Homophobia v. Hoplophobia


N

NavyLCDR

New member
It's not OK to be homophobic, but we need to cater to the hoplophobes...henceforth, CC shall now be referred to as "closet carry" :laugh:

Guns, Gays & PrideFest: An Expression of Freedom Or A Recipe For Disaster? | Seattle Gay Scene | Your Daily Gay In Seattle

Update at 9:51am: Egan Orion, president of PrideFest issued this statement:

Seattle PrideFest is a big proponent of individual freedoms, but we can’t support an open-carry gun rally on the busiest day in Downtown Seattle and the Seattle Center throughout the entire year, where a collision of people, alcohol, and religious protesters bring excitement and tension to our City streets. With the expected Supreme Court decision on same-sex marriage, this will likely be a busier year than most, and will bring out more protesters. Adding an open carry rally to this incendiary mix is irresponsible and detracts from the LGBTQ focus of the day’s events. We are reviewing the matter with Seattle Center and our board of directors, but since we’ve rented the Center for our exclusive use that day (on behalf of the community), know that anybody who open carries at the event will be peacefully asked to leave the festival grounds.
Click to expand...

So, I sent Ms. Orion an email:

Pridefest,

I am disappointed to read your response to "Liberty With Pride":

"since we’ve rented the Center for our exclusive use that day (on behalf of the community), know that anybody who open carries at the event will be peacefully asked to leave the festival grounds."

I openly carry a handgun in a holster every day when I am in public for the protection of myself and my family. One of the added benefits of open carry vs. concealed is that it presents an image to the public that it should be normal for a person to have the desire and the means available to protect themselves and their loved ones from crime. Also, to legally conceal the handgun one must obtain the government's permission in the form of a Concealed Pistol License (which I do possess). Having to obtain the government's permission to engage in an activity is no longer exercising a free right to do something - it is engaging in a licensed privilege.

I am disappointing because I would assume one of your organization's goals is to encourage acceptance of the LBGT community as normal. Yet, in order to support your efforts at encouraging acceptance you would require me to not only hide part of my normal, daily attire but also to forgo my 2nd Amendment right to bear arms. I can't help but consider that to be pretty hypocritical. The peoples' 2nd Amendment rights are no less important than your right to not be judged based upon sexual orientation.

I would hope that you will reconsider your stance on the presence of lawfully and peacefully armed participants in your festivals.

Very Respectfully,
John H....
Stanwood, WA
 

Ms. Orion's reply

Hi John,

Sorry you were disappointed with our response. I understand gun rights folks like yourself are very passionate about the cause—and I respect your views—but most of us protect our families without the use of guns. We’ve had many letters from folks who have decided not to come to PrideFest this year because of the possible presence of guns and gun rights activists. They’ve decided not to come to Pride, an event that reflects who they are as people or as a community, because another (small) group of folks is trying to make a point that has nothing to do with LGBT rights.

The intersection of political tension, tens of thousands of people, a hot sun, alcohol and drugs, all create a bad mix for an issue that has nothing to do with the core challenges for the LGBTQ community. Feel free to come to the event, but know that you will be creating more ill-well from our community than changing any minds in the process.

Regards,
Egan Orion
Festival Director, PrideFest
 
Really Egan? Hmmm... so let me get this "straight". We need to cater to the drunk and stoners who don't like guns. We need to cater to the few who don't want to be around people carrying guns. Kind of reminds me of the situation the LBGT group faced a few decades ago. You know, when an openly gay person could not hold certain positions or were not welcome at certain functions because they were thought to be a danger to the children?

My reply:

Thank you for your response, Egan. It's true that history repeats itself, isn't it? It wasn't but a few decades ago when openly gay people were not welcome in many professions or at many functions due to peoples' irrational fears that they would somehow be a danger to children. Now as a leader in your community you are asking people to cater to the irrational fears of a minority of your group. Openly carrying in everyday life I can tell you that those that "run from guns" are a very small minority of the public that we encounter every day. Amazing how soon we forget where we came from....

Very Respectfully,
John

By the way...the organizer of the Bellingham, WA pride event loves the open carry group. "Washington Open Carry Whatcom County is registered for the B'Ham Pride15 gathering. We will have a booth/tent for our third year. Bham Pride organizers are very pro 2A and not only welcomed us, but asked to wear one of OUR T-shirts."
 
"I'll hide my firearm when you hide your sexual orientation"...wouldn't that be a sign...

Do you think they will come to their senses?
 
Firefighterchen said:
"I'll hide my firearm when you hide your sexual orientation"...wouldn't that be a sign...

Do you think they will come to their senses?
Click to expand...
Sadly.... just as we see on gun forums and in real life... there are many people who have the perspective of:

"Hooray for MY favorite rights... and to hell with your rights as long as I get MY favorite rights."
 
One statement that really gets me in Egan Orion's reply is this one: "I understand gun rights folks like yourself are very passionate about the cause—and I respect your views—but most of us protect our families without the use of guns."

Well, Mr. Orion, most of our families don't involve same sex partners either, but you want us to accept that as "normal", right?
 
Denny Hastert and the penn state football coaches John Wayne Gacy as well as a slew of catholic preists as well as many other folks are the evidence that homosexuals are dangerous to children.
 
I don't like practicing homosexuals. That doesn't mean I am homophobic. I don't fear them, I just don't like their lifestyle. I think of them as "queer." But I don't discriminate against them, I just ignore them and do not associate with them or their parades or other events.
 
JimTh said:
Denny Hastert and the penn state football coaches John Wayne Gacy as well as a slew of catholic preists as well as many other folks are the evidence that homosexuals are dangerous to children.
Click to expand...

Ah, yes, as opposed to such people as
Susan Eubanks: Murdered Her Four Sons Only to Get Revenge Against Her Ex-Husband
Frances Newton: Murdered Her 21-month old daughter, 7-year old son, and husband
Andrea Yates: Murdered Her Five Children Because She "Heard Voices"
Lianne Smith: Murdered Her Two Kids Because of Her Pedophile Man was Arrested
Diane Downs: Murdered one Child, Shot Her Two Others, In Order to Make Herself Available for the Man She Loved
Kenisha Berry: Murdered Her Baby and Five Years Later She Tried to Kill Another
Woman, (name was not released IAW with German privacy law: Murdered Five of Her Newborn Children So Her Husband Wouldn't Leave Her
Debra Jean Milke: Attempted Murder of Her Four Year-old

You don't have an unreasoned fear, you have an unreasoned hatred.
Just look at the absolute terror in the eyes of those poor children!!
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