Indiana Gov. Mike Pence won't say who the smiling bigots and homophobes were at the signing ceremony for the hateful SB 101, but many have been identified, and more could be. Any assistance in naming and shaming the rest of them will be greatly appreciated. Let's start with this photo. Look how happy they are!
The short version from USA Today is that these are
supportive lawmakers, Franciscan monks and nuns, orthodox Jews, and some of the state's most powerful lobbyists on conservative social issues.
More from other news sources and some of the parties themselves below the Orange Pennon of Satanic Pride.
This Diary began as a comment in The Company You Keep or just a big misunderstanding?. We have had a remarkable number of Diaries on this Refuse-Gays-Service Act, Indiana SB101, and its consequences, mainly outrage and calls for a boycott, since it was signed. I republished some of them to Indianapolis Kossacks, but by no means all of them. A site search here on the term "Indiana" over the last five days turned up 65 hits yesterday on little else. The NCAA cannot move this year's Final Four, scheduled for next weekend, out of Indianapolis, but it is seriously considering doing so for next year. Given that basketball is even more of a religion than Christianity among many in Indiana (^\_^), this would really hurt. The state will lose a lot of other business, too. But my topic is just identifying the honored homophobic hypocrites who were invited to the signing ceremony. USA Today: Ind. governor signs 'religious freedom' bill in private
Pence signed the bill during a private ceremony in his Statehouse office Thursday morning. He was joined by supportive lawmakers, Franciscan monks and nuns, orthodox Jews, and some of the state's most powerful lobbyists on conservative social issues. Three of the lobbyists who pushed hardest for last year's gay marriage ban — Micah Clark of the American Family Association of Indiana, Curt Smith of the Indiana Family Institute and Eric Miller of Advance America — were among the 70 to 80 guests invited to the private bill signing.
The Franciscans are a very diverse group consisting of a number of different orders of monks, nuns, friars and sisters, monastics, mendicants, and seculars, all following versions of the Rule of St. Francis, but bitterly divided on all of the issues that divide all Catholics, including LGBT rights. The rabbi in the official signing group photo has been identified as Yisrael Gettinger of Orthodox Congregation B’nai Torah. He is well known as an opponent of Marriage Equality. Gay marriage ban: The case for
Rabbi Yisrael Gettinger, of Congregation B'nai Torah in Indianapolis, said his Orthodox Jewish tradition is equally clear that homosexual activity is, biblically speaking, "outlawed." "One cannot be more certain of something being inappropriate if it's called an abomination in the Bible," Gettinger said. "Those are not my words. Those are the Bible's words. Those are God's words."
AFA-IN:
What separation of church and state?
IFI, an affiliate of Focus on the Family:
Efforts by organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union and the Freedom From Religion Foundation are underway to restrict our right to hold to our religious beliefs at work, on a school or university campus, at church, or even when you turn out to vote your values.
Advance America (Not to be confused with the payday lender of the same name at a .net address). Here is what Gov. Pence has to say about them.
YouTube Video
This state owes a debt of gratitude to Eric Miller and Advance America for making this state a better place for the common sense and common values that make this state great.
That would be this Eric Miller: Bigot, Martyr, and Palm Leaf Cluster. ^\_^
Eric Miller, the Founder and Executive Director of Advance America stated: “It is vitally important to protect religious freedom in Indiana. It’s the right thing to do. It was therefore important to pass Senate Bill 101 in 2015 in order to help protect churches, Christian businesses and individuals from those who want to punish them because of their Biblical beliefs!”
The Indianapolis Star: Pastor proud to be in Pence 'religious freedom' photo
Gov. Mike Pence's office wouldn't identify the religious leaders who posed in a photo with him during his private signing of the divisive religious freedom law. But that doesn't mean they are shy about identifying themselves. "I am the one in the second row between the Rabbi with the hat and the Franciscan Sister," said the Rev. Larry Gember in an email to The Indianapolis Star. Gember, pastor of St. James Lutheran Church in Greenfield, said he was proud to identify himself and suspected the governor opted not to ID everyone in the photo to protect them from the "vitriolic behavior" of some of the law's opponents.
The Indianapolis Star did a bit more digging. Who attended religious freedom bill signing? Gov. Pence’s office won’t say
The photo includes Pence sitting at his desk, surrounded by 18 others. The legislation’s primary sponsors – Sen. Scott Schneider, Sen. Dennis Kruse, and Rep. Tim Wesco – are pictured. So, too are several Franciscan monks, nuns, and orthodox Jews. One of the monks appears to be Fr. David Mary Engo of the Franciscan Brothers Minor in New Haven. He testified in favor of the bill during legislative hearings.
The FBM Facebook page prominently links to
An unbiased review of the true intent of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act signed this morning by Governor Mike Pence. Law professor: Why Indiana needs 'religious freedom' legislation Most religious freedom claims have nothing to do with same-sex marriage or discrimination.
They claim that they have no interest in persecuting LGBTs, and the law professor, Daniel O. Conkle, says that he supports LGBT rights. But he admits in the article
Under the Indiana RFRA, those who provide creative services for weddings, such as photographers, florists or bakers, could claim that religious freedom protects them from local nondiscrimination laws.
Here is the official Indiana Senate legislative page for the bill. It lists three authors, ten co-authors, and 26 sponsors. (My Senator Milo Smith was unsurprisingly a sponsor.) One other Republican voted for the bill in the Senate, and seven voted with the Democrats against it. Senate Bill 101 The complete vote tally in the House, broken out by Party, is given in Indiana House OKs controversial religious freedom bill The Senate vote tally is given on a page at the legislative site. Having done this research, I thought I ought to post my results as a separate Diary. If anyone can ID more of these people, I will add them to the Diary in updates.
Wed Apr 01, 2015 at 2:46 PM PT: Cuban refugee Fr. David Mary Engo is the Superior of the FBM of Fort Wayne IN, which includes an establishment on New Haven Street. As you can tell from their robes, they are Traditionalist Catholics who reject everything in the Church since the Vatican II Ecumenical Council. The nuns are from the associated Franciscan Sisters Minor.