A long-overdue Bent Alaska update — October 2013

Help us end legal discrimination in Anchorage

by Tiffany McClain of Equality Works

At Tuesday’s meeting of the Anchorage Municipal Assembly, Acting Mayor Matt Claman introduced an ordinance that will protect Anchorage’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender citizens from discrimination in employment, housing, education, public accommodations, financial services, and Municipal business.

The Anchorage Municipal Assembly voted to hold a public hearing on June 9 and we need YOU to be there to show Assembly members that people in our town care about this issue.

There are plenty of things you can do TODAY to support this ordinance:

1) E-mail or Write to your Assembly Members

Our Assembly Members need to know where we stand. They will likely be bombarded with letters from those who believe that LGBT people should not be protected from discrimination, and it is important that we make our voices heard. By letting them know why you believe Equality Works, you are moving them one step closer to a vote to support equality. If you don’t know who your Assembly member is, this map should help you. Once you’ve found your Assembly person, find their contact information here. If you live in a district with two Assembly members, please send a copy to them both.

Suggestions for increasing your effectiveness:

• Be respectful. We believe that it is possible to passionately express your opinion without disrespecting elected officials or other people in our community who may disagree with you.
• Personalize it. When it comes to LGBT equality, it is true that the “personal is political.” There are countless examples of elected officials being moved to support our cause after having an opportunity to read the letters or even to speak one-on-one with people who are personally affected by discrimination.
•  Be Clear. Tell them exactly how you want them to vote on this ordinance — Vote “Yes!”
• Use the Talking Points. If you’re at loss for what to say or just need a jumping off point, we encourage you to focus on our talking points. 1) Anchorage workers deserve to be judged solely on their qualifications and the merits of their work. 2) All Alaskans deserve protection from discrimination and harassment. 3) No Alaskan should have to deny who they are in order to keep a job or an apartment. Go here for more details.
• Be Brief. The most effective letters are no longer than one page.

2) Share Your Story

“Discrimination? There is no discrimination in this town!” At least, that is what some objectors are saying to defeat this ordinance. It is very possible that the decision to support or oppose this ordinance will come down to whether or not Assembly members believe that they are improving peoples’ lives by supporting it.

Are you an LGBT person who believes that you have been discriminated against by an employer, landlord, or business? Have you ever been told to stay closeted on the job? Are you a straight ally or family member who has felt the sting of public harassment or discrimination because of your friends or relatives, or because you were perceived as being “too masculine” or “too feminine”?

These are all examples of discrimination that could be addressed by the Equal Rights Commission if this ordinance is passed. There is no better time than at the public hearing on June 9 to share these stories with the people in a position to make a difference. If you would like to participate, please e-mail me today or call 907-258-0044 ext. 101.

3) Tell People

You will be surprised by the number of people who believe that LGBT people are already protected from discrimination by state or federal law. In many cases, they are supporters of equality who simply aren’t aware that it is completely legal to discriminate in Alaska. Make sure your friends and family members know the facts, and bring them with you to the public hearing on June 9. Also, link this post on your social networking pages and forward this post to two friends — NOW is the time to expand our support.

Remember, Equality Works!

Where is the love in trying to make gays go straight?

COMPASS: Other points of view
Opinion | adn.com

By TIFFANY McCLAIN

Published: September 22nd, 2008 10:41 PM
Last Modified: September 22nd, 2008 10:41 PM

One of my earliest memories is being told by the principal of my Christian school that, along with Prince fans and devotees of the rock band Kiss, homosexuals were going to hell.

I was only 6 years old and had never heard of a homosexual, but my principal was happy to spell it out for his elementary school audience: “Homosexuals are men who have sex with men.” By the end of the school day, I was in tears, convinced that my mother’s love for Prince had doomed us both for eternity.

At the time, homosexuality had no relevance to my life, and because after this incident my mother promptly enrolled me in public school, I was spared any additional attempts to prevent me from growing up to be gay. But what about the children whose parents weren’t aware of what their kids were being taught? Or whose parents’ beliefs might have been more in line with that of the principal’s? What about the slightly older child, already aware of his or her attraction to people of the same sex, forced to come of age weighed down by this message of condemnation?

For years, these children remained vulnerable to the harmful teachings of adults who used their authority and their religious standing to promote an anti-gay agenda under the guise of Christian righteousness. It is disheartening to know that some groups continue to promote a philosophy that endangers peoples’ mental health and validates social intolerance.

Over time, the homophobic discourse of Christian fundamentalism has grown more benevolent in tone. Instead of threatening the gates of hell, for example, Focus on the Family’s Love Won Out ministry claims to help people “overcome” their same- sex attractions with “compassion and grace.” They claim to be able to “transform” people’s lives with holistic therapies and counseling.

But just because the tone has changed doesn’t mean that the consequences have disappeared. In a 1998 position statement the American Psychiatric Association cited the numerous potential risks of the “therapies” promoted by these ministries of so-called “transformation,” including depression, anxiety and self-destructive behavior. The American Psychological Association, National Association of Social Workers, and the American Academy of Pediatrics have also expressed their concern about the harmful consequences of these ministries on the well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning people and their families.

For all their talk of love, the Love Won Out ministry blindly ignores the love and affection that exists between gay and lesbian couples. We are portrayed as emotionally stunted in/piduals with no interest in each other beyond the physical, thereby diminishing public respect for and recognition of our relationships and families.

