To Marilyn Musgrave, Congresswoman from Colorado
Last night you told Larry King
and the billions
that I want to have sex
with animals, that I am
a polygamist, and this
is just to say
that the man I have married
in the privacy of our house
because my country won't have us
roaming the streets, fucking
every creature in sight
and sometimes trees
and you too if you don't
watch your behind Congress-
woman—this is just to say
that we are living
on Main Street U.S.A.
where Rohan will turn 41
in November, I'll be 44
in January, we have a cat
named Coltrane and have lived
together for five years, sleeping
together, in the same bed
almost every night
(and some afternoons),
and are not married to anyone
but each other. And since
we don't have sex with our cat,
or with any other animals,
or children for that matter,
we've put your words
on our fridge, to have
a laugh while reminding ourselves
what we’re up against:
Are you going to have
polygamy day?
Group marriage day?
—our gay fridge
that we'd marry if we could, with all
its gay eggs and, since Rohan
is vegetarian, lots of queer lettuce,
extra-fat cucumbers,
gallon of homo-
genized milk (organic of course).
And don't forget the fruit,
which won't confuse you
we hope.
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OPEN LETTER TO OKLAHOMA GOVERNOR HENRY REGARDING RACIST AND HOMOPHOBIC RHETORIC MADE BY OKLAHOMA REPRESENTATIVE SALLY KERN (LISTEN TO KERN'S FULL REMARKS HERE
KERN'S SPEECH)
April 9, 2008
Dear Governor Brad Henry, Representative Chris Benge, Senator Mike Morgan:
I am writing as a supporter of the Human Rights Campaign to express my concern about the deeply troubling remarks of Oklahoma Representative Sally Kern stating that homosexuality is “the biggest threat. . in our nation; even more so than terrorists, or Islam.”
I hope you will join the Human Rights Campaign, and the GLBT community of Oklahoma in condemning these remarks.
As an out, professional gay person who is concerned for the rights and dignity of all human beings, I am appalled at Representative Kern's anti-gay speech. It is total lack of concern for the dissemination of ideas like Rep. Kern's that create an environment in which lesbians and gay men are verbally, psychologically, and all too often physically violated. Words matter. As an elected official, Representative Kern's words and behavior set an example for the public. Regardless of her private feelings towards homosexuality and Islam, Ms. Kern should not use language that encourages disrespect or violence towards those with whom she disagrees. This is still a free country, in which people are able to practice religious beliefs other than that of Christianity, and in which people are free to live as they please provided they don't harm others. Rep. Kern is harming others and should be held accountable for her words. Hopefully, we as a society are not so blinded by political rhetoric that we fail to recognize the connections between the words and actions by our elected officials in the Oval Office, the Senate, the House of Representatives, the Supreme Court and the state legislatures, and what is actually happening in cities and towns across America.
On February 3, 2006 a teenager entered Puzzles Lounge in New Bedford, Massachusetts, verified that he was in a gay bar, then hit a man in the head with a hatchet and shot two other patrons. In September 2005 two men were found guilty of second degree murder for the death of Gwen Araujo, a transgender teenager. These men bound, bludgeoned, and strangled Araujo, then buried the body in a three-foot-deep grave in a remote area 120 miles east of San Francisco. In the summer of 2005 three men in Brooklyn, New York beat nearly to the point of death a gay man named Dwan Prince, who was taking out the trash when he was attacked. On January 28, 2006, a man who met men at gay bars, stabbed them to death, dismembered their bodies, then stuffed the parts in trashbags and left them along roadsides in New Jersey was sentenced to consecutive life sentences. And to add to these incidents of hate, Amnesty International released a 150-page report in September 2005 that states “there is a heightened pattern of misconduct and abuse” of GLBT people by the police. The report goes on to say that “[a]t times, the mere perception that someone is gay or lesbian provokes physical or verbal attacks.”
If one is concerned with the humane treatment of all citizens in our democracy, one has reason to ask about the possible causes of such acts of violence. We may see a pattern that stems from language, such as those of Rep. Kern, actions by Congress, and the effects of these words and actions on the lives of ordinary GLBT people.
Since 2005, countries as diverse as Canada, Ireland, Spain, South Africa, and England joined Holland, Norway and Sweden in granting dignity to their GLBT citizens. Here, in a country considered the bastion of democratic values, we struggle with even the most basic of human rights for our GLTB citizens--and we are subjected to demoralizing verbal abuse such as the variety displayed by Rep. Kern. It's time to recognize the direct link between hate rhetoric, such as Representative Kern's statement that homosexuality is "the biggest threat our nation has, even more so than terrorism or Islam," or Representative Marilyn Musgrave’s comparison of GLBT relationships to polygamy and bestiality on Larry King Live a few years ago, and the demonization of GLBT citizens. It's time that we made connections between anti-gay evangelical propaganda by the likes of the Repent America, who demonstrate with signs such as “fornicators, thieves, God haters, and homos prepare to meet thy God,” and the injury and maiming done to GLBT people daily in our democratic streets. It's time, Governor Henry, Representative Benge, and Senator Morgan, that we underscore the linear relationship between legislation proposed by elected officials, such as the President, some members of Congress and some governors, and the terrorizing and murder of GLBT people of every age group and racial demographic. You can make be models of integrity and do what is morally right.
Representative Kern's statements are especially troubling given the recent spate of hate violence against gay and transgender youth. As the top elected officials of the state of Oklahoma, you are charged with the safety and well being of all your citizens. I urge you to take a stand against Representative Kern's hate-filled rhetoric and publicly condemn her anti-gay, anti-Islamic remarks.
Sincerely,
Richard Tayson
Governor Brad Henry
440 S. Houston, Ste. 304
Tulsa, OK 74127
Telephone: (918) 581-2801
Fax: (918) 581-2835
Representative Chris Benge
2300 N. Lincoln Blvd.
Room 432-D
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
(405) 557-7340
chrisbenge@okhouse.gov
Senator Mike Morgan
2300 N. Lincoln Blvd., Rm. 422
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
(405) 521-5565
bard@oksenate.gov
Representative Sally Kern
2300 N. Lincoln Blvd.
Room 332
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
(405) 557-7348
sallykern@okhouse.gov
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