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Dr. Laura Schlessinger and homosexuality:
Part 2:
Two typical reactions from pro-LGBT agencies.
Conflict between Dr. Laura and some in the LGBT
community as her TV program was being planned.
Two typical examples of negative reactions from pro-LGBT agencies:
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One example was during the year 2000 when Stephen Spurgeon, Communications Director of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance
Against Defamation (GLAAD), listed some concerns about Dr. Laura:
"It's really
three points: One is her vocabulary and the terminology that she uses; secondly,
she only cites conservative sources, like the Family Research Council; and
third, she just has a lack of respect for any view unlike her own." 1
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Another was In 2008, when according to CNSNews.com -- a conservative Christian news agency -- Dr. Laura had described reaction by some members of the LGBT community to her discussions on human sexuality:
"Does
my opposition to homosexual marriage and my advocacy of reparative therapy
make me a bigot? No. But, because of my millions of radio listeners, my
beliefs make me a threat to the radical goals of homosexual activists, who
send me hate mail and death threats. To my way of thinking, their well-organized campaign against my
freedom of speech is rhetorical thuggery at best and religious persecution
at worst." 2
Many web sites receive hate emails and the occasional death threat. This web site, ReligiousTolerance.org, receives many unsolicited comments each day. Positive reviews outnumber the negative ones by about 3.5 to 1. A small percentage of the latter threaten death, often in the most gruesome manner.
Year 2000: A major conflict developed between the LGBT community and Dr. Laura as her TV show was being planned:
Sponsored link.
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2000-FEB-24: More
than 1000 prominent clergy and dozens of leaders of medical, child-welfare and
civil rights organizations signed a letter to Dr. Laura. It described some of their concerns:
"The anti-gay beliefs you espouse on a regular basis -
that homosexuality is 'deviant' and that gays can and should be cured --
are entirely outside the mainstream of scientific thought. ... Your claim
that homosexuality is a tragic pathology and that gays and lesbians can
and should be 'cured' by 'reparative therapy' is not only inaccurate but
also promotes the idea that there is something wrong with being
gay. ... Nowhere are the consequences of anti-gay feelings more apparent
than in the high number of suicides among gay youth. ... While suicide
is the ultimate consequence of homophobia, studies find that gay youth --
and youth who are perceived to be gay -- are more likely to get beaten up,
feel isolated, and have trouble in school. ... Dr. Laura, we are not saying
that you should be censored. Nor are we implying that you don't have the
right to express yourself. We are simply saying this: Young people who
are otherwise happy and healthy are being taught to hate themselves
simply because they are gay. ... As the most powerful radio show host in
America, you understand the effects of language on children. It is
within your power to use your wit and intelligence to help kids by
speaking out against homophobia and anti-gay violence."
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2000-FEB-25 (approx): The Child Welfare League of America, the National Mental Health Association of America and the Horizons Foundation ran full-page ads in the New York Times, L.A.
Times, San Francisco Chronicle and the San Francisco Examiner. They asked Dr. Laura to consider the effect of her anti-gay rhetoric
on children.
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2000-MAR-10: Dr. Laura released an apology. She said that
she never intended to "hurt anyone or contribute in any way to
an atmosphere of hate or intolerance," when she commented
about homosexuality on her radio program. She continued:
"Regrettably,
some of the words I've used have hurt some people, and I am sorry for
that. Words that I have used in a clinical context have been perceived
as judgment. They were not meant to characterize homosexual individuals or
encourage others to disparage homosexuals." 3
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2000-MAR-12: GLAAD released a statement saying that:
"... an apology without a fundamental change in behavior is
meaningless. If Schlessinger is sincere in her apology to the lesbian,
gay, bisexual and transgender community, then it must be accompanied
by a change in her actions."
They also complimented Paramount
for its:
"... shared commitment to present society's issues without
creating or contributing to an environment of hurt, hate or
intolerance."
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2000-MAR-13: Paramount issued a statement that
supported Dr. Laura's upcoming TV show, which they described as a:
"... discussion of our society's moral and ethical issues in an
environment free from hate, intolerance or the censorship of speech and
ideas...We are committed to the production of Dr. Laura's upcoming
television show which is planned to include multiple points of view,
derived from a variety of sources, guests and a studio audience."
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2000-MAR-21: During the morning, the StopDrLaura.com & Horizons
Foundation held a protest demonstration at the gates of
Paramount Studios in Hollywood, CA.
