We Have Nothing To Fear But Fear Itself

I have been growing ever more uncomfortably aware of the fear levels rising in this country; all this talk of us and them.

See, I've always thought of us in terms of all of us, whatever skin color, age, gender, ethnicity, orientation, religion. If you peel away all of those things, those things that don't truly matter, we are all,each of us, only human.

Human. But lately we have seen humans acting inhuman toward one another, fed by the fear spreading through this country, the fear of them. And I personally know this is true, because, sad as it is to say it, I am a them.

As a gay man I have been used to spark fear in people, to get people to vote away equal rights; to get states to deny me, and others like me, the simple rights and privileges afforded everyone else.

Fear.

People spread the fear of what gay men do to children; fear that if we let gays and lesbians marry, then we'll let pedophiles marry children. Fear.

I was the thing, the them, to be afraid of back in 2004 when George W. Bush was running for reelection and, as a country, we wanted answers about why we were in Iraq. Was it lies that took us their and took some of our lives? We wanted to know. We demanded to know.

But rather than answer our questions, the Bush campaign, along with the help of a deeply closeted, deeply self-loathing homosexual, Ken Mehlman, turned the election conversation into one of fear of the gay community. Fear that LGBT people wanted special rights; fear that we were here to harm children and destroy the very fabric of America.

Fear.

And so it was fear that re-elected George W., Bush. And it was that same fear helped Keith Phoenix and Hakim Scott murder José Sucuzhañay because they assumed he was gay; it was fear that caused Keil Cronauer and Christopher Stanzel to attack Kieran Daly because they were afraid that he'd winked at them. Fear allowed two 17-year-old boys to beat up Steven Harmon for being gay; fear caused Robert Lee Hannah to murder Tony Hunter.

In Texas a young girl was denied entrance into an Episcopal school because her parents are married lesbians. Jill and Tracy Harrison were married in Canada in 2006, and after moving to Texas decided to enroll their child into St. Vincent's School.

On the application, they crossed out the word father, wrote mother, and put Tracy's name on that line. Jill, who gave birth to their daughter via artificial insemination, wrote her name on the first mother line.

They attended the school's parent night, and then, just before school started, their daughter was denied enrollment because her parents are lesbians.

Fear. Of a little girl with two mommies.

The St. Vincent School's handbook, and website, describe the school as non-discriminatory as to race, color, religion and national or ethnic origin, though it does not stipulate that they won't discriminate based on the sexual orientation of a child's parents.

Kenneth Monk, head of the school, said, "We are a church affiliated with the Anglican Church in North America, and it is their policy that we don't provide services to individuals or families that do not behave properly."

Don't behave properly.

Fear of what this child might do in school because she has two mommies.

Fear of the unknown, like in Salt Lake City where police are investigating an instance of vandalism at the Utah Pride Center. Last week an anti-gay slur was painted on the marquee in front of the building.

Fear. Of Fags. Of them.

But while there is still a fear of the LGBT community, each day sees an inch forward of progress; a baby step, as I am apt to call it. So, the conservatives needed a new them, and the Muslims fight right in.

Fear. Fear put in place and set in motion by politicians seeking office. Just listen to what Newt Gingrich and Sarah Palin say about the LGBT community, and about Muslims, and Islam. Listen to the fear they spread.

See, while fear of being gay, being around gay people, allowing gay people equality, or the simple right to not be murdered in the streets, is still around, our conservative politicians needed a new enemy to prop up their base. With fear.

And now it's the Muslims. The new gay.

In Temecula, California, plans to build a mosque have divided the town into those who fear Muslims and those who know better,.

Opponents of the plan say Islam is not a religion, but a political movement bent on taking over the world and squelching freedom in favor of strict religious law.

Pot.Kettle.Black.

Supporters of the project say members of the Islamic Center of Temecula Valley are peaceful, law-abiding citizens who deserve the right to worship their God freely.

Freedom of religion.

Until you bring in fear, and divide people in us and Muslims.

Fear. Down in Jacksonville Florida police are looking for a man who planted a bomb outside a mosque there. Authorities found remnants of a crude pipe bomb in the explosion, which occurred at the Islamic Center of Northeast Florida. Shrapnel from the explosion was found over a hundred yards away.

At the time of the blast about 60 people were inside, praying.

Praying. How frightening.

The firebomb caused only minor damage to the building, and there were no injuries, primarily due to the strength of the mosque building, and the fact that the bomber did not place the device closer to where the people were praying.

If anyone had been closer to the blast, they would have been injured or killed.

