Why We Can't Wait.

A letter to President Obama with an attached Legal Brief In Reply:

Reply to the President

We are all children of the same universe, and we each have a right to be here, marry who we want and to serve our nation in every capacity when needed.

Dear Mr. President,

Thank you for your response to our previous communications.  I have taken into consideration the issues that you face and the momentous strategies that you are now forced to deal with.  Nonetheless, your mantra of the “fierce urgency of now” rises to the forefront of this issue-- equality for all Americans in all areas, black and white, young and old and now gay and straight. 

Your reply letter implicates a new strategy of gradualism which acts to maintain a wrong, rather than to cure a bigoted injustice.  Gradualism has no place in the denial of civil or human rights.  Gradualism is but a crumb from the table as opposed to an equal piece of the American pie of justice.  I recall Dr. King’s address at Riverside Church, wherein he raised the issue of “why we can’t wait” saying:

“We tolerated hate; we tolerated the sick stimulation of violence in all walks of life; and we tolerated the differential application of law, which said that a man's life was sacred only if we agreed with his views.”

Mr. President, neither God nor Nature can wait for a scheduled gradualism in this 21st Century of Change.

I come as a redeemed sinner with a compelling purpose. A purpose to plead heaven and nature’s hidden truth: God made gay people and that heaven and nature demand justice, truth and fair play.

The LGBT community has been subjected to work and housing discrimination, bashings, lynching and murder throughout the history of this country.  Let us not forget a young gay student, crucified on a fence and left to bleed to death on a cold Wyoming winter night, and many other similar situations too numerous to mention here. Nor can we ignore the latest studies showing that since 1999 there has been an increase in hate crimes, resulting in death and injury throughout America. One cannot hide the rising number of suicides by gay teenagers, or the number of teenagers who are bullied, beaten and abandoned by their families and churches, simply because God and Nature decreed their sexuality to be different from the majority.

“Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.” - MLK

American hate derives from institutional instruction and attitudes which rise from the indifference of school officials who to turn a blind eye when they see a bully teasing a gay child. Moreover, it is reflected in the attitudes of the military, which contrary to the best interests of our country, insists upon rejecting soldiers simply because God made them gay. These actions wrongly support existing bigotry and teach our children that gays are not equal citizens among God’s children.

Mr. President, the world and Heaven is watching you. Our counsel to you is to follow the lessons of presidential history and tradition, empanel a Presidential Commission to set a date certain to remove “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and stay all pending DADT discharges. The nominees to head up this panel should be former President Clinton, former Vice President Dick Cheney, Senator John McCain, and last but most important, former General Colin Powell. They well understand the “urgency of now.” They will bring the prestige and experience to unite our military in line with the policies of our NATO military allies.

“Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice. Justice at its best is love correcting everything that stands against love” - MLK

Today, we ask that you instruct our Solicitor General to speak that truth. The truth that the United States of America respects the individuality and sexuality of all Americans, that we are all are children of the same universe, and that we each have a right to be here, marry who we want and to serve our nation in every capacity when needed.

To all: attached herein is a sample brief which outlines an astonishing heritage and contribution that the LGBT community has given to society.  We ask that you use what works, remembering that the power and force of heaven sides with all messengers of truth and justice.

Respectfully,

G. Martin Freeman, Presiding Chaplain

Universal Life Church Monastery

October 21, 2009

Church's reply to President Obama

Proposed Arguments for First Amendment Marriage Equality Send to friends

---

Past correspondence:

President Obama's Reply (September 28, 2009)

Go to the article

 

Letter to Obama (June 17, 2009)

Go to the article

Please share your thoughts with us.

We have opened our forum for discussion as well

Also: We Need Help! Please send this to your friends and family. Here is a link to copy and paste: http://blog.themonastery.org/2009/10/we-cant-wait.html

Reply from President Obama

We received a reponse from the Whitehouse to a letter we sent back in June.

