I want to be an activist
"What's stopping you," you ask. Good question. Sometimes I ask myself the same thing. Here's the answer: I can't.
I'm a professional journalist, as are some of the other readers of this blog. As journalists, being involved in activism casts a shadow over our credibility. Some journalists take it so far as to refuse to vote. (Personally, I think everyone who can vote should.) But I think it's necessary that we stay more-or-less out of the public sphere, otherwise.
I work for a church-related magazine. Unfortunately what I'm angry about this week is a church-related issue.
The United Church of Christ, which has been ordaining gay and lesbian people as ministers for thirty years and which welcomes gay and lesbian members, has put together a powerful TV advertisment called "God is still speaking."
I could describe the ad, but it's more powerful if you watch it yourself.
NBC called the ad "too controversial."
CBS, told the United Church of Christ "because this commercial touches on the exclusion of gay couples ... and the fact that the executive branch has recently proposed a constitutional amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, this spot is unacceptable for broadcast on the (CBS and UPN) networks."
The proposed (emphasis on proposed) consititutional amendment that CBS cites seeks to define marriage as union between a man and a woman. As far as I know, the amendment is not seeking to outlaw gay and lesbian relationships.
The UCC advertisement makes no political statement about whether the institution of marriage should be extended to include gay and lesbian couples. It simply sends the message that gay and lesbian couples are welcome to worship at United Church of Christ congregations.
What's going on here? The same networks that have dedicated audiences for shows such as "Will & Grace" and "Queer Eye" refuse to air an ad that shows the painful reality that gays and lesbians are often disowned by their religious communities.
My faith compels me to love my neighbor.
If you share my outrage, please share your concern with decision-makers at both networks. People for the American Way has an email campaign to make raising your voice as easy as possible.
Other ways you can take action including affirming that there are churches that welcome and affirm gay and lesbians. You can join or contribute to the Human Rights Campaign.
If you disagree with me, I thank you for respectfully hearing me out.
"What's stopping you," you ask. Good question. Sometimes I ask myself the same thing. Here's the answer: I can't.
I'm a professional journalist, as are some of the other readers of this blog. As journalists, being involved in activism casts a shadow over our credibility. Some journalists take it so far as to refuse to vote. (Personally, I think everyone who can vote should.) But I think it's necessary that we stay more-or-less out of the public sphere, otherwise.
I work for a church-related magazine. Unfortunately what I'm angry about this week is a church-related issue.
The United Church of Christ, which has been ordaining gay and lesbian people as ministers for thirty years and which welcomes gay and lesbian members, has put together a powerful TV advertisment called "God is still speaking."
I could describe the ad, but it's more powerful if you watch it yourself.
NBC called the ad "too controversial."
CBS, told the United Church of Christ "because this commercial touches on the exclusion of gay couples ... and the fact that the executive branch has recently proposed a constitutional amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, this spot is unacceptable for broadcast on the (CBS and UPN) networks."
The proposed (emphasis on proposed) consititutional amendment that CBS cites seeks to define marriage as union between a man and a woman. As far as I know, the amendment is not seeking to outlaw gay and lesbian relationships.
The UCC advertisement makes no political statement about whether the institution of marriage should be extended to include gay and lesbian couples. It simply sends the message that gay and lesbian couples are welcome to worship at United Church of Christ congregations.
What's going on here? The same networks that have dedicated audiences for shows such as "Will & Grace" and "Queer Eye" refuse to air an ad that shows the painful reality that gays and lesbians are often disowned by their religious communities.
My faith compels me to love my neighbor.
If you share my outrage, please share your concern with decision-makers at both networks. People for the American Way has an email campaign to make raising your voice as easy as possible.
Other ways you can take action including affirming that there are churches that welcome and affirm gay and lesbians. You can join or contribute to the Human Rights Campaign.
If you disagree with me, I thank you for respectfully hearing me out.
4 Comments:
First off, your next t-shirt should read: "My faith compels me to love my neighbor." Damn, straight (but not in a narrow way).
Secondly, could I forward your post to some friends here in Tucson? Creative writers are a COLD cry from objective. (At least the ones I know and they may be bad or mad because they go unpublished...)
In any case, I know people whose action could be rallied. I'm picking up what you're putting down and wanting to put it down some more.
Just let me know if that's OK.
Yes, spread the word. Tell your friends, neighbors, anyone who you think wants to help make a difference.
Un-frickin-believable.
Seriously.
Abba, thank you for bringing this up, and for commenting on it so passionately and eloquently. Yes, it sucks. (I do think it is good news, however, that the ad was accepted and will run on several stations, including Fox, which surprised me.) What also gets my goat is the way my own church (and yours) responded to this ad. Our communications officer signed a statement that, according to our denominational news service, "decried the 'arbitrary standards of the network gatekeepers' that kept the ad from being broadcast" and extolled our full-communion agreement with the UCC, as if that alone put us on 'their side' of this debate. But at the same time, our Council just decided that the votes about whether our church will begin to a.) bless same-sex unions and b.) ordain gays and lesbians in committed relationships, will be decided in our 2005 assembly not by a simple majority (which it might *possibly* have gotten) but by a two-thirds majority (which it, based on our political demographics, has no realistic chance of getting). Essentially they have already decided (at least in my opinion) that we will not begin to do these things. That disappoints me, especially when we use opportunities like this to align ourselves publicly with the open and welcoming UCC.
Now, I realize that this vote is a two-edged sword, and that either outcome has the possibility of splitting the church...and that a sensitive issue needs a lot of airtime (so to speak) in the church before anybody is ready to make an important decision. I also realize that with a simple majority vote, up to 49% of the voters can end up crushingly disappointed and even bitter (see exhibit A).
But still, I have a hard time figuring out our stand. We think that the UCC's ad should run on every station, and we are oh-so-publicly-glad to be associated with them in our religious agreement... but we are collectively very afraid to take that same stand.
It must be said that I have committed myself to said church through academic and vocational training and just plain choice, and I love it (though not uncritically), especially the part about how we can tolerate ambiguity and paradox.. but sometimes I would just like us to toss the paradox aside and show our churchly balls.
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