'Hate group' designation angers same-sex marriage opponents

[Jeffersons Ghost]

'Hate group' designation angers same-sex marriage opponents
By Krissah Thompson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 24, 2010; 5:00 PM

The Southern Poverty Law Center this week labeled as "hate groups" several political and religious organizations that campaign against same-sex marriage and, the center says, engage in "repeated, groundless name-calling" against gays and lesbians.

Included on the list released by the civil rights organization is the Family Research Council, a prominent and politically influential group of social conservatives. The report by the law center, which has spent four decades tracking extremist groups and hate speech, accuses the council and a dozen other groups of putting out "demonizing propaganda aimed at homosexuals and other sexual minorities."

The report, which has sparked debate across the Internet, taps into the continuing potency of social issues, such as same-sex marriage, in American politics. Several of the groups described in the report supported a successful effort to oust state Supreme Court judges in Iowa because of a unanimous ruling last year that legalized same-sex unions.

The Family Research Council has been at the forefront of political activism against same-sex marriage. In explaining the decision to put the council on its hate-groups list, the law center highlighted comments by Peter Sprigg, a senior fellow for policy studies at the council, who told MSNBC host Chris Matthews this year that he thinks "homosexual behavior" should be outlawed.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/24/AR2010112405573.html?hpid=moreheadlines

[GrantDem]

1. GOOD!

That's exactly what they are.

[Bluenorthwest]

2. They don't mind BEING a hate group, they just don't want it

pointed out. Many people think there are rationalizations for supporting religious hate groups, as if slandering gay people is understandable or something. They talk about tradition, and that sort of thing.

[DCKit]

3. "Hate" is such a harsh word for.... "hate".

Seems, in their opinion, they're simply misunderstood. Just like Hitler, Pol Pot, Stalin, Caligula and Katie Couric.

[JBoy]

4. Haters hate it when you don't accept their hate.

[Jeffersons Ghost]

10. there's too many different kinds of hate in America

[dickthegrouch]

5. But they aren't about to change their ways

They'd rather have the supposed victimhood of being called a hate group, than actually understand their targets and eliminate the rhetoric.

[rucky]

6. Well tough shit because that's what they are.

[polichick]

7. Oh, poor widdle creeps! nt

[old mark]

8. Gosh, I bet they really HATE that!....nt

[fishwax]

9. their reaction is especially funny since they're always the first to try to play the victim card

Tony Perkins, the president of FRC, used to call ENDA the "discrimination against Christians in the workplace act" and is always talking about how christianity and christians are under attack. Their rhetoric is always about how hated Christians are, but call them out on their hate and they go apoplectic. Calling to ban discrimination against gays is hateful to christians, you see, but calling for the criminalization of homosexuality is just fine. :eyes: