“Gary Glenn, president of the American Family Association of Michigan, is concerned that the ‘Hate Crimes Act’ signed into law last year will be used to prosecute those who speak in favor of traditional Biblical morality. …He encourages boldness. ‘Don’t be intimidated,’ he counsels. ‘Continue to speak Biblical truth; continue to tell people that marriage is and always has been between one man and one woman — that’s what’s best for society, best for children. And stand up against these continuing restrictions on the exercise of free speech.’”

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ONE NEWS NOW
Tupelo, Mississippi
February 15, 2010

Speak the truth, defend your rights
by Bill Bumpas

A pro-family advocate in Michigan says he’s honored to be on the front lines in fighting for First Amendment rights to speak out against homosexuality.

Gary Glenn, president of the American Family Association of Michigan, is concerned that the “Hate Crimes Act” signed into law last year will be used to prosecute those who speak in favor of traditional biblical morality. He cites a personal example.

“Several years ago Cardinal Adam Maida of Detroit and I were personally accused by the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force in a news release of being responsible for inciting the alleged beating death of a 72-year-old homosexual man in Detroit, merely because we had actively supported Michigan’s Marriage Protection Amendment reaffirming marriage as only between a man and a woman,” he remarks.

Glenn says aside from the fact that officials found that there was no assault and the man died of natural causes, it illustrates the point that preachers of biblical truth are being targeted. He encourages boldness.

“Don’t be intimidated,” he counsels. “Continue to speak biblical truth; continue to tell people that marriage is and always has been between one man and one woman — that’s what’s best for society, best for children. And stand up against these continuing restrictions on the exercise of free speech.”

Glenn and three Michigan pastors recently challenged the constitutionality of the Hate Crimes Act by filing a lawsuit against U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. Their attorney argues the law violates his clients’ rights to freedom of speech, expressive association, and free exercise of religion as protected under the First Amendment.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=895582
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HOLY BULLIES AND HEADLESS MONSTERS
(homosexual activist website)
Columbia, South Carolina
February 15, 2010

Hypocrisy of the day — Gary Glenn (again)

Gary Glenn of the American Family Association of Michigan got a little press from the right-wing One News Now today:

…Gary Glenn, president of the American Family Association of Michigan, is concerned that the “Hate Crimes Act” signed into law last year will be used to prosecute those who speak in favor of traditional biblical morality. He cites a personal example.

“Several years ago Cardinal Adam Maida of Detroit and I were personally accused by the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force in a news release of being responsible for inciting the alleged beating death of a 72-year-old homosexual man in Detroit, merely because we had actively supported Michigan’s Marriage Protection Amendment reaffirming marriage as only between a man and a woman,” he remarks.

Glenn says aside from the fact that officials found that there was no assault and the man died of natural causes, it illustrates the point that preachers of biblical truth are being targeted…

Glenn is speaking of the case of 72-year-old Andrew Anthos, who died mysteriously in 2007. Anthos, shortly before his death, had told family members that he was attacked because of his sexual orientation. However, the police and medical examiners concluded that his death was the result of a fall and there was no evidence that he was attacked.

But Glenn plays a little loose with the facts regarding the Gay and Lesbian Task Force letter. This is what it said:

“For years, Michigan has been subjected to the homophobic rants of Gary Glenn of the American Family Association of Michigan, while so many otherwise good and decent people have been silent. Just two years ago, the state endured an ugly campaign, led by Cardinal Adam Maida, to ‘protect marriage’ by writing anti-gay discrimination into its constitution. Based on that amendment, a three-judge panel of Michigan’s court of appeals voted last month to terminate medical insurance coverage for families of LGBT government workers throughout the state.

So while the letter did somewhat link him to Anthos’s death (which was probably unfair), Glenn really has no right to plead total innocence here. He wasn’t “merely standing up for marriage.” The letter speaks to his long history of vilifying the lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender community.

Like in 2006 when he spoke against gay/straight alliances in public schools because according to him, they “promote risky behavior,”

Or when he opposed anti-discrimination policies on the assumption that they would make bathrooms co-ed,

Or when he opposed anti-bullying legislation because according to him, it “promoted the homosexual agenda.”

Or that ridiculous lawsuit he has help to launch against hate crimes legislation, legislation which does nothing to punish anyone for speech unless that speech is advocating violence,

Or last week when he declared that there should criminal sanctions against “homosexual behavior.” The discussion that he had with me afterwards in which he tried to justify his words only spoke to his desire to further stigmatize the lgbt community even to the point of using information designed to help us as a weapon against us.

And that’s the huge hypocrisy of folks like Glenn. They claim that they are being attacked for merely standing up for “Christian values,” and it’s a good lie they tell as long as no one is made aware of how low they stoop to defend their idea of morality.

http://holybulliesandheadlessmonsters.blogspot.com/2010/02/hypocrisy-of-day-gary-glenn-again.html
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“Gary Glenn, president of the Midland-based American Family Association of Michigan, wants the issue to be front and center in the race. ‘There are … serious implications for women’s privacy rights and comfort, since women and girls would legally be forced to share public restrooms, showers, locker rooms and changing areas with men who, if challenged, can present an official government ID “proving” their claim to be women,’ he says.”

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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Detroit, Michigan
February 13, 2010

Michigan Secretary of State candidates make gender an issue?
Gender designation on driver’s license discussed

by Mike Householder

DETROIT (AP) — People in Michigan make changes to their driver’s licenses all the time. They get a new picture, switch addresses or become an organ donor.

What’s much less common is changing their gender designation from an “M” to an “F” or vice versa.

Republican Paul Scott is trying to make gender designation an issue in the race to replace term-limited Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land. The state representative from Grand Blanc says people who have undergone gender change operations shouldn’t be able to change their licenses to reflect their new identities.

He brought up the issue in a letter announcing he was jumping into the race for the GOP secretary of state nomination.

Scott, state senators Michelle McManus and Cameron Brown and Calhoun County Clerk Anne Norlander are running for the GOP nomination, while Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey and Wayne State University law professor Jocelyn Benson are seeking the Democratic one. Party activists will formally nominate their candidates in late August.

Scott’s letter has drawn a variety of responses, from ire on the part of transgender advocacy groups to praise by conservative activists.

Some are wondering why it’s an issue at all. Gender change requests for driver’s licenses are rare, and the secretary of state’s office doesn’t track them, says spokeswoman Kelly Chesney. Arlene Kish and Tina Seitz say the issue is personal, not political. Both were born men and have undergone sex change surgery.

Kish, a 59-year-old business owner from Southgate, had the procedure done last month and soon after had her driver’s license changed to reflect that she now is a woman. She took a signed document from her surgeon to a secretary of state branch to back up her request.

When she heard Scott was making an issue out of what’s already a standard practice, she was outraged. “It’s very disturbing, because we’re such a small segment of the population,” she says.

Seitz, who also lives in the Detroit area, had sex-change surgery 2 1/2 years ago and also had her driver’s license updated.

“I think that it should not be one of the major issues of a campaign,” says Seitz, a 52-year-old engineer. “I think that it’s ridiculous to single out any group of people where it affects so few people and call that a major campaign issue.”

State policy says a person’s gender designation on a driver’s license can be changed only when the person provides a court order or doctor’s statement certifying that the applicant has completed the medical treatments necessary to switch their gender.

The long-standing policy was briefly modified five years ago before Land ordered that it be changed back to be consistent with the approach taken by other state government departments.

Scott says he “didn’t raise (the issue). Secretary Land raised it when she temporarily changed the policy in 2005. “In his announcement letter, though, Scott writes: “I will make it a priority to ensure transgender individuals will not be allowed to change the sex on their driver’s license in any circumstance.”

Scott, a first-term lawmaker, doesn’t consider raising the issue a political ploy. “My personal belief is you are who your DNA says you are, regardless of what surgical procedures you may have thereafter,” he says.

William Rustem of Public Sector Consultants, a Lansing think tank, says Scott may have found a way to distinguish himself from his three GOP rivals.

“It’s an issue that divides, and it certainly could help him get a nomination,” Rustem says. “It’s a political strategy to grab a hold of the most conservative voters and say, `They’re mine.”‘

Some of Scott’s competitors see the issue as being too narrow to be of much consequence.

“It happens very, very infrequently” and “is not at the top of my agenda,” Republican Norlander says. Benson, a Democrat, doesn’t believe the issue has a place in the campaign.

“I don’t think it’s the government’s role to get in between an individual and their choice of gender expression,” she says. It’s “being used solely to throw divisiveness into a campaign that should be about how to make government work better for all our citizens.”

But Gary Glenn, president of the Midland-based American Family Association of Michigan, wants the issue to be front and center in the race.

“There are … serious implications for women’s privacy rights and comfort, since women and girls would legally be forced to share public restrooms, showers, locker rooms and changing areas with men who, if challenged, can present an official government ID `proving’ their claim to be women,” he says.

Kish just wants to see the issue go away. “I’m not sure exactly why it’s an issue for them, except that they’re just ignorant of our situation,” she says.

http://www.woodtv.com/dpp/news/local/capitol_region/MI_SOS_candidates_make_gender_an_issue
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NEW YORK TIMES
New York, New York
January 28, 2010

Many successful (homosexual) marriages share an open secret
by Scott James

“As the trial phase of the constitutional battle to overturn (California’s) ban on same-sex marriage concludes in federal court, (homosexual) nuptials are portrayed by opponents as an effort to rewrite the traditional rules of matrimony. Quietly, outside of the news media and courtroom spotlight, many (homosexual) couples are doing just that, according to groundbreaking new research.

A study to be released next month…reveals that monogamy is not a central feature for many. Some (homosexual) men and lesbians argue that, as a result, they have stronger, longer-lasting and more honest relationships. And while that may sound counterintuitive, some experts say boundary-challenging (homosexual) relationships represent an evolution in marriage — one that might point the way for the survival of the institution.

New research at San Francisco State University reveals just how common open relationships are among (homosexual) men and lesbians in the Bay Area. The Gay Couples Study has followed 556 male couples for three years — about 50 percent of those surveyed have sex outside their relationships, with the knowledge and approval of their partners. …’With straight people, it’s called affairs or cheating,’ said Colleen Hoff, the study’s principal investigator, ‘but with gay people it does not have such negative connotations.’

…None of this is news in the (homosexual) community, but few will speak publicly about it. …They (worry) that discussing the subject could undermine the legal fight for same-sex marriage.

‘The traditional American marriage is in crisis, and we need insight,’ (Joe Quirk, author of the best-selling relationship book ‘It’s Not You, It’s Biology’) said, citing the fresh perspective (homosexual) couples bring to matrimony. ‘If innovation in marriage is going to occur, it will be spearheaded by homosexual marriages.’”

Read the full New York Times story here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/us/29sfmetro.html
__________________________________________________

“The filing is being hailed by Gary Glenn, head of the American Family Association of Michigan and a co-author of the (Marriage Protection) amendment. ‘After breaking the law for five years, (Coalition for a Fair Michigan treasurer Rick) Wallace has finally relented and allowed Michigan voters a right they’re supposed to be guaranteed by law on a timely basis: the ability to see for themselves which of their local politicians, public school teachers, university professors, businesses and individuals financially contributed to the campaign that opposed constitutionally protecting marriage between one man and one woman,’ Glenn said.”

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BETWEEN THE LINES
(homosexual activist newsmagazine)
Detroit, Michigan
February 11, 2010

Coalition for a Fair Michigan finally files
Anti-Prop. 2 campaign faced charges after 2004 disclosure reports were withheld

by Between the Lines staff

The Coalition for a Fair Michigan has filed the campaign disclosure reports from the 2004 battle over Proposal 2, which amended the state’s constitution to ban same-sex marriage. The files were supposed to have been submitted following the November 2004 campaign, but records from the Secretary of State’s office show the reports were filed Jan. 25 (last month).

The report shows the group raised nearly $800,000 in an ultimately unsuccessful battle to urge state voters to reject an amendment that would define marriage as between one man and one woman. That measure passed in 2004.

Secretary of State documents also show that Coalition treasurer Richard Wallace of Royal Oak was sent multiple warnings by election officials, and finally was threatened with criminal prosecution by the Office of Attorney General Mike Cox. The number for Wallace listed on campaign disclosure documents has been disconnected.

The filing is being hailed by Gary Glenn, head of the American Family Association of Michigan and a co-author of the amendment.

“After breaking the law for five years, Mr. Wallace has finally relented and allowed Michigan voters a right they’re supposed to be guaranteed by law on a timely basis: the ability to see for themselves which of their local politicians, public school teachers, university professors, businesses and individuals financially contributed to the campaign that opposed constitutionally protecting marriage between one man and one woman,” Glenn said.

Who has donated to either side of the same-sex marriage debate has become a heated issue. In California, supporters of the controversial Proposal 8, which banned same-sex marriage after that state’s supreme court approved it, have gone to court seeking to keep the names of donors private. They claim doing so is to protect the safety of those donors.

“As a rule, I’ve supported and even championed the spirit of public disclosure and the people’s right to know, though a court may find that the widespread hate and intimidation tactics by homosexual activists against individuals who supported California’s Marriage Protection Amendment warrants an exception,” Glenn said of the issue as it applied to the Prop. 8 proceedings. “In any case, the same rules should apply to both sides of any issue. If disclosure is required, it should apply to both sides. If an exception is made to protect public safety, that should apply to both sides.”

Glenn was, however, quick to point out that this was not the case here in Michigan. The Coalition, he said, “thumbed their nose at the letter and the spirit of the law.”

http://www.pridesource.com/article.html?article=40012
__________________________________________________

ACLU-Michigan threatened to sue when a Lansing health club refused
to allow the man on the left to use the women’s shower and locker room.
Former Spring Arbor University dean and Baptist pastor John (now Julie)
Nemecek, right, is executive director of Michigan Equality, a homosexual
activist group headquartered in Lansing.

“The ACLU has for years tried to pressure the Secretary of State to officially certify a ‘transgender’ male who has not had so-called ’sex change’ surgery as ‘female.’ The ACLU succeeded, temporarily, when the Secretary of State’s office announced in 2005 that it would adopt such a policy change. Three weeks later, Secretary Land reversed the change, reverting back to the previous and still standing policy that the sex designation would be changed only after such surgery. Even that policy begs the question of whether a surgically-mutilated man whose DNA proves he’s male should be officially certified ‘female.’

There are also serious implications for women’s privacy rights and comfort, since women and girls would legally be forced to share public restrooms, showers, locker rooms and changing areas with men who — if challenged — can present an official government I.D. ‘proving’ their claim to be women. …Citizens should be able to trust that the Secretary of State will tell the truth and will not — by falsifying identifying characteristics on an official government I.D. — facilitate and enable identity theft, use of false I.D.s, or violation of the privacy rights of women and children.”

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FLINT JOURNAL
Flint, Michigan
February 11, 2010

Another View

Rep. Scott didn’t pull transgender statement out
of thin air; ACLU has campaigned for official IDs

by Gary Glenn

Critics have rushed to condemn Republican Secretary of State candidate Rep. Paul Scott’s pledge to ensure that our state government fulfills its public trust to always tell the truth — including when a man who claims to believe he’s a woman wants the government to enable that disorder by changing the sex on his driver’s license.

Having the state officially certify delusions associated with a “gender identity disorder” as if they’re documentable fact is a high enough priority for some, apparently, that they feel compelled to attack anyone who says the government should simply tell the truth instead.

In an era of heightened sensitivity about identity theft and terrorists using fake I.D.s, the issue is not how often the state might be asked by individuals suffering such disorders to falsify a government record, but whether our government under any circumstance should certify identifying characteristics on an official I.D. as anything other than what they truthfully are.

Perhaps critics who pretend Rep. Scott pulled this issue out of thin air don’t want you to know that the ACLU has for years tried to pressure the Secretary of State to officially certify a “transgender” male who has not had so-called “sex change” surgery as “female.”

The ACLU succeeded, temporarily, when the Secretary of State’s office announced in 2005 that it would adopt such a policy change. Three weeks later, Secretary Land reversed the change, reverting back to the previous and still standing policy that the sex designation would be changed only after such surgery. Even that policy begs the question of whether a surgically-mutilated man whose DNA proves he’s male should be officially certified “female.”

There are also serious implications for women’s privacy rights and comfort, since women and girls would legally be forced to share public restrooms, showers, locker rooms and changing areas with men who — if challenged — can present an official government I.D. “proving” their claim to be women.

The next Secretary of State will be pressured by the ACLU and homosexual and “transgender” activists to again adopt such a policy, this time permanently.

AFA-Michigan’s position is simple: While we as individuals should compassionately sympathize with the difficulties experienced by others in some cases, government certifying agencies must dispassionately deal in reality and truth in all cases.

Citizens should be able to trust that the Secretary of State will tell the truth and will not — by falsifying identifying characteristics on an official government I.D. — facilitate and enable identity theft, use of false I.D.s, or violation of the privacy rights of women and children.

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Gary Glenn, Midland, is president of the American Family Association of Michigan, online at www.AFAMichigan.org.

http://www.mlive.com/opinion/flint/index.ssf/2010/02/rep_scott_didnt_pull_transgend.html
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CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO: http://www.connectmidmichigan.com/news/video.aspx?id=414337

“Gary Glenn, the president of the American Family Association of Michigan, along with the pastor of First Baptist Church in Bridgeport Township, and two metro Detroit pastors, say under the Federal Hate Crimes Act, people who speak out against homosexuality could be prosecuted as accessories to crimes against them. …Glenn says, ‘We would join anyone else in condemning acts of violence against anyone, including people involved in the homosexual lifestyle, but a pastor should remain free in this country to express his sincerely held religious views without having to fear prosecution as a criminal accessory if someone involved in the homosexual lifestyle is a victim of violence.’”

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WEYI-TV (NBC) Channel 25
Flint, Michigan
February 10, 2010

Homosexual activists weigh in on Hate Crimes lawsuit
by Dan Armstrong

The hate crimes lawsuit story NBC did Monday has lit up connectmidmichigan.com.

More than 8,000 people have clicked on the story, hundreds have voted on the online poll, and dozens have left comments.
It’s about a local group of religious leaders that are challenging the federal hate crimes act.

Now, supporters of the hate crimes act are weighing in.

Gary Glenn, the president of the American Family Association of Michigan, along with the pastor of First Baptist Church in Bridgeport Township, and two metro Detroit pastors, say under the Federal Hate Crimes Act, people who speak out against homosexuality could be prosecuted as accessories to crimes against them.

However, homosexual activists and supporters of the hate crimes act disagree.

Alicia Skillman, Executive Director of the Triangle Foundation in Detroit, says “I think the complaint is a smokescreen, and it takes people away from the real issue. I believe the government did the right thing by protecting gay people from those physical acts of violence and those physical acts of hate.”

Gary Glenn says, “We would join anyone else in condemning acts of violence against anyone, including people involved in the homosexual lifestyle, but a pastor should remain free in this country to express his sincerely held religious views without having to fear prosecution as a criminal accessory if someone involved in the homosexual lifestyle is a victim of violence.”

PFLAG (Parents, Family, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) of the Tri-CIties says “Hate crimes legislation is about actions, not words. The hate crimes legislation that has passed on the federal level includes clear and concise protections for free speech.”

Homosexual advocates NBC25 spoke with say pastors will not be prosecuted based on their views of homosexuality.
Skillman says, “There have been no instances reported of this happening. I believe they’re just trying to incite hate, but the real issue is that people are now protected from physical acts of violence and hate.”

Plaintiffs in the case say they’re not acting out of hate. They say they condemn the beliefs and actions of those who claim God hates homosexuals.

Homosexual advocates say additional laws need to be establish to protect gays in Michigan from discrimination. They say there are no state laws that protect homosexuals from being fired from their jobs and being denied housing.

http://www.connectmidmichigan.com/news/story.aspx?id=414337
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AFA-Michigan President Gary Glenn, right, during an interview Monday
with WEYI-TV Channel 25 (Flint) reporter Dan Armstrong.
Click to watch video: http://www.connectmidmichigan.com/news/video.aspx?id=413343

“A 2005 Saginaw News article quotes Jeffrey Montgomery, the executive director of the Triangle Foundation, a homosexual activist group in Detroit, as saying crimes against homosexuals are on the rise. He says: ‘The vocal anti-gay activists should be held accountable as accessories to these crimes because, many times, it is their rhetoric that led the perpetrators to believe that their crimes are O.K.’

Gary Glenn is the president of the American Family Association of Michigan. He says, ‘We filed a lawsuit to protect religious free speech rights of individuals who want to continue to speak out for their religious values.’ …Glenn says, ‘Everybody should be protected from violence, but everybody should also be free to express their religious or political views without fear of prosecution by people who want to silence those who disagree with the homosexual political agenda.’ He says, ‘Under this so called hate crimes law, a criminal that attacks a pregnant woman, or a child, or a senior citizen would be punished less severely than someone who attacks a grown man, if that grown man is involved in the homosexual lifestyle. That’s not equality under the law.’”

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WEYI-TV (NBC Channel 25)
Flint, Michigan
February 8, 2010

Mid-Michigan religious leaders challenge hate crimes law
by Dan Armstrong

Some MidMichigan religious leaders say a new law limits their liberty.
The president of the American Family Association of Michigan in Midland, along with a Bridgeport Township pastor, say the hate crimes act is unconstitutional and prohibits their right of free speech.

They say, the law could be used against them for saying homosexuality is a sin.

Gary Glenn is the president of the American Family Association of Michigan. He says, “We filed a lawsuit to protect religious free speech rights of individuals who want to continue to speak out for their religious values.”

The lawsuit was filed through the Thomas More Law Center in Ann Arbor. It lists Gary Glenn, the pastor of First Baptist Church of Bridgeport Township Rene B. Ouellette, the pastor of Faith Baptist Church in Waterford Township Jim Combs, and the pastor of Bible Church in Ypsilanti Levon R. Yuille as plaintiffs and Eric Holder, U.S. Attorney General, as the defendant.

The plaintiffs say the hate crimes act is unconstitutional.

A 2005 Saginaw News article quotes Jeffrey Montgomery, the executive director of the Triangle Foundation, a homosexual activist group in Detroit, as saying crimes against homosexuals are on the rise. He says “The vocal anti-gay activists should be held accountable as accessories to these crimes because, many times, it is their rhetoric that led the perpetrators to believe that their crimes are O.K.”

Glenn says, “Everybody should be protected from violence, but everybody should also be free to express their religious or political views without fear of prosecution by people who want to silence those who disagree with the homosexual political agenda.”

The Triangle Foundation says, the reaction is out of anger and fear. It says positive images of gays on television shows, along with the issues of gay marriage and civil rights are getting fundamentalists worked up.

Glenn disagrees, he says the law prefers one group over another. He says, “Under this so called hate crimes law, a criminal that attacks a pregnant woman, or a child, or a senior citizen would be punished less severely than someone who attacks a grown man, if that grown man is involved in the homosexual lifestyle. That’s not equality under the law.”

It’s a debate of liberty and law to be decided in court.

The lawsuit was filed last Tuesday. The U.S. attorney general has 60-days to respond.

Click below to read the lawsuit.

Related Links
Hate Crimes Lawsuit
American Family Association of Michigan
Triangle Foundation
Thomas More Law Center

http://www.connectmidmichigan.com/news/story.aspx?id=413343
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AFA-Michigan president Gary Glenn, left, and Pastor Levon Yuille at the Secretary of State’s office in 2004 to help turn in the half-million signatures that placed the Marriage Protection Amendment on Michigan’s 2004 ballot.

“Pastor Levon Yuille of The Bible Church, outside Detroit, Michigan, joined three other ministry leaders in filing a lawsuit against U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. They are concerned, among other things, that under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, those who speak out against homosexuality could be prosecuted. …The lawsuit against Holder was filed last week by the Michigan-based Thomas More Law Center. Joining Yuille in the suit are Pastors Rene Ouellette and James Combs, and American Family Association of Michigan president Gary Glenn.”

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ONE NEWS NOW
Tupelo, Mississippi
February 8, 2010

Pastor comments on his ‘hate crimes’ lawsuit
by Bill Bumpas

A black pastor who is challenging the constitutionality of the recently enacted federal “Hate Crimes Act” says he’s offended by comparisons to the civil rights struggles of African-Americans with those who engage in homosexual behavior.

Pastor Levon Yuille of The Bible Church, outside Detroit, Michigan, joined three other ministry leaders in filing a lawsuit against U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. They are concerned, among other things, that under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, those who speak out against homosexuality could be prosecuted.

Yuille tells OneNewsNow that he also finds it insulting to equate the supposed “civil rights” struggle of homosexuals with the real civil rights struggle of African-Americans.

“I feel like individuals [are] demeaning the black community in trying to equate us to what someone chooses to do sexually,” Yuille remarks. “The totality of black people is far greater than what one would prefer to do in expressing themselves in the manner I’ve already stated.”

The Michigan pastor says the spotlight should be on how the HIV virus is devastating his community — women in particular. “I’m most certainly disheartened to see that there’s so little focus being placed on this issue relative to so many black men participating in heterosexual and homosexual behavior — and ultimately and regrettably a lot of black women contract AIDS through this type of behavior,” he shares.

Pastor Yuille says he is taking a stand for truth, and believes he is doing what is right from a biblical, social, and health perspective.

The lawsuit against Holder was filed last week by the Michigan-based Thomas More Law Center. Joining Yuille in the suit are Pastors Rene Ouellette and James Combs, and American Family Association of Michigan president Gary Glenn.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=888646
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Dear AFA-Michigan supporter,

Please watch this excellent news video regarding our lawsuit asking
that the new federal “hate crime” law be declared unconstitutional:

http://abclocal.go.com/wjrt/video?id=7261290

Pastor Ouellette does an outstanding job of explaining our position.

Thanks as always for your prayers and support!

Gary Glenn
AFA-Michigan

__________________________________________________

“‘Our point is that pastors and others (should not be) prosecuted as criminals for speaking out against homosexual behavior and the political agenda that promotes it,’ said Gary Glenn, a Midland resident and president of the American Family Association of Michigan. ‘It’s all about free speech,’ Glenn said. Glenn and three mid-Michigan ministers filed a civil rights suit challenging the constitutionality of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act that President Barack Obama signed in October.

…Glenn cited the 2007 death of Andrew Anthos of Detroit, allegedly a victim of hate crime violence due to his homosexuality. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force partially blamed Glenn’s anti-homosexual speeches for Anthos’s death. ‘We of course condemn violent acts of any kind, including those committed against those involved in homosexual acts,’ Glenn said. ‘We are protecting the right of individuals to express their views and values without having to fear criminal prosecution for doing so.’”

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BAY CITY TIMES
Bay City, Michigan
February 4, 2010

Midland man, Bridgeport minister say hate
crimes law could make sermons illegal

by LaNia Coleman | The Bay City Times

Opponents of a new federal hate crime law say the legislation could turn ministers into criminals.

“Our point is that pastors and others are not prosecuted as criminals for speaking out against homosexual behavior and the political agenda that promotes it,” said Gary Glenn, a Midland resident and president of the American Family Association of Michigan.

“It’s all about free speech,” Glenn said.

Glenn and three mid-Michigan ministers filed a civil rights suit challenging the constitutionality of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act that President Barack Obama signed in October.

The act makes it a federal offense to assault someone because of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity.

The civil rights lawsuit filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Bay City names U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. as the defendant.

Besides Glenn, the plaintiffs are The Revs. Rene B. Ouellette, senior pastor of the 7,000-member First Baptist Church in Bridgeport Township; Jim Combs, pastor of Faith Baptist Church in Waterford Township; and Levon R. Yuille, pastor of The Bible Church in Ypsilanti.

Ouellette said the ministers are concerned that the law has the potential to allow the government to prosecute ministers for the content of their sermons.

“We believe that the law will be used to stifle free speech and keep people from quoting scripture as it is written,” Ouellette said.
“We do not object to others exercising their free speech rights when they say things we disagree with. But there are those who don’t want us to have a right to say what we believe based on word of God.”

Bay City attorney Jason P. Gower said he doesn’t believe that is the intent of the law, but he understands the pastors’ concerns.
A lawyer could cite the law in arguing that a sermon incited violence.

“For example, they could say that, but for their speech from the pulpit, this person would never have gone out and killed someone,” Gower said. “I don’t think that’s the intent of the legislation, but it needs to be made clear.”

A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice says the law simply provides for an added measure of justice in cases of violence based on bias.

“The new federal hate crimes law protects Americans from perpetrators who turn prejudice into acts of violence,” said Alejandro Miyar, spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice. “Hate crimes seek to deny the humanity that we all share by victimizing whole communities. We will defend these vital protections in court.”

The plaintiffs’ attorney, Robert J. Muise of the Ann Arbor-based Thomas More Law Center, said they are challenging a specific provision of the act which provides for penalties and potentially criminalizes actions motivated by biases born out of religious beliefs.

“Basically, we want the court to rule (the law) is unconstitutional,” Muise said.

Glenn cited the 2007 death of Andrew Anthos of Detroit, allegedly a victim of hate crime violence due to his homosexuality. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force partially blamed Glenn’s anti-homosexual speeches for Anthos’s death.

“We of course condemn violent acts of any kind, including those committed against those involved in homosexual acts,” Glenn said. “We are protecting the right of individuals to express their views and values without having to fear criminal prosecution for doing so.”

Glenn is known across the United States for his public stand against gay rights activism.

He co-authored the 2004 Marriage Protection Amendment that defined marriage as between one man and one woman in the Michigan Constitution. Fifty-nine percent of voters approved the proposal.

He also has chaired the Campaign for Michigan Families political action committee. In 2008, Glenn raised sexual orientation as an issue when he campaigned against Democrat Garnet Lewis, an openly gay candidate for the 98th District seat representing Saginaw and Midland counties in the state House of Representatives, Bay City Times records show.

In 2007, he and his group protested Saginaw Valley State University’s production of “Angels in America: Part One,” a play dealing with the AIDS crisis. Glenn and his ilk objected to the frontal male nudity and use of the F-word, Times records show.

He has also opposed the use of public money to provide benefits to same-sex partners of state university employees.
In 2002, he led a charge against mid-Michigan hotels that provided pornographic movies on-demand.

He also has spoken against gay and unwed couples’ rights to adopt children.

Ouellette is the author of five books and several pamphlets and Bible tracts. His work, including sermons, often reflect his “strong public stand against homosexual activism,” court documents show.

“My position is we love people, whatever their sin,” Ouellette said. “All of us are sinners and God loves us just like we are. We can not, however, say that the sin is OK. And we want everyone to know the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Attorneys for Holder have 60 days to respond to the suit.

“It would not surprise me if they file a motion to dismiss,” Muise said.

http://www.mlive.com/news/bay-city/index.ssf/2010/02/midland_man_bridgeport_ministe.html
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“A team of Christian activists and pastors today filed a civil rights lawsuit against Attorney General Eric Holder over the ‘hate crimes’ law that President Obama…signed into law late in 2009 – alleging it violates their civil rights. The complaint states Christians now can become the target of federal investigations, grand juries and even charges for no more than opposing the activism of homosexuals who want…to halt any criticism of (their life choices). …It was filed today by the Thomas More Law Center…on behalf of Pastors Levon Yuille, Rene Ouellette, James Combs and Gary Glenn, who is the president of the American Family Association of Michigan.

The plaintiffs include those individuals who already have faced accusations by homosexual advocates that they bear responsibility for the actions of others for no other reason than their agreement with biblical condemnations of homosexuality. The lawsuit cited the death of Andrew Anthos, a 72-year-old Detroit man allegedly the victim of a ‘hate crime’ because of his ’sexual orientation.’ In that case, the executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force ‘blamed …plaintiff Glenn’s ‘homophobic rants’ for causing (Anthos’) death.’ Anthos also was cited by Sen. Carl Levin as evidence of the need to extend federal ‘hate crimes’ legislation to include ’sexual orientation’ as a protected classification. But the lawsuit said police and a medical examiner determined that Anthos died of natural causes.”

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WORLD NET DAILY
Cave Junction, Oregon
February 2, 2010

Obama ‘hate crimes’ in lawsuit bull’s-eye
Pastors sue Holder, contend provisions violate civil rights

by Bob Unruh
A team of Christian activists and pastors today filed a civil rights lawsuit against Attorney General Eric Holder over the “hate crimes” law that President Obama sought – and signed into law late in 2009 – alleging it violates their civil rights.

The complaint states Christians now can become the target of federal investigations, grand juries and even charges for no more than opposing the activism of homosexuals who want not only public endorsement of their life choices, but to halt any criticism of those decisions.

“On account of … the Hate Crimes Act, plaintiffs are targets for government scrutiny, questioning, investigation, surveillance, and other adverse law enforcement actions and thus seek judicial reassurance that they can freely participate in their speech and related religious activities without being investigated or prosecuted by the government or becoming part of official records because of their Christian beliefs,” the lawsuit explains.

It was filed today by the Thomas More Law Center in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan on behalf of Pastors Levon Yuille, Rene Ouellette, James Combs and Gary Glenn, who is the president of the American Family Association of Michigan.

The plaintiffs include those individuals who already have faced accusations by homosexual advocates that they bear responsibility for the actions of others for no other reason than their agreement with biblical condemnations of homosexuality.

The lawsuit cited the death of Andrew Anthos, a 72-year-old Detroit man allegedly the victim of a “hate crime” because of his “sexual orientation.” In that case, the executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force “blamed … Plaintiff Glenn’s ‘homophobic rants’ for causing his death.”

According to the lawsuit, the homosexual activist said, “It is appalling hypocrisy for these forces to pretend that their venomous words and organizing have no connection to the plague of hate violence against gay people, including the murder of Mr. Anthos.”
Anthos also was cited by Sen. Carl Levin as evidence of the need to extend federal “hate crimes” legislation to include “sexual orientation” as a protected classification.

But the lawsuit said police and a medical examiner determined that Anthos died of natural causes.

The complaint also said, “The former director of policy for the Triangle Foundation, a Michigan-based homosexual lobby group that supported the Hate Crimes Act, publicly stated, ‘We personally believe that the AFA may support the murder of gay, lesbian, and bisexual people.’”

Such statements, combined with the “hate crimes” law that now exists, provide a “tool” of intimidation for federal officials, including Holder, “to abuse their positions of power to stifle political opinion and opposition to the homosexual agenda.”

“It also provides political adversaries with a basis for making official criminal complaints and allegations against opponents of the homosexual agenda, such as plaintiffs, thereby deterring, inhibiting, and chilling the exercise of plaintiffs’ rights to freedom of speech, expressive association, and the free exercise of religion,” the complaint said.

“By preaching God’s Word on homosexuality, plaintiffs and others are engaging in conduct that subjects them to federal questioning, investigation, and prosecution as principals pursuant to [the law] for counseling, commanding, or inducing a federal offense under … the Hate Crimes Act.”

“There is no legitimate law enforcement need for this federal law,” said Richard Thompson, president of the Law Center. “Of the 1.38 million violent crimes reported in the U.S. by the FBI in 2008, only 243 were considered as motivated by the victim’s sexual orientation.

“Moreover, Eric Holder himself testified at a Senate hearing that the states are doing a fine job in this area,” he said.

“This is part of the list of political payoffs to homosexual advocacy groups for support of Barack Obama in the last presidential election. The sole purpose of this law is to criminalize the Bible and use the threat of federal prosecutions and long jail sentences to silence Christians from expressing their biblically-based religious belief that homosexual conduct is a sin. It elevates those persons who engage in deviant sexual behaviors, including pedophiles, to a special protected class of persons as a matter of federal law and policy,” he said.

The Hate Crimes Act was dubbed by its critics as the “Pedophile Protection Act,” after an amendment to explicitly prohibit pedophiles from being protected by the act was defeated by majority Democrats. In fact, during congressional debate, supporters argued that all “philias,” or alternative sexual lifestyles, should be protected.

Robert Muise, the lead attorney on the case, told WND that the law also elevates people who “engaged in a certain class of deviant behavior to a protected class as a matter of federal law and policy.”

With some classes of people given more “rights,” others naturally have “fewer,” he said. And that’s where Christians are targeted. He noted that in an earlier version of what eventually became law under Obama was a proposed amendment referring to reading or citing biblical passages.

“In 2007, when Congress was considering similar hate crimes legislation, a motion was made before the Committee on Rules in the House of Representatives to clarify that the printing, distribution, or public reading of the Bible was not prohibited by any provision of the proposed bill. The motion was defeated.”

Contacted by WND, Holder’s office declined to comment on the case.

The law was promoted by its advocates as cracking down on “bias” crimes motivated by a person’s “actual or perceived” “sexual orientation” or “gender identity.”

Yiulle is the pastor of The Bible Church in Michigan and national director of the National Black Pro-Life Congress. He hosts a radio program and “is often warned by his Canadian listeners that he will prosecuted under the new U.S. hate crimes law for his public ministry.”

Ouellette is pastor of First Baptist in Bridgeport, Mich., with about 7,000 members, and the author of five books.

Combs is lead pastor of Faith Church, The Point Church, The Rock Church and The River Church, with about 10,000 members.

The civil rights violations created by the “hate crimes” law involve freedom of speech, expressive association, free exercise of religion, the equal protection guarantee and other provisions of the First, Fifth and 10th Amendments as well as Commerce Clause, the case said.

“This new federal law promotes two Orwellian concepts. It creates a special class of persons who are ‘more equal than others’ based on nothing more than deviant, sexual behavior. And it creates ‘thought crimes’ by criminalizing certain ideas, beliefs, and opinions, and the involvement of such ideas, beliefs, and opinions in a crime will make it deserving of federal prosecution,” Muise said.

“Consequently, government officials are claiming the power to decide which thoughts are criminal under federal law and which are not.”

Obama signed the “Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act” in October 2009 after Democrats strategically attached it to a “must-pass” $680 billion defense-appropriations bill.

The law cracks down on any acts that could be linked to criticism of homosexuality or even the “perception” of homosexuality. As Congress debated it, there were assurances it would not be used to crack down on speech.

Days after Obama signed it, in response, pastors and other Christian leaders gathered to read from the Bible at a rally organized with the help of Gary Cass of the Christian Anti-Defamation Coalition.

Former Navy Chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt of PrayInJesusName.org read from Romans: “And they that commit such things are worthy of death.”

“The government has to invade my thoughts to decide what my motive was in quoting the Bible,” Klingenschmitt explained. “I can be prosecuted if the government thinks my motive was wrong.”

The rally took place in front of the Holder’s offices. He supported the bill although he explained it does not protect all people equally. He is charged with enforcing the law.

Obama boasted of the “hate crimes” bill when he signed it into law.

“After more than a decade, we’ve passed inclusive hate-crimes legislation to help protect our citizens from violence based on what they look like, who they love, how they pray or who they are,” he said.

“If this law is used to silence me or any of these preachers for speaking the truth, then we will be forced to conscientiously defy it,” Rick Scarborough, president of Vision America, declared. “That is my calling as a Christian and my right as an American citizen.”

Janet Porter of Faith2Action called it a “sad day for America.”

“While a small minority of homosexual activists are celebrating, thousands of pastors, priests and rabbis are lamenting their loss of First Amendment freedoms. I for one refuse to bow before this unjust and unconstitutional law, and I intend to continue to preach the whole counsel of God as revealed in the Scriptures,” she wrote.

“But this law doesn’t just affect pastors; it will criminalize the beliefs of millions of ordinary people who may now be afraid to speak even their pro-marriage positions lest it spark a federal ‘hate crime’ investigation,” Porter wrote.

Cass noted in the U.K., a senior citizen was accused of “hate crimes” for writing a letter objecting to a pro-homosexual festival:
“This is the way it gets implemented in all the other countries,” Cass said. “Christians are singled out for prosecution, with threats, imprisonment and fines simply for refusing to stop doing what Christ commands: proclaiming the truth.”

“[These cases] are a good precursor of where this goes,” he warned.

The bill signed by Obama was opposed by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, which called it a “menace” to civil liberties. The commission argued the law allows federal authorities to bring charges against individuals even if they’ve already been cleared in a state court.

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=123943
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tues., Feb. 2, 2010
CONTACT: Kathleen L. Lynch, Thomas More Law Center
734-827-2001

Suit seeks to block homosexual activists from seeking
prosecution of pastors who oppose homosexual agenda

Marriage amendment co-author asks court to declare “hate crime” law unconstitutional

Group fears Obama judges may agree with homosexual activists’
legal strategy to prosecute religious speech as “inducing” violence

LANSING, Mich. — The new federal “hate crime” law enacted last fall unconstitutionally violates religious free speech rights by threatening to criminalize public opposition to homosexual activists’ political agenda, including so-called homosexual “marriage,” a federal civil rights lawsuit filed Tuesday on behalf of a co-author of Michigan’s Marriage Protection Amendment and three Christian pastors argues.

(See copy of lawsuit [27 pages] — http://j.mp/bP6AsK — filed by the Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor: www.ThomasMore.org)

Gary Glenn, Midland, president of the American Family Association of Michigan, who co-authored the Marriage Protection Amendment approved by Michigan voters in 2004, is lead plaintiff in the case, which argues that the new federal law unconstitutionally poses a serious threat to religious free speech rights. Glenn in public comments has regularly cited the use of such “hate crime” laws in Europe, Canada, and at the state level in the U.S. to prosecute Christians merely for speaking out against homosexual activists’ political agenda.

Glenn is joined by three plaintiffs: African-American Pastor Levon Yuille of The Bible Church in Ypsilanti and host of Joshua’s Trail, a Detroit radio talk show, Pastor R.B. Ouellette of the 7,000-member First Baptist Church of Bridgeport, and Pastor James Combs of Waterford, who pastors four Christian congregations in Michigan totaling approximately 10,000 members.

Glenn has said that in Michigan, “homosexual activists have clearly and openly admitted that they want to see pastors and others who speak out against the homosexual political agenda criminally prosecuted as ‘accessories’ any time a violent crime is committed against an individual who engages in homosexual behavior or cross-dressing.”

The lawsuit cites a Saginaw News interview in 2005 with prominent homosexual activist Jeffrey Montgomery, former executive director of the Triangle Foundation, a Detroit-based homosexual lobby: The News reported:

“Jeffrey Montgomery is calling out the political extremists and religious fundamentalists whose rhetoric, he says, has fueled a steady rise in hate crimes against gays and lesbians. ‘We’ve seen an increase in vitriolic, vociferous, vehement, demonizing rhetoric against gays and lesbians,’ said Montgomery… ‘The vocal anti-gay activists should be held accountable as accessories to these crimes because, many times, it is their rhetoric that led the perpetrators to believe that their crimes are OK.’ …If a criminal borrows a gun and then uses it to kill someone, the law considers the gun owner an accessory to the crime. So, too, are the people who own the words that incite violence, Montgomery said.” (“Triangle exec decries violence” by Lania Coleman, p. 4A, The Saginaw News, April 27, 2005)

The suit also cites a report by State News, the Michigan State University student newspaper, which quoted another prominent homosexual activist — former Triangle Foundation director of policy Sean Kosofsky — as saying: “We personally believe that the AFA may support the murder of gay, lesbian, and bisexual people.” http://www.statenews.com/article.phtml?pk=6737

The suit also cites a news release issued by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force in 2007 which accused Glenn and Cardinal Maida of the Archdiocese of Detroit — merely by having publicly disagreed with homosexual activists’ political agenda on marriage and other issues — of being responsible for inciting the falsely-alleged beating death of a homosexual senior citizen in Detroit. http://thetaskforce.org/press/releases/prMF_022307

“It is appalling hypocrisy for (Glenn and Maida) to pretend that their venomous words and organizing have no connection to the plague of hate violence against gay people, including the murder of Mr. Anthos,” the NGLTF statement said.

Glenn said homosexual activists and their political allies — including Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., who condemned the purported “hate crime” against Anthos on the U.S. Senate floor — were later embarrassed when Detroit police announced they had found no evidence of any assault and the Wayne County Medical Examiner ruled Anthos suffered a blow to the head after falling due to arthritic paralysis of his neck. (Associated Press, March 28, 2007: http://www.randythomas.org/blog/2007/03/hate-crime-or-arthritis.html)

The statements by Montgomery, Kosofsky, and NGLTF “make clear that homosexual activists hope to sell society and the courts on their repressive view that anyone who dares publicly disagree with their political agenda should face the threat of being criminally prosecuted, and they’re not beyond fabricating false ‘hate crime’ claims to do it,” Glenn said.

The lawsuit argues that a pre-existing provision of federal law could be used by homosexual activists and their judicial allies — in conjunction with the new “hate crime” law — to justify such prosecutions.
U.S. Code, Title 18, Part 1, Chapter 1, Section 2(a) states: “Whoever commits an offense against the United States or aids, abets, counsels, commands, induces or procures its commission, is punishable as a principal.” http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/18/2.html

Dictionary.com defines the word “counsel” to mean “advice, opinion or instruction given in directing the judgment or conduct of another.” http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/counsel

Dictionary.com defines the word “induce” to mean “to lead or move by persuasion or influence, as to some action or state of mind.” http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/induce

Glenn said under the federal “hate crime” law, “there will no doubt be openly homosexual or sympathetic federal judges appointed by President Obama who agree with homosexual activists’ legal strategy of accusing anyone who non-violently speaks out against homosexual activists’ political agenda of ‘inducing’ criminal activity any time a crime is committed or falsely alleged to be committed against an individual who engages in homosexual behavior or cross-dressing.”

Glenn cited as examples of that concern a group of state-level judges in Michigan whose campaigns were endorsed by homosexual activist groups and who he believes are likely to share the Triangle Foundation’s legal reasoning about criminally prosecuting speech:

* Openly homosexual 36th District Judge Rudy Serra, Wayne County, a former member of the Triangle Foundation’s board of trustees, and 57th District Judge William Baillargeon, Allegan County, a former member of the Triangle Foundation board of advisors.

- Serra: http://www.vendio.com/mesg/read.html?num=28&thread=223286

- Baillargeon: http://web.archive.org/web/20021029115642/www.tri.org/advisors.html

* Triangle Pride PAC, the Triangle Foundations’ affiliated political action committee, also endorsed the following sitting judges in the 2008 election: 15th District Judge Chris Easthope, Washtenaw County; 46th District Judge William Richards, Oakland County; 91st District Judge Elizabeth Church, Chippewa County; Ingham County Circuit Judge Rosemarie Aquilina, Oakland County Circuit Judge Mary Ellen Brennan, Wayne County Circuit Judges Connie Kelley and Lynne Pierce, and Oakland County Prosecutor Jessica Cooper. http://www.pride-pac.org/guide/showall.php

* Michigan Supreme Court Justice Diane Hathaway “supports (homosexual and cross-dressing) rights and issues and was strongly endorsed by” Between the Lines, a homosexual activist newsmagazine in Detroit. Circuit Court Judges Christopher Yates and Donald Shelton were also endorsed by Between the Lines in 2008, as were District Court Judges Bill Richards and Elizabeth Church. http://www.pridesource.com/article.shtml?article=32861

* Ingham County Circuit Judge Joyce Dragunchuk — whose 2005 ruling in support of homosexual activists’ lawsuit against the state Marriage Protection Amendment was overturned by the Michigan Court of Appeals — was endorsed by both Triangle Pride PAC and another homosexual activist group, the Lansing Association for Human Rights.
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