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Polygamy, Mass Murder, and the End of Capitalism: The Top Ten Religious Right Claims on the Consequences of Marriage Equality

As the Supreme Court considers cases that could lead to sweeping changes for same-sex couples and as state after state passes marriage equality legislation, here’s a look at Right Wing Watch’s collection of recent claims from the Religious Right on marriage equality. Relying on wild predications and outright lies, right-wing opponents contend that marriage for same-sex couples will lead to everything from “the murder of the masses” to Christians being forced underground. 

Here are highlights of Right Wing Watch’s recent reporting on right-wing opposition to marriage equality:

10. Glenn Stanton: Same-Sex Marriage is a ‘Pernicious Lie of Satan’ that Imperils Society and Humanity (February 2013)

Glenn Stanton of Focus on the Family asserted that homosexuality “is a really pernicious lie of Satan” because it denies “the distinct God imaging in each of us as males and females.” He went on to warn that gay equality leads to the “persecution” of Christians and will “redefine not only marriage but the family itself if not humanity completely.”

Read the full article here.

9. Harry Jackson: ‘Polygamy and Many Other Forms of Marriage’ Will ‘Automatically Sweep the Land’ if Same-Sex Marriage Is Legal (March 2013)

Pastor Harry Jackson said conservatives can win their fight against marriage equality if they succeed in convincing Americans about gay marriage’s dire consequences, such as the “automatic” legalization of polygamy.  “If same-sex marriage is allowed to be mandated by fiat,” Jackson warned, “then right behind it, polygamy and many other forms of marriage will automatically sweep the land within just a matter of a few years.”

Read the full article here.

8. Erik Rush: Same-Sex Marriage Is an ‘Anti-Theistic, Christophobic Design of the Radical Left’ (March 2013)

WorldNetDaily columnist Erik Rush argued that gay rights advocates have a “venomous hatred for everything smacking of Christianity” and that same-sex marriage is part of “the anti-theistic, Christophobic design of the radical left,” which Rush claims will bring about “societal dissolution.”

Read the full article here.

7. Sandy Rios: Gay Marriage Brings about the ‘Rape of Our Children's Innocence’ (November 2012)

Sandy Rios of the American Family Association argued that marriage equality will lead to “explicit instruction in public schools” and the “rape of our children’s innocence.”

Read the full article here.

6. Matthew Hagee: Gay Marriage Will Be ‘The Death of Capitalism’ (March 2013)

On “Hagee Hotline,” Pastor Matthew Hagee warned that legalizing gay marriage would spell “the death of capitalism.”

“The only relationship in natural law that can produce consumers,” Hagee declared, “is the relationship between a man and a woman.”

Read the full article here.

5. Jim Garlow: Christians Will be ‘Forced Underground’ if Court Affirms Marriage Equality (March 2013)

Pastor Jim Garlow warned that if the Supreme Court affirms marriage equality, Christians will be “forced underground. Their buildings will be taken away from them, many of their rights will be taken away from them.”

Read the full article here.

4. Tony Perkins: If SCOTUS Legalizes Gay Marriage, it Could Lead to ‘Revolution’ (November 2012)

Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council declared that if the Supreme Court legalizes same-sex marriage, Christian conservatives will never accept it because they know that “it’s unnatural for two men to be married.”   If the Court strikes down the anti-gay marriage amendments passed by various states, Perkins warned that it could lead to “revolution” and “just break this nation apart.”

Read the full article here.

3. Southern Baptist Leader Fred Luter Links North Korean Threats to Gay Marriage, Boy Scouts (March 2013)

Fred Luter, the president of the Southern Baptist Convention: “I would not be surprised that at the time when we are debating same-sex marriage, at a time when we are debating whether or not we should have gays leading the Boy Scout movement, I don’t think it’s just a coincidence that we have a mad man in Asia who is saying some of the things that he’s saying.”

Read the full article here.

2. Mat Staver: Supreme Court Could Spark Second Revolution and Civil War over Marriage Equality (December 2012)

According to Liberty Counsel head Mat Staver, if the Supreme Court rules in favor of marriage equality, America may head toward outright revolt and a second civil war.

“This would be more devastating to our freedom, to our religious freedom, to the rights of pastors and their duty to be able to speak and to Christians around the country, than anything that the revolutionaries during the American Revolution even dreamed of facing,” Staver said. “This could cause another civil war.”

Read the full article here.

1. Alan Keyes: Gay Marriage Will Lead to Communism and ‘The Murder of the Masses’ (April 2013)

Former ambassador and perennial presidential candidate Alan Keyes maintained that if the government goes against divine law and legalizes same-sex marriage then the state will have limitless power, ultimately becoming a Communist regime that will authorize “the expropriation of all property” and “the murder of the masses.”

Read the full article here.

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Response to GOP Win In Massachusetts Should Be Renewed Focus on Values—Ours and Theirs

In Massachusetts last night, candidate Scott Brown defeated Martha Coakley in the race to succeed Ted Kennedy in the United States Senate. In response, People For the American Way President Michael B. Keegan called for progressives to respond with a renewed focus on shared values.

Huckabee and Five Members of Congress Attended Radical Right Wing Conference

Why did five members of Congress and Mike Huckabee attend the How to Take Back America Conference with Right Wing extremists?

