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from Political News
European Union Seeks To Expand Gay Rights, Penalize Dissenting Viewpoints
February 3, 2006 -
Leaders in the European Union (EU) have passed a resolution stating that
"homophobia" is a social evil and an irrational fear of homosexuals. The
"Homophobia In Europe" resolution compares homophobia to racism, xenophobia,
anti-Semitism, and sexism" and calls for its criminalization.
The leader of this effort is Franco Frattini, the justice minister of the EU. He
stated: "Homophobia is a violation of human rights and we are watching member
states on this issue and reporting on cases in which our efforts have been
unsuccessful." The resolution warns that any refusal to grant homosexuals
same-sex marriage status will be considered a crime of homophobia.
Catholic leaders in Europe are particularly outspoken about this latest decision
by the EU. Msgr. Aldo Giordano told Vatican Radio on January 19 that the
Catholic Church opposes discrimination but that the resolution was an attempt to
"equate the homosexual experience with the family." He continued: "Sometimes it
seems there is the domination (within the European Parliament) of a certain
ideology of pluralism which sees everything that exists as something good. There
really is lacking a reflection on what is truly human, what is human richness,
what is good and evil, what is truth."
Criminalization Of Homophobia Is Trending In North America
Canada is leading this trend to criminalize criticism of homosexual behavior.
There are also efforts here in the U.S. to add "extreme bias" against
homosexuals as a mental illness to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Of
Mental Disorders (DSM).
Dr. Chris Kempling, a Christian school counselor and NARTH member recently
described the situation in Canada including his own persecution over alleged
"homophobia":
In Canada, "homophobia" is already illegal. Homosexual activist Member of
Parliament Svend Robinson worked for 10 years to get Bill C-250, a private
members bill (which almost never get passed into law) through parliament
(equivalent to the US House of Representatives). The bill added "sexual
orientation" to the pre-existing hate crimes and genocide bills. Opponents of
the bill argued that sexual orientation was not fully defined, and existing
legislation already offered legal protection. Their protests fell on deaf ears.
Passages of the Bible condemning homosexuality, in Leviticus and Romans, have
been declared akin to "hate literature" by a judge in Saskatchewan. Hugh Owen,
who is a prison guard by profession, placed an ad in the Saskatoon newspaper.
It was an image of two stick men holding hands, with a red circle with a bar
through it superimposed, and listing four scripture references (not the verses
themselves). Three homosexual men filed a Human Rights Complaint, and won the
case. Mr. Owen was forced to pay the men $1500 each for hurting their feelings.
According to Dr. Kempling, on January 19th, the Supreme Court of Canada denied
his appeal in a homophobia case.
Dr. Kempling was fighting discipline imposed by his professional body, the BC
College of Teachers, over letters to the editor he wrote on his own time as a
private citizen, objecting to the promotion of a gay pride day. Although no
evidence was found that anyone was negatively affected at any school, the
College imposed a one month suspension without pay. In Canada, evidence of harm
is no longer necessary to impose discipline on professionals, and freedom of
speech rights for professionals is now severely curtailed. Dr. Kempling was
also suspended for three months without pay by his school for writing a letter
to the editor explaining his political party's stand on the same sex marriage
bill, which was later passed into law. He was also disciplined for speaking to
a radio reporter on his own time about the orientation change services of his
private practice.
According to Dr. Kempling:
In Canada, oppression against those who speak up for traditional values, and
point out factual information about the consequences of homosexual behavior is
widespread. American judges will not need to look to Europe for legal
precedents to condemn "homophobia"--there are plenty of them north of the
border.
The Vanderbilt Law School Journal Of Transnational Law published a lengthy
discussion of the situation in Canada. The article, "The 'Privilege of Speech'
in a 'Pleasantly Authoritarian Country': How Canada's Judiciary Allowed Laws
Proscribing Discourse Critical of Homosexuality to Trump Free Speech and
Religious Liberty" is available on NARTH's web site.
Additional Reading: Homosexuality Trumps Free Speech And Religion In
Canada; Against the Current: The Cost Of Speaking Out For Orientation Change In
Canada; HOMOPHOBIA: A Scientific Non-Political Definition.
Updated: 8 February 2008
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