Soulforce Email Update - September 5, 2006

A Special Message from Mel White

Dear %FIELD:1%,

Great News! After 12 years of writing and research I have finally finished Religion Gone Bad: Hidden Dangers from the Christian Right. On September 5, 2006, I begin a month long, nationwide tour introducing Religion Gone Bad to the general public. I hope and pray that this sequel to Stranger at the Gate will sound a clear warning (just before the November elections) that the rise of fundamentalist Christianity is a threat not just to LGBT people but to all Americans.

My book tour schedule is up on the web at www.ReligionGoneBad.com. I'm hoping that you will seriously consider joining me at an event near you and/or invite your friends and family who do live near by to spend that evening with me. I'm also hoping you will buy a copy of Religion Gone Bad for your own use or buy extras to donate to friends and family or to use as gifts. Here's why.

The media only notice a book when a crowd gathers at the book signing events or when a book makes a bestseller list. Word of mouth is everything. When you get a copy and talk about it, word spreads.

I've spent the last fifteen years monitoring the Christian fundamentalist's rise to power in church and state alike. I wrote Religion Gone Bad with the growing realization that LGBT people our friends and families could lose this "culture war" they are waging against us and lose it in a big way.

If, however, we realize the danger in time there is a real possibility that we will stop fundamentalist efforts to turn the US into a de facto theocracy ruled entirely "by righteous men." Truth and justice can triumph over untruth and oppression but only if we take our stand. I am convinced that Religion Gone Bad could be a real help in mobilizing our community to that task.

Dobson, Robertson, Falwell, Kennedy, LaHaye, Schlafly, Hagee, Bauer, Perkins...you name your favorite fundamentalist and I can guarantee you that he or she is using his or her powerful media empire to recruit millions of American voters and to raise tens of millions of donor dollars to see us demeaned, dehumanized, deprived of our civil rights, driven back into our closets or worse. We must sound the alert!

Bishop John Shelby Spong says:

"Mel White, the gay ghostwriter for both Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, lays bare in this book, as only an insider can do, the fierce anti-homosexual agenda of organized religion from the Vatican to the American television preachers. White paints a frightening picture of what they mean when they call for 'making America a Christian nation.' He issues a challenging wake-up call both to those who are traditional Christians as well as to those who hold deeply to human values. A consciousness-raising, must-read book."

For me this book is a strategic part of our Soulforce mission. To win the election in November, 2006, fundamentalist Christians will use their fear mongering tactics about same-sex marriage and adoption or gays in the church or gays in the military. If they win, we risk losing all the rights and protections the Constitution guarantees us.

I'm hoping you will buy and read Religion Gone Bad; buy a copy for a friend or a member of your family; give a copy to your pastor, Sunday School teacher or church library; offer a copy to your local public or college library. I'm hoping, too, that you will give a copy to someone you know who believes the fundamentalist rhetoric and needs to hear the truth about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. When you buy online from Soulforce, we'll send an autographed first edition copy to you or to the person or persons you designate with our gratitude!

Thanks for your help (in advance). Call if you have questions: 434-384-7696.

For more, up-to-date information check out www.ReligionGoneBad.com

Sincere Thanks,

Mel White
PO Box 3195
Lynchburg, VA 24503
mel@soulforce.org

Right to Serve Campaign

The Right to Serve campaign is the follow-up to the Equality Ride in the effort to create opportunities for young adult activism. This time young activists are challenging "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," a 13-year-old policy that bans openly gay, lesbian, and bisexual people from serving. The military is the nation's number one employer of youth, and therefore young adults are the demographic most affected by this government-sanctioned discrimination. Young people are the citizens who can most effectively work towards ending this legislation.

Many points are being addressed in The Right to Serve campaign. We are struggling for our 65,000 brothers and sisters currently serving the country while being forced to lie about their sexual orientation and deny their humanity in order to keep their jobs. We are protesting a federal law that bars 42,000 openly gay people who would serve in the military if it were not for this ban. We are challenging the injustice against the 11,000 soldiers who have been discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." And we are calling attention to the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, a bill currently stalled in the House of Representatives, which would lift the ban on openly gay service members.

In the Right to Serve, openly gay young adults who genuinely would serve in the armed forces are attempting to sign up for duty in thirty cities across the country this fall. It is the clearest way of pointing out the absurdity and bigotry of this policy. Thus far, eight cities have tried to enlist, and eighteen young adults have each been rejected because of their refusal to lie about their sexual orientation. September will see actions in Oklahoma City, Shreveport, Chicago, New York City, and Greensboro among others. Young adults are taking on leadership by creating this campaign in their hometowns, and it is proving an exciting new way of fostering Soulforce activism.

When these young folks are denied enlistment, they return with their friends, community members, pastors and veterans to sit-in as a protest to the discrimination. Therein lies the cost of much of this action. We have already received the attention of CBS Weekend, the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, and Bill O'Reilly.

You can visit www.soulforce.org/righttoserve to learn about the cities of this campaign, contact local organizers, register to help, donate to the efforts of these courageous young adults, and read about "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." In closing, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network just recently publicly endorsed our efforts with the following:

"Servicemembers Legal Defense Network salutes the service of all our troops who defend liberty and freedom for all Americans. We applaud the young men and women from Right To Serve who seek to join the proud tradition of military service. The Right To Serve campaign challenges the federal government to end its prohibition on open and honest service by gay Americans, at a time when America can ill afford to turn away even one bright, capable recruit in the fight against terrorism."

Haven Herrin
Right to Serve Co-Director
haven@soulforce.org

Apply for the 2007 Soulforce Equality Ride

The 2006 Equality Ride was one of the most successful actions in Soulforce's history. And in just seven months from now, Equality Ride 2007 will hit the road. With over 200 accredited institutions of higher learning that ban the enrollment and subsequently, the attendance, of openly LGBT students, there is a lot of ground to cover.

Soulforce is seeking 60 young adults, age 18-28, who want to spend March and April engaging students in dialogue on their school's policy which bans openly LGBT students.

To apply please go to www.equalityride.com/apply

If you know a young person who might be interested in applying for the 2007 Equality Ride, you can use the Tell-A-Friend feature on the Equality Ride website.

Second Annual Soulforce Auction

This November Soulforce will be conducting our second annual online auction through eBay. Soulforce is attempting to raise $20,000 for general operating expenses through this auction.

Join in the fun and build community spirit by donating an item or service to the Soulforce auction. We're looking for autographed books, music, crafts, art, pieces of civil-rights history, retreat weekends, and other one-of-a-kind items and opportunities to put up for grabs to the highest bidder on eBay. 100% of the proceeds will go to support Soulforce's justice work for GLBT people. Your donation of goods or services is tax-deductible.

Don't have anything unusual or GLBT-related? That's okay, we can sell regular stuff, too (or you can sell on eBay and designate Soulforce as the recipient of the funds). Just let us know what you have to offer and we'll make it possible for you to participate.

Please email Ellen Osborne at ellen@soulforce.org about your available items or services.

Simple Living Corner

One of the least understood steps to nonviolence is the aspect of "simple living." Gandhi said, "live simply that others might simply live." But how do we today comprehend and manifest that commitment? In the months to come, we will be exploring some of these ideas in this special section of our email updates. To begin, here is a quote by Duane Elgin, author of Voluntary Simplicity.

"Simple living -- aka voluntary simplicity -- has just about as many definitions as there are individuals who practice it. Simple living is not about living in poverty or self-inflicted deprivation. Rather, it is about living an examined life -- one in which you have determined what is important, or 'enough,' for you, discarding the rest."

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