The co-founders of the NALT Christians Project released the following statement in response to the media firestorm around homophobic and racist comments made by Phil Robertson, patriarch of the “Duck Dynasty” family in the name of Christianity:
Controversy arose this week after Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson made homophobic and racist comments in an interview with GQ. He couched his comments in religious language, which has led many conservative Christians to believe that, in protesting his words, and in A&E’s subsequent suspension, Robertson’s First Amendment rights and freedom of religion are being infringed upon. As is usual in these debates, the real loser is Christianity itself. Millions of Christians around the world affirm the dignity and equality of LGBT people, and their voices go unheard when public figures like Phil Robertson and his supporters in the right-wing media claim that their discriminatory beliefs represent Christianity. As the NALT Christians Project and a growing grassroots movement of loving, supportive Christians shows, this is not the case. Robertson was suspended because he made hateful comments about minorities, not because he’s a Christian. He and others who couch racist and anti-gay bias in religious language do not own Christianity, nor do they even speak for a majority of Christians. To those whose faith leads them to show love rather than hatred, we encourage you to make your voice heard by making a NALT Christians video, sharing the message with your families and churches and getting involved in the growing chorus of Christians who are Not All Like That.
Signed,
John Shore, Wayne Besen and Evan Hurst, co-founders of the NALT Christians Project.
Cross-posted at the NALT Christians Project blog. For more information or to submit a video, visit the NALT Christians Project.
