From: Carlos Maltzahn <carlosm@piper.cs.colorado.edu>
Subject: CFV imposes a cynical brand of discrimination (opinion)
Followup-To: amend2-discuss@cs.colorado.edu
Originator: doherty@ucsu.Colorado.EDU
Organization: University of Colorado, Boulder
Distribution: usa
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 1992 07:21:23 GMT

Reprinted without permission from Colorado Daily (12/11/92):

CFV imposes a cynical brand of discrimination (opinion)

By Illana Zhenya Gallon

Colorado Family Values (CFV), a group with ties to national 
far-right fundamentalist organizations, claims that it is 
not motivated by hate, bigotry, homophobia or religious 
prejudice.

Yet, two days prior to the election, CFV canvassed the state 
with an eight-page tabloid replete with misinformation, dis-
credited studies by discredited "experts," repugnant innu-
endo, and outright lies. Prof. Charles King and other 
supporters of CFV claim that lesbian, gay and bisexual peo-
ple do not constitute a minority group and therefore cannot 
be discriminated against. At the same time, CFV's strategy 
is to inflame societal fears of gays and lesbians.

Fact: The Colorado Anti-violence Project has reported a 
four-fold increase in anti-gay violence since the November 
election.

Fact: Since the passage of Amendment 2, the Regional Trans-
portation District has received more than 100 reports of 
verbal and physical violence against individuals perceived 
to be lesbian or gay.

Fact: A landlord, when asked if a man who has AIDS was his 
tenant replied, "Yes, but not after the 20th of next month, 
because Amendment 2 passed."

In an editorial in The New York Times (Aug. 17, 1992), Peter 
J. Gomes, an American Baptist minister and professor of 
Christian morals at Harvard, focused on the misuse of the 
Bible to justify hatred and persecution of lesbian, bisexual 
and gay people. He reported that "gay-bashers generally saw 
nothing wrong in what they did, and more often than not, said 
their religious leader and traditions sanctioned their 
behavior ... Religious fundamentalism is dangerous because 
it cannot accept ambiguity and diversity and is therefore 
inherently intolerant. Such intolerance, in the name of vir-
tue, is ruthless and uses political power to destroy what it 
cannot convert."

The campaign CFV and its fundamentalist allies are waging is 
deceitful and manipulative. It appeals to religious preju-
dice, pits minorities against each other, and exploits fears 
of employment quotas. The wording of CFV's now famous amend-
ment is so contorted it even confused defenders of equal 
rights when they went to the polls. Lost in the muck of a 
contentious debate are the following issues:

Anti-discrimination laws. These laws speak to the "ground 
rules" of equality. They are not the same as affirmative 
action regulations (as CFV tries to imply). Protected 
classes are based on genetic traits (sex, race, color, age) 
and choices (religion, creed, political affiliation) that 
society recognizes as being so basic to our individuality - 
what makes us who we are - that they cannot be the basis for 
persecution. Whom you love is as basic and intimate a compo-
nent of your personality as is the God you worship or the 
candidate you support. CFV claims that non-genetic 
attributes are not a legitimate basis for protection from 
discrimination. If CFV really believes this, then religion 
and political affiliation should also be barred from anti-
discrimination protection. CFV's "logic" also ignores the 
mounting scientific evidence that sexual orientation has a 
major genetic component.

Special rights. Just what does CFV mean by "special rights?" 
We have yet to see a definition that elevates their phrase 
above the level of meaningless buzz words. No one in "Colo-
rado voted for or against "special rights" - the phrase does 
not appear anywhere in Amendment 2. The news media should 
insist that CFV spell out these alleged "special rights" or 
cease using the phrase.

"Sexual orientation" includes everyone. The laws of Aspen, 
Boulder, and Denver were not repealed by Amendment 2, but 
specifically invalidated for gays, lesbians, and bisexuals 
only. The heterosexual majority (the remaining segment of 
"sexual orientation") is still protected. Indeed, CFV's cam-
paign has successfully conferred upon heterosexuals the 
"special right" of anti-discrimination protection in those 
cities, while specifically preventing a group of citizens 
and taxpayers from seeking legal redress of grievances - a 
fundamental right of citizenship.

Quotas. By including the words "quota" and "affirmative 
action" in Amendment 2, CFV implied that these measures are 
part of what they call the "homosexual agenda." Once again, 
CFV deliberately blurred the distinction between anti-dis-
crimination laws and affirmative action regulations. There 
never have been and never will be quotas to hire homosexuals, 
just as there never have been and never will be quotas to 
hire Christians or Republicans. As with Christians, homosex-
uals face discrimination primarily after they have been 
hired and their sexual orientation or religious beliefs 
become known.

Democracy. Our guiding principles of Liberty and Justice for 
all citizens should not be vulnerable to the whimsy of popu-
lar vote. That the "will of the majority" can be immoral and 
tyrannical is evident in our history of slavery, "Jim Crow" 
laws, and forced segregation. Under Amendment 2, employment 
and housing discrimination against non-heterosexuals is 
legalized, hate-motivated violence is legitimized, and use 
of intimidation to put gays "in their place" is condoned. 
(The night of the election, CU-Lambda received this phone 
call: "We passed Amendment 2, now you people should get out 
of here.")

What purpose has Amendment 2 fulfilled? Empowered by the 
"will of the people," CFV has stated that it intends to mon-
itor what they call the "homosexual agenda." What CFV is 
really monitoring has been reported in newspapers around the 
state. CFV sympathizers have requested lists of unmarried 
public school teachers, demanded that sex-education materi-
als be purged from schools and public libraries, and decried 
any media attention to gay and lesbian issues. The foul 
stench of McCarthyism pollutes Colorado's air.

A recent front page article in The New York Times (Oct. 27, 
1992) reveals more details of the far-right fundamentalist 
agenda: "In Washington state, fundamentalists won adoption 
of an uncompromising Republican Party platform that would 
ban all abortions, abolish the NEA, institute Bible readings 
and the teaching of creationism and corporal punishment in 
schools."

Now that it is legal to discriminate against homosexuals, 
will clever employers use an accusation of homosexuality to 
terminate a female employee? A Jew? A Latino? After all, the 
charge does not have to be proved. Who can fight for justice 
for gays and lesbians when, by mere association with the 
issue, one's sexuality is questioned? The loss of home or job 
with no recourse is a powerful suppressor of free speech.

Amendment 2 is a clear violation of freedom of speech, free-
dom of association, and equal protection guaranteed under 
the U.S. Constitution. Amendment 2 bans the right of les-
bian, gay and bisexual people to claim discrimination based 
on sexual orientation while preserving the same right for 
heterosexual people. It elevates prejudice and superstition 
to the level of the law of the land. Amendment 2 must be 
overturned.

(Chuck Bullard and Illana Zhenya Gallon are spokespeople for 
Campus Lambda, the organization for lesbian, gay, and bisex-
ual faculty and staff. This was written with two anonymous 
Lambda members who cannot risk jeopardizing their jobs.)

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