If you look beneath the “self-help”-styled rhetoric, at the core of their philosophy is the belief that if you’re gay or lesbian, there is something fundamentally wrong with you that needs to be changed. Not only is this belief medically incorrect — psychiatrists dismissed it almost 40 years ago — it also implicitly validates social prejudices that lead to acts of discrimination, harassment and violence. These acts cause far more mental harm to gays and lesbians — and do more harm to our democracy — than allowing law-abiding citizens to live their lives equally, honestly, and without fear — regardless of their sexual orientation.

I work for the American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska, an organization that protects the right of every citizen to believe in and promote the religion of their choice. Focus on the Family has every right to bring its Love Won Out conference all the way to Anchorage and share its mission with whoever is willing to listen. But our Constitution also grants me the right to urge you — for the sake of your loved ones’ mental well-being and happiness, for the sake of promoting a more democratic and compassionate community, and in the name of love — not to believe a word they say.

Tiffany McClain is Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Public Policy Coordinator for ACLU of Alaska in Anchorage.

Not your father’s anti-gay crusade

by Karen

The “ex-gay” conference came to Alaska last Saturday, and the LGBT community held gay-positive events to counter the ‘pray away the gay’ message. MCC hosted “God Loves You Just As You Are” with five clergy members and a presentation by Truth Wins Out. On Saturday, PFLAG Anchorage and many supportive individuals held an all-day vigil outside the conference.

Meanwhile, Karen attended the ex-gay conference. This story was written by Karen for Bent Alaska:

I attended the Love Won Out conference in Anchorage last weekend, sponsored by Focus On the Family (FOTF), and it was interesting on many levels. I went with two straight women friends from my church in Palmer.

Most of the attendees were people like the three of us. Of the 250-300 attendees and volunteer hosts/ushers, the great majority were middle-class white folks in our 30’s, 40’s and older. I saw people who looked just like my fellow church-goers and neighbors. There were also a few goatee’d guys with nose rings from the Christian youth groups.

It was not the atmosphere of hate that I had been steeling myself to endure.

Admittedly, I’ve been out of the loop since the years I worked at gay newspapers in Minneapolis, but the message of conservative Christians has come a long way from the days of sign-wavers proclaiming God Hates Fags. There was a gentleness and kindness in what the speakers shared that was unexpected. The old commercial slogan, “This is not your father’s Oldsmobile,” kept going through my mind. They went to great lengths to make the environment current and pleasant, compared to anti-gay teachings or workshops even ten years ago which were more about guilt and shame.

In the first few sessions, I didn’t find much that I actually disagreed with. Yes, many lesbian women suffer abuse in their family backgrounds. Yes, many gay men are creative and sensitive. No breaking news there, and they noted that stereotyping didn’t serve anyone. Speaker Jeff Johnston, a self-identified ex-gay who is now married with children, quipped that no one was there to say boys shouldn’t be creative or sensitive. “No one says, ‘why can’t you be more a jerk like your father?'” said Johnston.

They’ve learned to come across as more reasonable and caring. That could well be by design. Perhaps the gay community has prompted these changes over the years, pointing out the contradictions of un-Christ-like behavior on the part of groups like this one. Since the foaming-at-the-mouth venom and harsh Fire and Brimstone sermons were probably not persuasive with everyday folk who have everyday questions about their gay family members or friends, they do seem to have moderated their messages.

FOTF founder James Dobson’s introduction in the program booklet does promote “freedom from homosexuality” and the conference schedule online seems oriented towards political action. But there was nary a call to arms in the sessions I attended (I had to leave in the afternoon for work) and no one mentioned what used to be a standard, assumed parallel between gayness and pedophilia.

To their credit, I found FOTF’s theological break-out sessions more complete and thought-out than arguments I’ve heard at both LGBT-inclusive churches and my current non-affirming church.

Another way this was “not your Father’s anti-gay crusade” was the essential divide between how different Christian groups see Father God. The speakers acknowledged that the Presbyterians, Episcopalians, and one branch of the Lutheran church have become accepting and affirming of LGBT folk. But that is not FOTF’s understanding of what God asks of us on our walk towards holiness. The position taken by FOTF hasn’t changed: that engaging in homosexual relationships is outside of God’s will for humankind.

It seems evident that the LGBT community members outside the conference hold a different view of the “Father” and what we’re called to as His people. One of the friends attending with me said she saw it as discussions happening on two different planes, with no intersecting points on the crucial questions, between the protesters and folks with the FOTF point of view.

A moment of hope came for me during a session presented by Nancy Heche, mother of actress Anne Heche. She asked audience members to raise their hands if they were gay or knew a gay family member or friend. Almost every hand went up. The next question she posed was, “How many here want to see the voice of their church change in regard to homosexuality?”

Given Alaska’s very conservative base of churches, I interpreted that to mean striving for a kinder, more compassionate dialogue. Nearly a dozen or so hands went up. Perhaps this will further the conversation locally and more broadly, as Christians of all stripes seek to live out their Christianity.

Jason: An ex-gay survivor from Alaska tells his story

The ex-gay conference Love Won Out came to Alaska to promote “reparative” therapy. Jason Ingram describes their methods in his personal story.