What Fair-Minded Utahns Should Know About "Traditional" Marriage Activists

"[S]upport for gay marriage means supporting the view of children as COMMODITIES FOR PURCHASE, otherwise known as SLAVES."

~ Robert Oscar Lopez

Featured Speaker at the Upcoming “Stand For Marriage” Rally

Recent polls show that an increasing number of Utahns are in favor of marriage equality in our state. An overwhelming percentage of Utahns are now in favor of (at least) civil unions. But, a strident minority of Utahs who wield significant political influence – if not power – in this state have organized a “Stand for Marriage” rally on January 28th, the presumed purpose of which is to influence public opinion.

But fair-minded Utahns should know what kind of people have been asked to speak at this event and some of the things they have said about gay and lesbian people.

These Are Family Values?

One of the featured speakers at the rally is to be Robert Oscar Lopez. I had never heard of the man when I read his name in the paper. But a quick Google search revealed some appalling information about what this man has said about gay people and about their relationships.

I started off the post with one of his quotes. Here are a few more gleaned from GLAAD’s website and elsewhere on the web:

“Gay dads are just two pairs of men running off to live in a world of men, avoiding the hassles and PMS and demands of the women who bear them children.” 

“The scars inflicted on the survivors of slavery are tied to the fact that our ancestors [he claims that, being Puerto Rican, some of his ancestors may have been slaves] were bought, sold, and robbed of a link to our biological roots. This is precisely what gay parenting does to kids through baby farming, adoption on demand, insemination, and surrogacy.” 

“The movement to liberate same-sex love began because people loved each other. Somehow, through convoluted digressions, it has become a tyrannical octopus seeking to control life and death itself. The Rubicon was crossed when the gay movement sided with human trafficking; graft-ridden dirty deals with warlords for orphanages; bio-engineering, baby-farming, and emotional deprivation of innocent children by forcing them to replace a biological parent with a fictional same-sex partner.”

One of the most disgusting of Lopez’ comments concerns Edith Windsor, a woman who was in a committed relationship with another woman for over 40 years whose challenge to DOMA led to last summer’s landmark decision. (Warning, some of the language is extremely crude.)

“[Edith Windsor] went to the Supreme Court and demanded that American taxpayers reward her for having lesbian sex by issuing her a back check for $300,000+. This is what civil marriage is based on. The country pays you to have sex. When it's a man and a woman having sex, it makes sense -- we need men to have sex with women so that we procreate. Why do we need Edith Windsor to have sex with another lady? What is the public interest in their sex life? They have the freedom to engage in sex because after Lawrence v. Texas, anti-sodomy laws have been deemed unconstitutional. So it's not possible for the state to prevent Edith Windsor from jumping into the sack with another sexy senior female and using dildos, dental dams, frottage, or whatever stimulating activities might send them into erotic thrall. They are free to do that. Once they are legally married, however, and they want the state to pay them for this mutually gratifying sexual activity, they are now no longer free to stop having sex.”

Lopez claims to have been raised by two lesbian mothers, but his own published accounts are extremely vague. It also appears that Lopez is one of the stars of an effort by the National Organization for Marriage (see below) to find children of gay couples who can discredit their parents.

How can Utahns who claim to speak for traditional family values associate themselves with such a man?

Brian Brown of NOM: The Other Featured Speaker

The National Organization for Marriage, which was co-founded by Maggie Gallagher and is currently led by Brian Brown, has been fighting marriage equality for years – and losing, at least on the domestic front. They have recently started exporting their hate campaign overseas, most notably in France and Russia.

A simple Google search will yield much information about NOM and Brian Brown.  I would, however, like to include a link to this video produced by the Human Rights Campaign.

Local Speakers

Mary Summerhays, who has organized the Stand for Marriage Rally, offered the following quote to the Deseret News after a recent “rally” at the Golden Corral in Orem, Utah:

"When we redefine marriage law we have said to those children, 'Your rights don't matter anymore. [Federal District Court] Judge [Robert] Shelby has proposed this new experiment that says, 'No, we're not going to use the power of marriage to protect a child's relationship with their mother and father. Instead, we're going to use that power of marriage to alienate that child's relationship with their mother and father.'"

One of the other local speakers will be Utah State Senator Stuart Reid, who published an op-ed in the Salt Lake Tribune just before Christmas. In his editorial, Reid implied very strongly that Shelby’s ruling could lead to civil revolt and violence and concluded his remarks with a very thinly veiled reference to what is really behind his views – animus against gays and lesbians:

“The result of these and other rulings around the nation are in effect massacring the institution of traditional marriage and morality, and no less important, demonstrating disdain against the will of the majority … 

“It is unknown how the majority is going to react in the coming months to the judicial adventurism it is being subjected to, but if its will continues to be contravened and if history is any indicator, all should be sobered by what the future holds for the Republic … 

“Forcing the majority to give up its constitutional rights for judicial activism protecting sexual activities heretofore held to be immoral is not only unfair, but will expose the nation to unrestrained enmity. The judiciary should be much more circumspect over what it is unleashing.”

Circling the Wagons

There are many, many people in this State who are gay or lesbian, and there are far more who are family members of such people. Fathers. Mothers. Brothers. Sisters. Grandparents. Aunts. Uncles. Sons. Daughters. Most LGBT people in Utah come from Mormon families – families who are increasingly circling the wagons around their gay and lesbian children.

The people who are speaking at the Celebration of Marriage Rally – though wrapping themselves in the flag and religion - do not represent Utah values. They are launching a direct attack on the extended families of Utah - many of whom are faithful Mormons - that love their gay and lesbian children and are also offending the sensibilities of fair-minded Utahns who are put off by their language, tactics and views of extremists.

I choose to believe that the more Utahns know about what these activists are saying and doing, the more public opinion will continue to shift away from fear and towards love.