澳彩开奖

At a news conference the next day, FRC President Tony Perkins claimed that the 澳彩开奖 had encouraged the attack by listing his organization as a hate group. The attacker, Perkins said, 鈥渨as given a license to shoot an unarmed man by organizations like the 澳彩开奖.鈥�

Now, we don鈥檛 like being in the position of criticizing the FRC while its courageous building manager is recovering from his wounds.聽 But it鈥檚 important that we set the record straight and focus on what鈥檚 truly at stake.

Contrary to what the FRC has repeatedly claimed, we do not list the FRC as a hate group because of its opposition to gay marriage or because of its religious beliefs. Instead, we list the FRC because it engages in baseless, incendiary name-calling and spreads demonizing lies about the LGBT community.

The FRC portrays gay people as sick, evil, perverted, incestuous and a danger to the nation. It insists that gay people are 鈥渇undamentally incapable鈥� of providing good homes for children 鈥� a myth that has been rejected by all relevant scientific authorities. One of its key leaders has actually said that homosexual behavior should be criminalized.

Perhaps the FRC鈥檚 most dangerous lie is its claim that pedophilia is a 鈥渉omosexual problem,鈥� to use Perkins鈥� words. Here鈥檚 what the American Psychological Association says: 鈥淒espite a common myth, homosexual men are not more likely to sexually abuse children than heterosexual men are.鈥� The APA adds, 鈥淭here is no scientific support for fears about children of lesbian or gay parents being sexually abused by their parents or their parents鈥� gay, lesbian or bisexual friends or acquaintances.鈥�

Linking the LGBT community to pedophilia is not an expression of a religious belief, as Perkins would have it. It鈥檚 simply a lie 鈥� and a particularly ugly one at that. Constantly portraying gay people as sick, evil, perverted, incestuous and a danger to the nation simply adds fuel to the fire.

And it鈥檚 a fire that is raging in our country.

As the FBI hate crime data shows, the LGBT community 鈥� the community that the FRC constantly vilifies 鈥� is, by far, the minority group most targeted for violent hate crimes. And the FBI statistics don鈥檛 even take into account the epidemic of anti-LGBT bullying in our schools 鈥� an epidemic that has led to suicides.聽

And what, by the way, does Perkins say about the 鈥淚t Gets Better鈥� campaign, an initiative designed to give LGBT students hope for a better tomorrow? 鈥淚t鈥檚 disgusting,鈥� according to Perkins, all part of a 鈥渃oncerted effort鈥� to 鈥渞ecruit鈥� children into the gay 鈥渓ifestyle.鈥�

And Perkins has the temerity to call groups like ours 鈥渉ateful鈥� and 鈥渧ile?鈥� Talk about 鈥渄isgusting.鈥�

As people who care about human dignity, we have a moral obligation to call out the FRC for its demonizing lies and incendiary rhetoric about the LGBT community. The fact that we list the FRC as a hate group because of its demonizing propaganda does not make us the hateful one. Spreading demonizing lies is what is dangerous, not exposing them.

The FRC richly deserves the 鈥渉ate group鈥� label.聽 聽