Congressman Joe Wilson: The Tip of the Right Wing Iceberg

In response to Congressman Joe Wilson’s (R-S.C.) disruption of the President’s address to Congress last night, People For the American Way President Michael B. Keegan issued the following statement:

“Representative Wilson’s behavior last night was inappropriate and deeply disrespectful of the President, the Congress, and the millions of Americans who want to hear a reasoned discussion of health care reform.  Mr. Wilson was right to apologize, and GOP leaders who spoke out were right to distance themselves from his behavior."

Why Did the GOP Choose a "Birther" to Deliver Health Care Address Rebuttal?

Media reports today revealed that Congressman Charles Boustany (R-LA), the GOP's choice to deliver a rebuttal to President Obama's address to Congress tonight, promoted misinformation about the President's birthplace. When asked about the President's citizenship, Rep. Boustany at one time claimed "I think there are questions. We'll have to see." He later distanced himself from those remarks.

Harry Jackson: Point Man for the Wedge Strategy

A report by People for the American Way Foundation examining the political activities of Bishop Harry Jackson, who has emerged as the leading African American voice of the Religious Right political movement.

The Human Toll: How Individual Americans Have Fared at the Hands of Bush Judges

People For the American Way Foundation has documented in a series of reports the damage that Bush nominated judges have done to the Constitution — and to Americans' ability to seek and expect justice in the federal courts when challenging unlawful treatment by corporations, government agencies, and other powerful entities. This report looks at a selection of cases with an eye to the human cost of a federal judiciary dominated by an ideology that is all too willing to sacrifice individual rights and legal protections.

Dobson Uses Bible as Political Weapon

James Dobson accused Senator Barack Obama of distorting the Bible and of pushing a "fruitcake interpretation" of the Constitution.

Hagee: Too Toxic for McCain, but Still Loved by Lieberman?

Televangelist John Hagee and Senator John McCain mutually unendorsed each other last week as ongoing exposure of Hagee’s extremism became a burden to McCain’s campaign. But as Max Blumenthal points out, Sen. Joe Lieberman, one of McCain’s closest campaign advisors, is scheduled to be a keynote speaker at the July summit of Hagee’s Christians United for Israel. Lieberman has previously compared Hagee to Moses.

McCain Rejects Pastors, Still Seeks Their Followers' Support

Following John McCain’s rejection of the endorsements he sought from pastors Rod Parsley and John Hagee, People For the American Way President Kathryn Kolbert said, “John McCain may think he solved a problem when he finally rejected the endorsements of John Hagee and Rod Parsley and their bizarre, hate-mongering, rhetoric. He’s got a bigger problem now.”

Ralph Reed: The Crash of the Choir-Boy Wonder

Religious Right power-broker Ralph Reed’s first bid for elected office crashed and burned July 18 week amid the stench of the Jack Abramoff corruption scandal. The former Christian Coalition front man’s hard-nosed and duplicitous tactics, which had catapulted him to right-wing political stardom, ultimately became his undoing. People For the American Way Foundation traces the rise and fall of the political wunderkind, who once said “I want to be invisible. I do guerilla warfare. I paint my face and travel at night. You don’t know it’s over until you’re in a body bag.”

Voucher Veneer: The Deeper Agenda to Privatize Public Education

Today, governmental responsibilities in education and the strong connection that
Americans have with their public schools are being put to a serious test. A network of Religious Right groups, free-market economists, ultraconservative columnists and others are using vouchers as a vehicle to achieve their ultimate goal of privatizing education.

The Federalist Society: From Obscurity to Power

Most Americans know very little about--or have even heard of--the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies. Yet the Society has assumed a leading role in shaping the Bush administration's legal policies and judicial nominees. This report released August 1 by People For the American Way Foundation (PFAWF) provides much-needed information and insight on the organization.

The Case Against the Confirmation of John Ashcroft As Attorney General of the United States: Part II

An examination of John Ashcroft's record as Governor and Attorney General of the state of Missouri.

"Parental Rights"

"Parental Rights" is a phrase often used to mask a right-wing agenda to undermine the rights of children.

Teaching Fear

Sexuality education has been one of the primary sources of controversy in the public schools for almost thirty years. The debate over this issue is particularly heated now, in a time when teen pregnancy rates are persistently high and the HIV/AIDS epidemic is having a devastating impact on young people. This debate centers on one crucial question: whether providing young people with full and accurate information makes them more or less likely to engage in sexual activity.

Evolution and Creationism in Public Education

An In-depth Reading Of Public Opinion

Results of a comprehensive, national survey on the teaching of creationism in public schools.

Sabotaging Science: Creationist Strategies in the '90's

This report examines the increasingly sophisticated strategies that creationists use in an effort to inject their ideas into public school science curricula

Anti-Gay Politics and the Religious Right

An analysis of the Religious Right's anti-gay policies and activities, leading up to the Christian Coalition's 1998 Road to Victory Conference.

The Case Against the Confirmation of John Ashcroft as Attorney General of the United States: PART I

On January 4, People For the American Way published an overview of John Ashcroft's six-year record in the United States Senate. The report shows clearly that John Ashcroft does not meet the high standards of fairness and integrity required of the Attorney General. He has not demonstrated a sufficient commitment to equal justice under the law to be entrusted with upholding the Constitution and our nation's civil rights laws.

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