Dear Friends,
(01:29) Some lawmakers want to turn back the clock, with Rekha Basu;
(18:38) Two nuns receive prestigious peace award, with Fr. Dave Polich;
(38:21) Walking across the Mojave Desert;
(54:17) April garden Q & A, with Kathy Byrnes Fallon.
Sisters Jeanie and Elaine Hagedorn
First, a quick reminder to Iowans concerned about peace (that’s all of us, right?): Sisters Jeanie and Elaine Hagedorn will receive the prestigious Bishop Dingman Peace Award this Saturday, April 6, at Holy Trinity Church in Des Moines. The award is sponsored by Catholic Peace Ministry, a local non-profit partnering with the Fallon Forum.
Next week, Iowa celebrates the fifteenth anniversary of the unanimous decision by the Iowa Supreme Court to legalize same-sex marriage. Rekha Basu joins me to discuss the importance of that decision — and how the LGBTQ community is again under attack at the Statehouse.
It’s heart-wrenching to see the governor and Republican lawmakers target the LGBTQ community with a barrage of hurtful legislative proposals — some blatantly biased, others more subtle. It’s encouraging to see most Democrats, some Republicans, and a lot of rank-and-file Iowans speak out against these proposals.
Rekha Basu
One such bill just signed by Governor Reynolds is the so-called “Religious Freedom Restoration Act.” Really? Show me where there’s been a loss of religious freedom in America. I’m waiting. Tap, tap, tap.
So, what’s this bill really about?
As Heather Matson (D-Ankeny) points out, the bill “weaponizes religious beliefs to justify discrimination.”
No doubt. My deeper concern is that this bill, and others of its ilk, are part of an effort to establish a theocracy in America. Nothing could be more antithetical to the founding principles of our country than a government of, by, and for “the church” — meaning the narrowest, most biased interpretation of what it means to be Christian.
I have a lot more to say about this, but I want to get back to marriage equality. Rekha and I are among the many public figures who pushed hard for equality well before the 2009 Iowa Supreme Court ruling. Two largely forgotten figures in the early days of the struggle are John Schmacker and Jonathan Wilson, whom I mention on the program.
For three decades, many of Rekha’s columns have focused on justice for gay and lesbian people. Many LGBTQ advocates know the profound, cumulative impact her columns have had on the conversation about equality — both statewide and across the country. Truly, the impact of Rekha’s work cannot be overstated. In addition to her writing, Rekha has been and continues to be a frequent speaker on the subject.
My first involvement was in 1989, when I convinced my church to actively welcome gay and lesbian parishioners. In 1996, after a speech I gave as a lawmaker, I was invited to testify before the US House Judiciary Committee. In the years leading up to Iowa’s marriage equality ruling, my focus was working with Black, Latino, and Labor Union voices who supported equality, bringing Dolores Huerta, Leonard Pitts, and other prominent leaders to Iowa.
While it’s disturbing to see the backlash against the LGBTQ community gaining support at the Iowa Statehouse, it’s encouraging to see many new voices pushing back and finding creative ways to demand equality. I have no doubt that, if enough people speak out and refuse to be cowed by hatred and bigotry, this flirtation with rolling back the clock on civil rights, this anti-Constitutional effort to move America toward a Christian theocracy, will not prevail.
Thanks for reading, listening, and doing your part for a better world.
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Ed Fallon