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It's An Odd World After All
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This is GLAAD's excerpt of the Bob Wieder article in the San Jose Mercury News entitled "Why The Right Throws Hissy Fits Over 'Gay Days' AT Disney World." (1999) Date: Thu, 3 Jun 1999 22:59:02
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4) It's An Odd World After All A "Perspective" piece by freelance writer Bob Wieder appeared in the May 30 San Jose Mercury News, analyzing the reasons behind Operation Rescue's protesting of the annual Gay Days celebration at Disney World. According to Wieder, the anti-abortion group will be on hand in Orlando to "protest, chant, condemn and otherwise make things less pleasant for the homosexual celebrators." He writes, "On the surface, there seems to be a conspicuous logical disconnect here. If there is any demographic group that does not contribute in any significant way to abortion in America, it would appear to be the exclusively homosexual. So this protest makes about as much sense as Mothers Against Drunk Driving physically disrupting the annual Boy Scout Jamboree. Right?" Not according to Wieder. A "look at the overall agenda of the arch-moral right," he contends, "reveals a single guiding principle: Sex - all sex - is sin. And sin should be punished." Wieder points to a fascination with issues ranging from pornography to homosexuality and from birth control to welfare provisions for families, as evidence that groups like Operation Rescue do not follow their supposed missions; that in fact, their message is broader and more destructive. He further notes the problems posed by groups that oppose abortion because of a supposed desire to protect lives but support capital punishment nonetheless. In Wieder's words, their "concern for unborn children rarely extends to the actual born. This fringe has taken it upon itself to make sure that no one who commits the sin of the loins will avoid or escape punishment." Wieder cites legislative measures (such as discriminatory sodomy laws) as evidence of the support for punishment, but really brings his point home by saying, "This is why so many of them are blasé, if not in fact openly smug, over the spread of AIDS and the elusiveness of a cure. It is why, if homosexuality should not prove fatal and cannot be made punishable by law, it must be punished by harassment (admonitory pamphleteers at Disney World, chanting protesters at gay churches), by vigilantism (gay-bashing) or by discrimination." In the end, Wieder answers his own central question: "Why such a glaringly counterproductive stand? Because God's naturally ordained punishment for copulation is children. Apparently, viewing children as the lifelong wages of original sin is 'pro-family.'" Using a wry wit and discerning (if somewhat inflammatory) arguments, Wieder's piece sheds light on what makes groups like Operation Rescue tick. Please thank Wieder for his inciteful insight and the San Jose Mercury News for running his piece. Contact: |
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