Sunday, September 23, 2012

Bay Times: Gays Vow
Disruption at Catholic Installation Rite

(Activists protest St. Mary's Cathedral for cancelling the Gay Men's Chorus performance due to the use of "gay" in the choir's name, circa 1981. Credit: Rink Photography, Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art.)

One of the all important W's in basic journalism is telling your audience who is responsible for a political protest that is sure to upset religious leaders, elected officials and the general public.

Unfortunately, Bay Times writer Dennis McMillan and editor Betty Sullivan omitted the names of the individuals or groups vowing to stage an enormous, five-hour daytime protest on a weekday next month, from this story appearing in the current issue:

Thursday October 4, 1:30 - 6:30 pm in front of Saint Mary’s Cathedral, 1111 Gough Street there will be a huge demonstration against Salvatore Cordileone as Archbishop of San Francisco. Protesters plan to oppose and disrupt the Installation Ceremony because of apparent hatred for queers. 

In 2008, Cordileone raised $1.5 million, gave $6,000 out of his own pocket, and organized major evangelist figures, such as James Dobson, into activism to pass Prop 8, banning gay marriage in California . . . His actions have also targeted abortion freedom of choice. Cordileone does NOT represent San Francisco values. 

Are gay marriage groups organizing the protest? Maybe the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence or the gay Catholic group Dignity or straight Catholic church accountability activists? More details about who's staging the demonstration are needed from McMillan and Sullivan, and I hope they quickly amend the online version of their story with a name or two from the organizers.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Well when they disrupt the proceedings I hope that they do it with class, like the folks in this report did:

http://www.americablog.com/2012/09/how-to-handle-right-join-them.html

It's much more fun, and gains far more support, to laugh your enemies out of town than to try to shout and scream them away.

Paul Barwick, the Mission district