‘I think their long-term goal is to portray themselves as equals, as people
who are the same as heterosexuals, that their lifestyle is just as legitimate
as heterosexuality.’ — Exodus International’s Alan Chambers
on the inferiority of the LGBT community. |
I
remember a few well-meaning friends telling me that I was “overreacting” when
I expressed outrage over Mel Gibson’s sinister portrayal of Jews
in his biblical blockbuster, “The Passion of the Christ.” Thanks
to Gibson’s well-oiled PR machine, even smart people were able
to justify, as mere “coincidence,” Gibson's full cast of
beady-eyed Jews with noses longer than Toucan Sam’s.
It was Gibson’s other enduring passion, bountiful booze, that finally
revealed the actor to be the hatemongering anti-Semite that I had suspected.
Recently, he was arrested for drunk driving by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s
deputies in Malibu. According to the report, in addition to threatening
the arresting officer and trying to flee, Gibson said, “The Jews
are responsible for all the wars in the world,” and asked the officer,
James Mee, “Are you a Jew?”
In today's tightly scripted world, nothing is more entertaining than watching
public relations give way to embarrassing public revelations. Sometimes,
the expensive and controlled image campaign is no match for the out of
control star who imbibed too much cheap Champagne.
Whether it’s Tom Cruise’s fanaticism, Michael Jackson's fetishism
or Mel Gibson’s fascism, it is a rare treat to see genuine personalities
escape the guard of watchful publicists.
The ugly emergence of the true self is not relegated to Hollywood stars.
For the past several years, ex-gay groups have worked diligently to appear
as if they loved homosexuals. But, Alan Chambers, the leader of the ex-gay
group Exodus International, told Focus on the Family's online magazine
that gay people are inferior.
“I think their long-term goal is to portray themselves as equals,
as people who are the same as heterosexuals, that their lifestyle is just
as legitimate as heterosexuality,” Chambers told FOF. With one burst
of unfiltered honesty, Chambers threw away years of work presenting his
organization as compassionate and mainstream.
Former ’N Sync star Lance Bass decided that coming out is easier
than hiding out in outer space. He revealed that he is gay on the cover
of People magazine and has so far been an eloquent spokesperson. “The
thing is, I’m not ashamed and that’s the one thing I want to
say,” Bass says of his decision to come out.
“I don't think it’s wrong, I’m not devastated going through
this. I’m more liberated and happy than I've been my whole life.
I'm just happy.”
In another outburst of honesty, conservative Minnesota mega-church pastor
Gregory Boyd has become America’s most articulate advocate of separation
of church and state. In a shocking series of sermons, he revealed that
he thought right-wing spin was overshadowing Scripture.
“America wasn’t founded as a theocracy,” he preached,
according to The New York Times. “America was founded by people trying
to escape theocracies. Never in history have we had a Christian theocracy
where it wasn’t bloody and barbaric. That’s why our Constitution
wisely put in a separation of church and State.
“When the church wins the culture wars, it inevitably loses,” he
continued. “When it conquers the world, it becomes the world. When
you put your trust in the sword, you lose the cross.”
In a similar manner, former football star and conservative preacher Reggie
White started speaking the truth before his untimely death in 2004. White
was upset about the way he was used by the far right to promote religion.
In 1998, he took part in a virulently anti-gay ad campaign that said gays
could go straight through Scripture.
“Really, in many respects I was prostituted,” White revealed
to NFL Films.
On Aug. 5, White was inducted into the Hall of Fame. However, one of his
great achievements was not on the defensive line, but bucking the religious
right’s party line.
In the black hole of the human soul, some people, like Boyd and White,
finally see the light. On other days, in a drunken haze, a floodlight reveals
the darkness of one’s true passions. Sometimes, even good PR can’t
hide who you truly are. |
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