I am a Christian. I am also a homosexual. I feel the need to state these two qualifiers of my humanity before I take issue with Dan Faas’ column Love drives same-sex marriage fight (SN 11/24).
I suppose I appreciate Faas’ appeal for Christians to love the homosexual community, despite our silly “disorder.” I do not, however, appreciate his notion that it is this love he feels toward gays and lesbians preventing him from advocating “that kind of behavior.”
Let me get this straight: He cares about us too much to let us marry?
Isn’t that the same excuse some Americans used for centuries in regards to slavery — poor, ignorant black souls can’t possibly live by their own means. Let’s put them to work in our fields! Oh, and blacks and women can’t possibly make their own decisions on who to vote for and certainly don’t possess the capacities to own land. Let’s make sure they can’t!
Racist bigots also looked to the Bible for reasons to subject blacks to their authority. And, in their eyes, they found them.
I see too many correlations between these fights for equal rights. And even if I didn’t, the fact is simple: Our founding fathers didn’t want church and state within 10 city blocks of each other. Not everyone in this country believes in our Christian faith, so we cannot subject the entire nation to our doctrines.
My rights as an American should not be decided by any religious ideologue.
Dustin Petty
agriculture and natural resource communications senior
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