Here is a transcript:

THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
September 28, 2009

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me. I appreciate your perspective.

Every American deserves equal protection under our laws, and neither Federal nor state law should discriminate against any American. The issue of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) rights has all too often been used to divide our country. We must treat all of our citizens with dignity and respect, and stand united in our protection of equality--a founding principle of our Nation and a moral imperative.

I continue to oppose a Constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and support the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act. We must also extend the over 1,100 Federal marital rights and benefits to same-sex couples, because every American should be able to visit a loved one in the hospital, transfer property, and receive equal health insurance and other employment benefits.

My Administration is committed to addressing a full spectrum of issues important to the LGBT community. We can reduce discrimination by strengthening hate crimes statutes; supporting the Employment Non-Discrimination Act; ensuring adoption rights for all couples and individuals, regardless of their sexual orientation; and opposing discrimination in public accommodations. To combat HIV/AIDS, we need policies that support people living with this illness and increased funding for prevention, care, and research. I also support repealing the current Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy in a sensible way that strengthens our Armed Forces and our national security. Please join me online to learn more about my civil rights agenda at: www.whitehouse.gov/agenda/civil_rights.

Together, we can create a more open and tolerant society that protects and values all people. Thank you again for writing.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama

DADT reflects the struggle of all minorities

October 16, 2009 - Department of Defense data provided by the Palm Center at the University of California, Santa Barbara reports that more women are affected by the federal government's discriminatory 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy than are men.

It should rightfully be viewed as somewhat of a set back for many human rights activists who have fought tirelessly year after year to secure equal rights for for women. The right to bodily integrity and autonomy, to vote (suffrage), to work, to run for public office, to work for fair wages and equal pay, to own property, to education, to serve in the military, to enter into legal contracts and to have marital, parental and religious rights shared equally with every other American citizen and protected by the US Constitution and Bill of Rights. The struggle for human rights is not limited to any one race, orientation or gender; it is one that people of all creed and background face each day worldwide. A woman's right to serve in the military should not be taken away simply because it is against the beliefs of one part of society.

As the Caribbean-American writer, poet and activist Audre Lorde stated about her own struggles as a minority woman,

"It's a struggle but that's why we exist, so that another generation of Lesbians of color will not have to invent themselves, or their history, all over again."

"If I didn't define myself for myself, I would be crunched into other people's fantasies for me and eaten alive."

So as we continue forward with our struggle to secure equal rights for all people of all nations, reflect on the message that,

"We're all children of the same Universe", and we each have a right to be here. - G Martin Freeman


Sources:

Current News

Unification Church's Founder marries 45,000 in Mass Wedding

October 14, 2009 - The controversial founder of the Unification Church, Rev. Sun Myung Moon, organized his church's largest mass wedding in a decade. The reverend, whose church hand-picks the couples to be married, has received a lot of criticism over the years from faiths who criticize his leadership methods and ideology.

Rev. Sun Myung Moon's church teaches that "marriage and family are core to spirituality." He pairs together couples who believe that he is endowed with divine insight. Moon and wife Han Hak-ja preside over the mass weddings, dressed in priest-style white gowns and towering caps, marrying thousands of Unification Church couples in stadiums and arenas, despite public criticism and accusations of brain-washing.

Moon, who turns 90 this January has begun turning control of the Unification Church over to his children; three sons and one daughter. He continues to advocate for World Peace and Unity by advancing him and his followers belief that, this method of pairing followers from different nations should be a continued practice to promote the union of culture and races. The majority of the international newlyweds do not meet one another prior to the wedding ceremony, but continue to believe that their method of integrating cultures and beliefs to be the option for peace and unity.

It is reported that around 20,000 people from all around the globe tuned in via live webcast to experience the event.

One Unification Church follower, Fumi Oliver, reported from Washington that, "Marriage is the best way to make peace." Oliver is a native of Japan, and married an American- Rev. Zagery Oliver twelve years ago and has been happy and content since.

