The Chicago-Sun Times ran the following op-ed on the Dump Dobson Coalition’s efforts to keep James Dobson out of the Radio Hall of Fame.
INDUCTING ANTI-GAY DOBSON WOULD TAINT BROADCAST MUSEUM
Chicago’s Museum of Broadcast Communications is making a regrettable mistake if it follows through on its plan to induct Focus on the Family’s James Dobson into its Radio Hall of Fame on Nov. 8.
To do so would tarnish the reputation of the museum, erode its respectability and make it a monument to intolerance. The prospect of celebrating this anti-gay figure has united the entire gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community in Chicago and beyond.
To LGBT people, Dobson is a dangerous demagogue who has repeatedly dehumanized our very existence. He has lied about our lives, distorted science to back his falsehoods and peddled destructive stereotypes. Dobson has lobbied to pass anti-gay laws, divided families in the name of family values and said that allowing gay people to marry will “end the earth.”
Hate crimes against gay people still regularly occur. Yet despite violence, Dobson tells his millions of listeners that gay activists have “sought to implement a master plan that has had as its centerpiece the utter destruction of the family.”
Dobson also runs a traveling “ex-gay” conference, Love Won Out, where sexual engineers teach people to “pray away the gay.” He gives a platform to people who believe that homosexuality is demonic and say that gay people don’t truly exist, but are, “heterosexuals with a homosexual problem.”
What Dobson fails to tell conference-goers is that attempts to change sexual orientation are considered harmful by every respected medical and mental health organization in the nation.
There are also serious questions about Dobson’s integrity. In the past two years, seven prominent scientists and authors have demanded that he stop citing their work because he misrepresented their conclusions on homosexuality.
If just one professor was upset, it could be chalked up to a misunderstanding. If two had come forward, this could be a mere coincidence. But when seven leading academics from three countries have stepped out of the ivory tower to publicly give Dobson failing marks, it is clear that a deliberate pattern of deception has emerged. A full list of scientists can be verified at www.RespectMyResearch.org.
Given this dubious record, it is astounding that the Museum of Broadcast Communications would elect to honor Dobson. MBC’s Director, Bruce Dumont, defends this amoral decision by saying that the views and actions of the 2008 inductees were not taken under consideration. This is a cop out. If Dobson had insulted another minority in the same way, he never would have been nominated in the first place. It is clear there is a double standard, where smearing the LGBT community can be overlooked if doing so helps bring the MBC conservative donors.
While the Radio Hall of Fame has the right to pay tribute to anyone of its choosing, we urge them to act responsibly and wisely. By honoring a notorious individual who has built his radio empire on the backs of LGBT people, the organization is in jeopardy of sullying its name and being known as the Radio Hall of Shame.