Sponsored link:
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2000-MAY-11: Focus on the Family, a Christian
Fundamentalist organization reported that:
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Station manager Jay Cashio of KING-TV in Seattle had said:
"We're
very conscious of (GLAAD's) concerns and are looking at many of
the comments that have been made by Dr. Laura in the past and
looking at the context in which she was making those comments."
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"... former Seinfeld star, Julia
Louis-Dreyfus ... recently contended that Schlessinger called
homosexuals 'deviants.' Yet Dr. Schlessinger denies making any
denigrating remarks toward homosexuals."
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Ms. Schlessinger said during her appearance as a guest on the Larry King
Show that:
"People who have a very emotionally packed
point of view and an agenda unfortunately often misrepresent,
misconstrue and, frankly, downright fib." 4
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2000-MAY-18: United Airlines spokesperson Matthew
Triaca stated that the company has dropped ads for Dr. Laura's radio
program from its in-flight magazine Hemispheres because her
views run contrary to the airline's "corporate commitment to
respecting our employees as well as our customers." The
syndicator of Schlessinger's radio show, Premiere Radio Networks,
said that its contract for two half-pages of advertising was for the
March issue only "and was fulfilled." 5
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2000-MAY-26: Proctor & Gamble decided to not sponsor advertisements on Dr. Laura's
TV show. Dr. James Dobson, founder and head of Focus on the Family --
a Fundamentalist Christian non-profit religious group -- stated that opposition to
Dr. Laura stems from opposition to Schlessinger's religious
convictions. He wrote:
"She is standing virtually alone now
against an onslaught that no one in a free country should have to
tolerate. ... It's time that someone gave her a little encouragement." 6
Dr. Dobson recommended that people contact Proctor
and Gamble to express their feelings on P&G's decision. He
commented:
"Political correctness must not be allowed to
determine how the nation thinks. There must be pluralism. There must
be differing views." 7
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2000-MAY-26: Dr. Schlessinger announced that she is giving up
her syndicated newspaper column in order to devote more time to her
upcoming TV show.
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2000-JUN-14: Messengers -- the term used to describe delegates -- to the Southern
Baptist Convention:
"... overwhelmingly adopted a motion
commending radio personality Laura Schlessinger for her staunch
opposition to the homosexual lifestyle." 8
This
motion was one of only two (out of 26 proposed motions) that reached the floor
for a vote. Wiley Drake of Buena Park, CA, introduced the successful motion. He
said:
"She knows where we stand as Christians and she takes a
strong stand for the family."
By "family" he apparently is referring only to those families led by opposite-sex couples.
The original motion was amended
to confine it to her views on homosexuality only. None of the messengers spoke in
opposition to the motion.
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2000-JUN-25: During an interview with Time Magazine, Dr. Schlessinger appears to have made an effort to differentiate between a person with a homosexual or bisexual orientation and a gay, lesbian, or bisexual person who engages in same-gender sexual behavior:
"I never called homosexual human beings deviants. I have
pointed out that homosexual behavior deviates from the norm of
heterosexuality and is forbidden by Scriptures. That is basically the
context... I stand behind basic civil rights — where someone is able
to live, and work at his job — and always have. The only place where
there is a divergence is the issue that I consider sacred: marriage
and family structure around children." 9
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2000-SEP-9: A three-day "Stop Dr. Laura National Days of
Protest" started. It involved protests in 31 American cities.
References:The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above
essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.
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Bill Berkowitz, "Dr. Laura's agenda: A missionary for the
Christian Right," CultureWatch, at: http://www.tompaine.com/
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Lawrence Morahan, "Dr. Laura Receives Death Threats for Views on Homosexuality," CNSNews, 2008-JUL-07, at: http://cnsnews.com/
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"Statement by Dr. Laura Schlessinger," is available
online on her web site at: http://www.drlaura.com/
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Dave Clark, "Dr. Laura TV show planned," at: http://www.family.org/
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"Canada sides with homosexuals against Dr. Laura,"
Conservative News Service, 2000-MAY-17. Available at: http://www.mcjonline.com/
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Dave Clark, "Dobson defends Dr. Laura," Family News in
Focus, at: http://www.family.org/
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"Dr. Laura needs your support," at: http://www.family.org/
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Don Hinkle, "Southern Baptists commend Laura Schlessinger for her
opposition to homosexual lifestyle," SBC Newsroom, 2000-JUN-14,
at: http://www.sbcannualmeeting.org/
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"Preacher, teacher, nag: Dr. Laura speaks," at: http://www.time.com/
Copyright © 2000 to 2015 by Ontario Consultants on Religious
Tolerance
Originally written: 2000-MAR-14
Latest update: 2015-APR-09
Author: B.A. Robinson 
Sponsored link:
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