Religion Dispatches
…ong view. The long view here is that if this tax plan—with its unprecedented permanent cuts—were to go through, we won’t have to wait even ten years to see acute new suffering among people with disabilities, the elderly, vulnerable children, etc. Because as sure as the sun rises in the east, GOP leaders will use the new deficits their own plan creates to demand huge cuts in the social safety net: Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and everything…
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…] contraception mandate with threats to destroy Christianity in the Middle East. They drew parallels to “governments who try to squash and destroy religious liberty,” and even to the specter of ISIS beheading those it considers apostates to the faith. As I have noted, there was a notable uptick in white Catholic concern about the “religious liberty” issue after the bishops’ attacks on the Obama administration and the mandate. According to the Pew…
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…ty of Arabs who wished to overthrow the Ottomans who once ruled the Middle East. The British promised these Arabs their own state, while working behind the scenes to split the region up between British and French zones of influence; at the same time, the British promised Zionists the right to colonize Palestine, against the national aspirations of the indigenous, mostly Muslim population. New countries were constructed, including Jordan, Lebanon a…
Read More…odd thing to say to the press.) The rep also accused McDonald’s of “openly promoting gay issues” and miseducating children on sexual behavior. Shanghaiist quotes from a statement released by Chang Shou-yi, secretary general of the Alliance of Taiwan Religious Groups for the Protection of the Family: “Because McDonald’s is frequented by many children, it is especially important to oppose the promotion of same-sex behavior,” the statement added. As…
Read More…he gay community is turning a blind eye to what is happening in the Middle East. When I marched in Pride Parades 35 years ago, we had bottles and rocks thrown at us. We were fighting for gay liberation, for equal rights. It’s great that equal rights have come our way, but we have to stand up for equal rights for gays in other countries. We have an obligation to look after our gay brothers and sisters, especially after what happened in Orlando.” La…
Read More…t to injury when it responded to reports that pastor Blasius Ruguri of the East-Central Africa Division had publicly supported Uganda’s anti-gay legislation, which would have sentenced gay individuals to death in some cases. Instead of condemning homophobia, the GC doubled down on its condemnation of homosexuality while also claiming to be “strongly opposed to acts of violence, hatred and discrimination against a person because of his or her sexua…
Read More…id showcased anti-LGBT rhetoric and conspiracy theories. Mexico: President promotes constitutional guarantee of LGBT equality; Mormon Church objects As Mexico’s complicated march toward nationwide marriage equality continues, President Enrique Peña Nieto wrote in Huffington Post about initiatives he introduced in May to establish a constitutional right to marry, “independently of gender identity or sexual orientation,” as part of a broader effort…
Read More…ve concealed evidence that American captives are being held alive in South-East Asia.” Trump may have claimed to valorize those who “weren’t captured” just a year ago, but his appearance at the mall on behalf of those who supposedly have been captured and never released marks another milestone in the un-reality show of the campaign. Aside from the compliments for the “beautiful” bikes and praise for the Hells Angels’-style protection they supposed…
Read More…udgmental space, it’s Jerusalem. Both sides of Israel’s capital—the Muslim eastern half and the Jewish western half—have in common large numbers of socially conservative residents who look down on homosexuality. “In the west, you have Orthodox Jews, and in the east you have Arabs—and the Arabs are so homophobic,” says Khaled Alqam, a gay Arab, while sitting under a heater on the patio of the Video Pub in Jerusalem. “They think if you’re gay, you’r…
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…to reckon with the devastating consequences of its policies in the Middle East, which have led to hundreds of thousands of deaths. Closer to home, the surveillance and regulation of Muslims has become a major theme in the Republican presidential primary. Islamophobia is starting to merge with more traditional forms of white supremacy. Meanwhile, Harris keeps plugging away. He has been open in his disdain for Trump and other Republican candidates….
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