"International, intercultural, interracial marriage is the best way to make peace," Fumi Oliver said.

Source:

LA Times

Photo courtesy of the Associated Press

Call for Clergy to Spotlight Domestic Abuse

October 13, 2009 - It may come as somewhat of a surprise, to learn clergy in Washington DC were reluctant to aide State Attorney Glenn Ivey with his campaign to address the growing problem of domestic violence in the country. In a recent article written for The Washington Post, Ivey describes the shocking experience he had listening to commentary from the public on the radio and television in response to superstar Chris Brown's alleged beating of his celebrity girlfriend, Rihanna.

"At least initially, a large contingent of people thought that Rihanna was guilty until proven innocent. Not only were they willing to defend Brown, but they also seemed convinced that she must have done something to "deserve" being beaten."

DC Clergy were hesitant to assist State Attorney Ivey with his call for action, against domestic violence. Instead he was met with statements such as,

"''Brother, it's a little hot to talk about that one.' Or, 'Well, I'll take it up, and we'll form a task force and get back to you.' . . . And then there are churches where the response to the victim is, 'You have to stick it out.' "

As Ivey has brought to light, domestic violence and even hate crimes in this country have become a sensitive political issue; which the Universal Life Church Monastery believes should make it even that much more important to all American's, believers and non-believers alike.

"We are advocates of the Good Life" and as such we encourage all people, ULC ministers and clergy from all faiths to aspire to such public advocacy and to not cower before those who propagate hate.

Get involved and encourage others to do the same, become ordained today.

"We are all Children of the Same Universe"

Sources:

The Washington Post - Valerie Strauss

The Washington Post - Glenn F. Ivey

Obama Addresses Human Rights Campaign

October 12, 2009 - This past saturday, President Barack Obama addressed the largest LGBT rights organization in the country, the HRC. His speech preceding Sunday's National Equality March on Washington DC, which brought out activists from all across the nation into the streets of our nation's capitol to demand equal rights and protection under the law as provided under the US Constitution. Obama stated during his HRC address,

"For nearly 30 years, you've advocated on behalf of those without a voice. That's not easy. For despite the real gains that we've made, there's still laws to change and there's still hearts to open. There are still fellow citizens, perhaps neighbors, even loved ones -- good and decent people -- who hold fast to outworn arguments and old attitudes; who fail to see your families like their families; who would deny you the rights most Americans take for granted. And that's painful and it's heartbreaking."

The president addressed such problems as the HIV/AIDS epidemic, gay-youth suicides, hate crimes and the controversial 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy signed into law during the Clinton Administration, which prohibits gays from openly serving in the military. His speech ended with his final promise,

"I've called on Congress to repeal the so-called Defense of Marriage Act and to pass the Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act. And we must all stand together against divisive and deceptive efforts to feed people's lingering fears for political and ideological gain."

Pope Benedict XVI opens synod on Africa issues

October 5, 2009 - Approximately 200 bishops from 53 African states came together yesterday in the Vatican to celebrate mass for the opening of the synod on Africa, with the purpose of addressing many of the challenges that the Universal Church is facing in the continent. Pope Benedict XVI stated that Africa's rich cultural and spiritual treasures are the "spiritual lung" for a world facing crisis and hope, further stating that Africa is being afflicted by "toxic spiritual garbage", the result of materialism and fundamentalism.

Statistics from the Vatican show that 17% of Africa's population is Catholic. The Universal Church's presence on the continent has grown enormously over the past few decades. Reportedly, from the years of 1978-2007 the number of faithful Catholics in Africa grew from 55 million to 146 million.

Pope Benedict has urged for less fundamentalism from groups of missionaries claiming to be from religious backgrounds but promoting religious intolerance and violence, the Pope referred to this as a "virus" threatening the region. He urged the Catholic Church in Africa to be a voice of reconciliation, justice and peace among the continent's various ethnic and religious groups.


Source:

The Associated Press

United Press International