Poor, Persecuted Persecutors

Amid ongoing protests against the passage of California's Proposition 8, an organization called The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty placed a full-page ad in the New York Times decrying the violent intimidation of Mormon (LDS) and Catholic institutions - as well as businesses and individuals - who supported the measure. The Becket Fund, which describes itself as a non-profit, non-partisan, interfaith public interest law firm dedicated to protecting the freedom of religious expression, makes a valid point: violence has no place in a civilized society.

Having said that, the vast, overwhelming preponderance of activism against Proposition 8 has been entirely peaceful. There are always a few fringe-dwellers in any movement, but while same-sex couples - who have been relegated to second class status by Prop 8 - have every right to be bitter and angry, the idea that the backlash against Prop 8 is one characterized by organized violence and systematic intimidation is unquestionably false.

To get a sense of the Becket Fund's methodology, it's worth noting that it is behind a new website (which is also home to their full-page ad) called, ominously, NoMobVeto.org. And this passage from the ad makes clear that it is merely one more religious organization working to claim victimhood when sectarian bigotry is decried for what it is:

Let's be clear: even the crudest anti-religious propaganda isn't illegal, and may not constitutionally be outlawed. But it's nevertheless wrong. It has no place in civilized society.

As the Human Rights Campaign noted, the idea that the LDS is the offended party is pretty difficult to substantiate:

When did the LDS Church become the victim? It’s hard to believe, but that is exactly what it is trying to convince the public of. It is continuing to spend an excess of dollars in an attempt to mislead the public and transform its image. But the truth is that this is the same church that conducted a national broadcast to every temple, calling on members to organize and write checks to the Prop 8 campaign. The same church that donated more than half of the $40 million behind Prop 8, even though California Mormons represent just 2 percent of the state's population. Yes, it’s the same church.

The hypocrisy required to champion a constitutional effort to deny consenting adults the right to marry, but then claim injury when there are repercussions, is pretty tough to stomach. I'm not religious myself, but I seem to recall a biblical admonition about reaping what one sows, and Friday's Washington Blade reported that the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) is investigating whether the Mormon church violated state law by failing to report all contributions supporting Proposition 8.

The backlash against the passage of Prop 8 continues and a recent poll indicates that fully 8% of voters who supported it would vote against it if it were on a ballot today. That's a swing large enough to have defeated the measure, and a sign that this egregious dehumanization of same-sex couples, which does nothing but cheapen our society, may not be long for the political world.

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For added perspective, please be sure to view this classic clip from the Daily Show, which aired after Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage in 2005, and check out the Prop 8 musical featuring Jack Black.