You can purchase an autographed copy of Anything But Straight by sending a $35 check or money order to:
-------------------------
Wayne Besen
PO Box 25491
Brooklyn, NY 11202
I think the lesson to learn from this video is chilling, yet simple. Anne Frank had a life before she was forced into hiding. She was a little girl who was free. But, that was taken away from her.
We must remain vigilant and not take our freedom and basic rights for granted. There will always be totalitarian forces scheming to grab power at the expense of minorities, who they scapegoat. It is our duty to stop them.
This is particularly true of gay people. We have been foisted into the front lines to battle insidious forms of would-be religious dictatorship. While much of America sleeps, our very love and lives have depended on being acutely aware of danger posed by such demagoguery. Let us never forget that we can either steer history, or be the victims of its its cruel and unforgiving tides.
It is at once joyous and heartbreaking to see a carefree Anne Frank - just a small girl enjoying the fresh air on her balcony and excited over a neighbors wedding. In her memory and that of millions of others, we must move forward carrying the banner of justice and liberty for all people.
12 Comments:
Holy Crap Mr. Besen. I can't believe you would dare to compare anyone or group of people to the atrocities of Nazi Germany. I advise strongly that you read the latest Newsweek and in particular Editor Meacham's editorial. As a liberal he rails against anyone comparing someone or some organization to the Nazis. You are making an emotional pitch Mr. Besen. It won't work with me
posted by Joe Against Bull Crap, at
10/05/2009 7:49 PM
TO JOE AGAINST BULL CRAP: " It works for me. The Legal Defense and Educational Fund of the NAACP stated "It is undeniable that the experience of African Americans differs in many important ways from that of gay men and lesbians; among other things, the legacy of slavery and segregation is profound. But differences in historical experiences should not preclude the application of constitutional provisions to gay men and lesbians who are denied the right to marry the person of their choice." The same sentiment as the holocaust DEARY. Next time you want to silence someone, i suggest you don't try it on gay and lesbian people.
posted by Spouse Walker, at
10/06/2009 12:24 AM
Anybody worried about future Holocausts should have protested Obama's fawning over every anti-Semitic, homophobic, tyrant at the U.N. Admittedly, though, that's not why we're marching against his administration this weekend.
posted by Joey, at
10/06/2009 2:35 AM
I think the point he was trying to make Joe, was not that the oppression and hatred of glbt people in this country is exactly *the same* as the holocaust, but that it's easy to ignore a small number of 'kooks' who espouse lies and promote discrimination and hate towards a convenient minority group. We do so at our own peril. A raging inferno starts with a small flame. Many Jews didn't take the Nazi's seriously at first. This will blow over. Such things couldn't happen in a civilized country like Germany...the land of Bach, Beethoven and Schiller. The point is Joe, that a little girl could happily watch her well dressed, civilized neighbors drive off to their wedding on a fine warm day, while a cancer in that society was growing. Little did she know, that many people, just like her polite, well dressed neighbors in a neigboring state called Germany and eventually in Holland where she lived, would become part of a mindless machine that would eventually murder her and just about everyone else she knew and loved. But this is America. It can't happen here. 250 years of slavery is in the past and the genocide of Native Americans was such a long time ago. Our people would never stand by while our government openly engages in torture and the last president shredded the Constitution. We'll be quiet. This will all blow over.
posted by Anonymous, at
10/06/2009 10:10 AM
Wayne, Gary, well said.
So Joe, what do you say to the right wing fringe groups such as Fred Phelps among others who call for the annihilation of LGBT people? Remember, republican William Buckley suggested that HIV/AIDs sufferers should wear a tattoo on their arm so that society would know who they are or worse yet, be quarantined from the rest of society and we all know what happens when people are quarantined in concentration camps. Not a sound from the GOP either. It would be naive of anyone to even conceive that it couldn't happen here. All it takes is to target one group, LGBT people since there are no others left, villify them, denigrate them, demean them, disenfranchise them and there you have a recipe for another holocaust and the republican right wing are just the ones to do it and would if they could get away with it, make no mistake about that. How many key republicans have condemned any fringe groups, Phelps included?
posted by Anonymous, at
10/06/2009 11:19 AM
Joe - if you were really against bull crap, you would be against yourself. I'm not going to sit here and let you distort and smear what I was saying. Either accurately represent my work or take a hike.
Nowhere did I make a direct comparison to the Nazis, nor did I compare anyone to Hitler. I'm sorry if you have an overactive imagination and refuse to read the words in front of your face. You are exactly the type that bastardizes genuine debate, with absurd, self-serving charges. Just like Limbaugh, cheering that America lost the Olympics. Such honorable Americans you are.
However, the point I made remains. We always must be vigilant against totalitarian groups who threaten freedom. America's religious right, and their embrace of nationalism, ignorance and demagogues is a direct threat to America as we know it.
I stand by my words.
Finally, it is not liberals, but the right wing teabag crowd who is fond of Nazi comparisons. Perhaps, Joe-for-bullshit, you should watch the news more often. Maybe then you'd understand such matters.
posted by Wayne Besen, at
10/06/2009 11:32 PM
Fred Phelps is no pastor and he and his little flock of family members ought to be committed. They don't represent the Gospel and are some of the most unloving people I have ever encountered. I debated Mr. Phelps on public television in Wichita in 1993. The man is a whack job. I do have to agree somewhat with Joe ABC. Anytime you write an article after showing a video of Anne Frank you infer that those who oppose homosexuality are a part of an oppressiver regime like the Nazis. I think Wayne should have written his article without the connection to Anne Frank.
posted by Monica, at
10/07/2009 10:20 PM
Monica: The Nazis opposed homosexuals. The Nazis oppressed homosexuals. The Nazis murdered homosexuals. So YES MONICA those that oppress homosexuals are very much like the Nazi oppressive regime. I can equate the two very very easily. Do you know anyone oppressing heterosexuals? The whole concept is rediculous EITHER WAY. Gay people are not your damn doormat. You do not get to give and take away anything from gay people. You do not have that kind of power. You have no god damn right to oppose the sexuality of anyone. You can tout your silly gospel all you want. It is pathetic. It is small and it is dangerous. Can anyone imagine gay people going around saying that my god tells me to oppose heterosexuality? Your thinking is twisted and just because you think Fred Phelps is a fucked up tart does not make you interpretations one bit less stupid and diabolical. Who do you think you are doling out morality? PATHETIC
posted by Spouse Walker, at
10/08/2009 12:45 AM
ewe...You have very strong opinions about what you believe. And so do I. I have just as much right to express mine as you do yours. You think, however, that your views are more superior or better than those that don't agree with you. The world in which I live is supposed to be tolerant and inclusive of others. You are okay with people as long as they go along with your thinking. If they disagree you call them names and put them down. That's bullshit ewe. You demonize people and think you have won your argument. Most the of world disagrees with homoexuality. Most Christians as well Mormons and Muslims don't agree with same sex relations. The gay community may have the President of the US speaking at the HRC banquet this weekend but that doesn't make homosexuality right. I will be interested to see how you attack what I just said.
posted by Monica, at
10/08/2009 7:50 AM
Monica: I did not share my opinions about anything to you. I responded to your words. You do not have the right to put me down based on my orientation and use some backward "belief" in god to defend your flipped out old fashioned demented outlook on people that have nothing to do with you. I cannot stop you from doing anything behind my back and i am not the least bit interested in doing so but when i see your crap i am gonna confront you and don't be thinking i need your permission or acceptance. The same can be afforded you but let's get one thing straight. You are the one who negatively judges homosexuality, not me. I am sick to death of people using dismissive passive aggressive techniques to promote delusional heterosexual hegemony. I do not think i am superior to you and my statements are not rooted in ignorance like yours are. I suggest you begin a personal reflection. It is gay people who are tolerating stupid loud mouthed opinionated prejudiced simple minded straight people or in your case a closeted lesbian who cannot up until this point accept who she is. You are the one who judges people with your bible by your side so don't get on some damn bandwagon about how you cannot take being called names and then throw out "tolerance" in the same breath. You are the one full of bullshit Monica. What you do not get is that i happen to have always accepted myself for being gay and never had a closet to come out of so get the hell out of my way. You are addressing someone who cannot be manipulated. I do not need to win arguments against you because you do not have valid points to discuss. It is a matter of silencing you that is my objective. You are ignorant and misguided. I do not give that a platform to have the last say because (like you), i know there are gay people (like you) who are reading this and you cannot be allowed to spread your hate. So you get an equal dose of it thrown back in your face. Most of the world is ignorant, preoccupied and endoctrinated. Your point is not bolstered just because they disagree with homosexuality. That is as stupid as me saying i disagree with heterosexuality. I don't stop being myself just because two major religions you mention spread hate and fear against an oppressed minority. Step aside Monica. I don't like you. President O'Bummer speaking to the HRC has nothing to do with homosexuality being right or wrong. Orientation is larger than him, you and me. How dare you pigeonhole an entire people into one sentence. I hope you get the fact that my response which you feel is a personal attack on you has nothing to do with you. It has to do with letting the silent gay person you feed off that continues to feel bad about themselves who is reading this know that they are triumphantly perfect for exactly who they are. And if you cannot or will not get Choke on those potatos and burn in hell. Your agenda is evil.
posted by Spouse Walker, at
10/09/2009 5:04 PM
