The family is under attack, and in Washington DC this weekend, so is
the President.  The GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgender)
community is hosting an Equality March on Washington to let the
President know that between solving the healthcare crisis in America,
writing his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, and taking over car
companies, he needs to come through on some of the promises he made
to the gay lobby during the election.

In last year’s election, California, Florida and Arizona flexed their
bi-partisan muscles and said “no thank you” to radically altering the
oldest institution in human history—marriage.  These states join
Georgia and 25 other states whose constitutions ban gay marriage.
The stunning electoral defeat last year looks to me like a mandate for
traditional marriage to anyone with eyes—but the media and gay rights
activists are not spinning it that way.   The gay marriage issue has
lost in every single state, and in a year of record Democratic
turnout, it lost again—even in California.

Why is that?  Because one of the most important issues to conservative
voters is the institution of marriage.  But not just white voters. Many
minority voters are very traditional in this area and they tell me they resent
the gay lobby “hijacking” the civil rights movement for something
besides skin color or gender.  Those on the other side of this
argument, made up of mostly Democrats, the gay community and special
interests, have utilized any and every thing to secure civil marriage
for themselves—including municipal governments, state legislatures,
executive orders, courts, and did I mention, courts.  The GLBT lobby
and activist groups have employed every tactic to distort ballot
initiatives and spin the issue as something other than what it is.
Now, they want to apply pressure to President Obama and have him
deliver for them.

How will they do that? The gay rights movement that defines itself
mostly on private behaviors will be marching in the streets in
Washington, DC this weekend and making demands on public policy.
They want to redefine marriage.  They insist on teaching children in the public
schools that same-sex marriage is morally equivalent to traditional
marriage. I am asking Georgians of all races to come together on the issue
of traditional marriage and do all we can to protect this sacred institution.

The bottom line of all of this is that the devaluing of marriage has
enormous consequences.  One only needs to look at the research and
statistics from the Netherlands to see how the devaluation of marriage
has caused more and more people not to marry.  The institution of
marriage, one of the oldest on the planet, is the bedrock of
civilization.  And for that reason, all of us need to come together to
protect marriage.

All that said, those who are engaged in homosexual behavior are
people—who need love and forgiveness, and who need to understand the
love of God.  It is hard to engage in cultural battle and still have
people feel that you love and accept them.  Ugly rhetoric,
inappropriate jokes, and ridicule should be off limits. And most
importantly, we need to do a better job in our own marriages so we
don’t lose the moral authority to talk about this issue.  We obviously
have a lot of work to do.

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