[Pablo Rafael]

A third source that we must look to for strong leadership is from the moderates of the white South. It is unfortunate that at this time the leadership of the white South stems from the close-minded reactionaries. These persons gain prominence and power by the dissemination of false ideas and by deliberately appealing to the deepest hate responses within the human mind. It is my firm belief that this close-minded, reactionary, recalcitrant group constitutes a numerical minority. There are in the white South more open-minded moderates than appears on the surface. These persons are silent today because of fear of social, political, and economic reprisals. God grant that the white moderates of the South will rise up courageously, without fear, and take up the leadership in this tense period of transition.

The LGBT community as well as the black or hispanic etc. communities being minorities must always have the support of the majority to accomplish any change. Our nation supposedly was set up so that the majority could not oppress the minorities. However, the sad record of history is full of the injustice that this nation has heaped upon minorities. I am always glad when straight supporters come here to the forums. We are too small a group to achieve equal rights on our own.

We must meet hate with love. We must meet physical force with soul force. There is still a voice crying out through the vista of time, saying: "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, pray for them that despitefully use you." Then, and only then, can you matriculate into the university of eternal life. That same voice cries out in terms lifted to cosmic proportions: "He who lives by the sword will perish by the sword." And history is replete with the bleached bones of nations that failed to follow this command. We must follow nonviolence and love.

Though it may seem contrary to the macho image that our nation is trying to project, I maintain that love is the most powerful force in the universe. If you want someone to work with you, you get much better results if they love you than if you force them.

Now, I’m not talking about a sentimental, shallow kind of love. I’m not talking about eros, which is a sort of aesthetic, romantic love. I’m not even talking about philia, which is a sort of intimate affection between personal friends. But I'm talking about agape. I'm talking about the love of God in the hearts of men. I’m talking about a type of love which will cause you to love the person who does the evil deed while hating the deed that the person does. We've got to love.

I can't really add much to this. I just think it is a beautiful paragraph. It is really hard to love someone who opresses you. But God says that while we were still enemies, he loved us. I can at least try to follow his example.