Candidate Loses Endorsement Over Antigay Language

[WillParkinson]

Candidate Loses Endorsement Over Antigay Language

The Houston Chronicle has rescinded its endorsement of a school board candidate because his campaign circulated an antigay flier condemning his opponent.

Manuel Rodriguez Jr. (pictured), running for reelection as a Houston Independent School District trustee, put out a flier suggesting his challenger, Ramiro Fonseca, is unfit to be on the school board because he has a male partner, and saying Fonseca has “spent years advocating for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, transgender rights ... not kids.” It also noted that Fonseca is backed by the Houston GLBT Political Caucus.

An editorial posted on the Chronicle’s website Sunday retracted the newspaper’s endorsement of Rodriguez, saying the campaign flier is “obvious gay-bashing, of the kind that HISD rightly prohibits on the playground. It has no place on HISD’s board. Advocating for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights is advocating for kids. GLBT kids are among those who most need adult protection and support.” It added, “With his hateful flier, Rodriguez perpetuates the kind of stereotypes that put our kids in danger.”

www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2011/11/07/Candidate_Loses_Endorsement_Over_Antigay_Language/

[chollybocker]

1. Why did the Hou Chronicle endorse him in the first place?

Either way, this doesn't reflect well on their candidate-vetting process. Were they conned or quietly complicit?

[joeybee12]

2. I would assume that they simply interviewed both...

And since there was nothing in this guy's previous statements about this, they really didn't know much about him and maybe he did ok otherwise...this is fairly low level for anyone to really know anything about whose running...that's how crackpots can slip into these positions.

[Doctor_J]

3. In Texas the anti-gay stance will probably win him more votes than

the endorsement from the Chronicle