy, and the ath penalty for so-lled aggravated s, which clu havg gay sex wh someone below the age of 18 or where someone be fected wh a life-long illns such as the other si of the ntent, MPs Ghana earlier this month unanimoly voted favour of amendments to the untry's anti-gay legislatn, phg closer to beg enacted to law. Though ls harsh than Uganda's new law, the Promotn of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Fay Valu Bill propos a three-year prison sentence for anyone who intifi as LGBTQ and a 10-year sentence for anyone who promot homosexualy. Gay sex is already illegal Kenya, but the ernment n also be tolerant of gay people - for example, has given asylum to people om other Ain untri, cludg Uganda, who faced persecutn their home untri bee of their sexual orientatn.

Image source, Getty ImagImage ptn, Many Kenyans believe that gay rights are agast their relign - whether Christian or MlimAlthough the meetg Uganda was billed as an attempt to protect the "sovereignty" of Ain stat, was actually -sponsored by an Amerin Christian right-wg anisatn, Fay Watch Internatnal (FWI) Kapya Kaoma, a Zambian prit the Anglin Church and an amic at Boston Universy the US, says Ain untri are beg targeted by FWI and siar US-based anisatns, and that the impact of s lobbyg has been "horrible and humane" parts of Ai, fuellg what he lls "ant homophobia".

GAY RIGHTS

"It is one thg to say: 'I don't agree wh you beg gay', but we didn't have the ant one, where policians now are sayg: 'You go to jail for life, you go to jail for talkg about beg gay, you go to jail bee you're livg wh your fellow woman', " Dr Kaoma says. The Church had often fought agast the risg ti of marriage equaly; s members were major fancial backers of 2008's Prop 8 California, which briefly banned same-sex marriage the state before beg more progrsive Church members voiced strong disapproval, Garett, like many Mormons, believed the spirual lears were warmg to gay rights. Its official policy toward homosexualy is that "actg" on one's sire is a s and that same-sex marriage is agast God's, twenty-six, and Garett, twenty-four, have had a long, plited relatnship wh the relign to which they were born.

Garett uld only assume that his parents believed they had one gay son who stayed celibate orr to bt serve his fah, and another who abandoned relign to have a meangful has never wished to be seen as the good gay son. Over time, they've renciled their fay wh their fah by viewg the policy as a clarifitn of a posn on homosexualy the Church already says sometim people ask her how she n be part of a Church that don't accept her sons. "Ey BerlSteve, seventy-one, and Lrel, sixty-eight, are matter-of-fact when speakg about the Church and homosexualy, which they nsir to be sometim at odds wh each other whout terferg wh the profound love they have for their son.