Fear. Of prayer.

Fear.

In New York City, Michael Enright hailed a cab.

Upon entering the vehicle, he asked his driver, Ahmed Sharif, if he was Muslim, and when Sharif said he was, Enright pulled out a pocket knife tool and slashed Sharif.

For being Muslim.After all, it's the new them.

Sharif was treated for gashes to his throat, upper lip, forearm and thumb.

Fear.

Recently, an anti-Islamic center protest--and you won't hear me ever call it an anti-mosque rally, because it was never a mosque--turned ugly when a man simply walking through the crowd was mistaken for a Muslim, for one of them, prompting the mob of bigots and cowards to hurl angry, hateful words at him.

Fear. Of a black man in a skull cap.

Black. Skull cap. Muslim.

Fear. Hate.

Aaron Webber of Queens was filming the protest and captured the scene as it unfolded. Later, Webber spoke with Digital Journal and said "the protesters were denouncing Islam itself, not merely the community center project....[Then] things got progressively worse."

The black man in the skull cap was approached by another man who seemed intent on starting an altercation. The black man repeatedly said that he was not Muslim but the angry mob by this time was calling out hate filled words including "Muhammad is a pig."

Fear. Of a community center open to all citizens of New York.

Denouncing one religion's god because of fear.

Rally organizers did try to help the man leave, but not before one person shouted "He must have voted for Obama."

Obama. A Muslim, many conservatives say, and many Americans wrongly believe, to invoke more fear, and hatred, and name-calling, and, yes, stabbings.

The black man in the skull cap was later identified only as Kenny. And Kenny was only walking home from his job as a construction worker on the new buildings at Ground Zero.

He's trying to rebuild, while people stand on street corners attempting to tear him, and the Constitution of the United States, down.

Out of fear.

In Murfreesboro, Tennessee, there was a fire at the future site of a mosque, and the FBI, which is investigating the fire, believes it was arson.

The fire, which struck early one morning at the future site of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro, consumed an earth mover and damaged three other vehicles, according to a spokesperson for the mosque. The Murfreesboro Fire Department believes the vehicles had been doused with an accelerant.

Oddly enough, the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro has existed in the area, without incident, for over a decade, so what happened to spark this fire.

Fear. Mosques. Muslims. Terrorism. Fear. Fire.

Back in July, before the fire, several hundred opponents of the mosque staged a march, some protesting Islam itself by carrying signs that read: "Mosque leaders support killing converts."

Adding more fuel to this fire, Tennessee Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey publicly criticized the project by saying, "You could even argue whether being a Muslim is actually a religion, or is it a nationality, way of life, a cult, whatever you want to call it."

Fear. Of them.

And, as one of them, I grow fearful, too. I wonder what will happen in the next months as fear of Islam and community centers and mosques and children of lesbians grows more prominent. Will Muslims be chased from cities and towns out of fear of them building prayer buildings? Will the LGBT community be forced back into the closet out of fear of a different orientation? And what if that does happen? What if all of the them are forced into hiding, forced to move away, forced to live and love in silence, forced to practices their religion in hiding. Do you really think, once all of them are gone that the collective us that remains won't find someone else to fear?

So, how we combat fear? It really isn't so hard. We speak up. When we hear someone talk about a Ground Zero mosque, you tell them it isn't a mosque, and it isn't even within sight of Ground Zero. When you hear people attack the Church of Islam as a cult, bent on over-throwing our way of life, remind them that it's just another religion, and that most religions, at one time or another, have been labeled cults and demonized, and it hasn't been true. Talk to people about hate crimes against the LGBT community; tell them about little girls who can't go to school because school officials are afraid of their gay parents.

Speak up. I have, and people listen to the facts they understand that there is nothing to fear about a community center in Lower Manhattan. I have and people are shocked at the crimes, both physical and emotional, perpetrated against the LGBT community.

Speak up. Shine a light on fear and it fades away.

A lot of people don't like him, he's too sanctimonious for some, too obviously liberal for others, but listen to Keith Olbermann talk about Park 51, the Islamic community center being built several blocks away from Ground Zero. Listen to him expose the lies of Newt Gingrich and his fear-mongering about Islam and Muslims, because, one day, they may not be anyone listening at all.

One day, we might all of us, be them.

Sources

Child Denied Enrollment

Pride Center Vandalized

Temecula Mosque

Cab Driver Stabbed

Jacksonville Mosque Bomber

Tennessee Mosque

Crowd Harasses Suspected Muslim