National Organization for Marriage responds to Obama's inaguration speech, says homosexuals 'already treated equally’

During President Obama's inauguration speech, he pointed out that,

"Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law, for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal, as well."

These words were met with criticism by Brian Brown, the President of the National Organization for Marriage, who stated that the words spoken by the President are a catalyst for further division, and that the LGBT community is already treated equally under the law.

The National Organization for Marriage website states,

"Gay and lesbian people are already treated equally under the law. They have the same civil rights as anyone else; they have the right to live as they wish and love whom they choose. What they don’t have is the right to redefine marriage for all of society. In fact, six federal courts have rejected the idea that there is a constitutional right to same-sex marriage, including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court in a summary decision in 1972. Furthermore, that vast majority of states have codified the commonsense view held for thousands of years that marriage is the union of a man and a woman. The President is profoundly wrong to imply that those who have acted to protect marriage have denied anyone’s rights by doing so.

"A presidential inauguration should be a time for the nation to come together; instead President Obama chose to voice his support for a radical agenda advanced by some of his biggest campaign contributors to redefine marriage for everyone. Marriage brings our nation together. The concept of gay ‘marriage’ would have been totally alien to our founding fathers, and the protection and advancement of marriage between one man and one woman will immeasurably serve the common good of this country and further strengthen our Union. Today the President should have thrown his support behind this beautiful vision of men and women coming together in love to raise the next generation. Nonetheless, we pro-marriage Americans pledge to defend the institution which the President has chosen to undermine once again."

A response to this filed on ThinkProgress states that the case referred to, Baker v. Nelson (1972) was dismissed by the Supreme Court, but six years before that the Court ruled that marriage is one of our basic rights in a decision handed down regarding the Loving v. Virginia (1967).

The report points out that members of the LGBT community are not treated equally, and that their sexual orientation can be responsible for a myriad of injustices, including discrimination in careers and housing, as well as other areas of life.

The 'Movement Advance Project' provides an interactive map that shows summaries of laws that affect the LGBT community, categorized by state and by issue – including areas of employment, recognition, legal protection regarding hate crimes and laws that pertain to bullying.

Al Stefanelli

Al serves on the Board of Directors for The Clergy Project, and is the former Georgia State Director for American Atheists, Inc. He is a retired journalist and the author of "Free Thoughts - A Collection Of Essays By An American Atheist" and "A Voice Of Reason In An Unreasonable World - The Rise Of Atheism On Planet Earth." Al began writing in 1985, starting with the New York Times. In 1993 he joined a McClatchy newspaper, writing a weekly column for ten years. His writing continues to be widely distributed on the Internet and in print. He also produced and hosted a weekly syndicated radio broadcast for three years and was the founder and President of the former United Atheist Front, Inc., which functioned as a civil rights organization. Al is a former Southern Baptist Pastor, having served two churches and as pulpit supply for three counties. Currently, he writes for The God Discussion, hosts his own blog on WordPress, submits content to a variety of publications, and co-hosts "American Heathen Radio" and "Reap Sow Radio." Al lives in Peachtree City, GA., a suburb of Atlanta.

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