Austin Ruse
We already knew that the American Religious Right is heavily involved in Russia’s pogrom against its LGBT citizens, but it’s a bit surprising that they’re being so bold about it at home. Because of the shameful, evil nature of what they’re doing, one would think that they would want to conduct as many of their activities in secret as is possible, but we learn from an HRC press release today that they’re far bolder than that. American supporters of the law are holding a roundtable, in Senate office space, to teach Americans how to hate LGBT people the Fundamentalist/Russian way:
This Friday, top American supporters of Russia’s anti-LGBT laws will come to Capitol Hill to argue that these hateful policies should serve as a model for the United States. Even more shockingly, the World Congress of Families—which sent nearly a dozen anti-LGBT American activists to Russia to support these heinous laws—is holding this roundtable in official Senate office space.
Human Rights Campaign (HRC) President Chad Griffin issued the following statement:
“These shameful individuals represent the worst of America, and it’s an outrage that they will now bring their vitriol to the United States Capitol. After spending years exporting their hate to other regions of the world and contributing to a culture of anti-LGBT violence in Russia, these zealots should be condemned by all Americans and especially by our elected leaders.”
The roundtable discussion, hosted by the World Congress of Families, will occur this Friday from 11:00 AM to 1:00PM in Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 562. Entitled “Family Policy Lessons from Other Lands: What Should America Learn?,” the event is presented in innocent-sounding language, but the biographies of the participants reveal their malicious intent.
Three of the four panelists, Austin Ruse, Allan Carlson, and Steven Mosher, have traveled to Russia to meet with other anti-LGBT leaders during critical stages of Russia’s recent anti-LGBT crackdown. The fourth panelist, Janice Crouse, celebrated a proposed law in Uganda that would make being LGBT punishable by death. Crouse called it a, “biblical and cultural stand against the radical homosexual agenda.” For more on the panelists see this background document.
Chad Griffin is right to say that these four represent the worst of America. They are the Americans that good Americans have to apologize for every time we travel. These people are working against American ideals, and they’re working against American foreign policy. They have no qualms about this because they believe erroneously that they’re doing “God’s work,” and that “God’s work” involves destroying families and creating the circumstances that lead to LGBT people dying. Similarly, they believe that the United States, in becoming more open and inclusive, in working to realize the idea of equal opportunity for all (at least on this issue), has abandoned their evil conception of “God.” One wonders why they even wish to retain American citizenship.
