American Family Association

http://www.afa.net

The American Family Association, founded in 1977, is a non-profit organization set up in Mississippi. The AFA was originally titled the National Federation of Decency, and has now over two million members. AFA's mission is to 'inform, equip, and activate individuals to strengthen the moral foundations of American culture, and give aid to the church here and abroad in its task of fulfilling the Great Commission.' In general, AFA believe that God communicated the 'truth' of mankind, and therefore believe that people are subject to the authority of God's Word at all times. As the website states, AFA believes 'that a culture based on biblical truth best serves the well-being of our nation and our families, in accordance with the vision of our founding documents; and that personal transformation through the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the greatest agent of biblical change in any culture.'

Within their Action Statement, AFA state that they act to:

(1) Restrain evil by exposing the works of darkness

(2) Promote virtue by upholding in culture that which is right, true and good according to Scripture

(3) Convince individuals of sin and challenge them to seek Christ’s grace and forgiveness

(4) Motivate people to take a stand on cultural and moral issues at the local, state and national levels

(5) Encourage Christians to bear witness to the love of Jesus Christ as they live their lives before the world.

To do this, AFA believe in five key areas for activism; Preservation of Marriage and the Family, Decency and Morality, Sanctity of Human Life, Stewardship and Media Integrity. In terms of 'Media Integrity', AFA argue that media creates negative ideologies to children, for example insomuch that it can 'encourage' homosexuality. Therefore, they aim to turn this concept around so that the media is used in a positive way which embodies and preserves AFA's family principles.

In addition to this, AFA have many projects which highlights and helps to encourage these ideas, perhaps the most infamous being One Million Moms. This project reinforces the notion of America being recognised through it's family values and in particular the idea of the nuclear family; a mother, a father and two children. Needless to say, AFA are therefore against homosexuality and abortion, as well as others. AFA also have their own 'Focal Point' blog, whereby their five main areas of interest are discussed. The blog postings range from issues such as terrorism and homosexuality to the suggested Christian references within the Declaration of Independence. AFA take a very radical approach when discussing these subjects, insomuch that it could be seen as offensive. Other examples of their work can be seen in the Proposition 8 ballot - whereby California would amend the state's constitution to protect heterosexual marriage. In support of it, in 2008 AFA produced a documentary, written and produced by the staff at AFA which was distributed to 21,000 churches in California. AFA have stated that 'the video proved to be a valuable tool in the passage of Proposition 8.'

In general, the American Family Association says it all in its name. They aim to be an advocate for Christian Religion throughout America, and believe that by preserving Christian morals and principles American identity will be the way God had intended. AFA encourage people to donate and support their organization, and that by doing this they will be 'do[ing] it for [their] children and grandchildren.' Overall AFA wishes to promote a 'traditional' America, whereby Christian values and morals will preserve the country.

Religion and Identity

http://www.faithfulamerica.org/

Faithful America 'is an online community of tens of thousands of citizens motivated by faith to
take action on the pressing moral issues of our time.' The group demonstrates that religion in American is closely linked to morality and helping others. However, the group does not have an official religion, as it states 'We come from diverse faith traditions.' This is beneficial, because it means the group encompasses a variety of different viewpoints and further, no religious group is discriminated against. Therefore, although America is mainly a Christian country, with 80% of the population stating they are Christian, other religious groups are also significant and can help to improve America.

The group does not limit itself to simply improving America however, as they aim to 'uphold the common good in America and across the globe.' This suggests that the world has many issues which need resolving and faith can help to diminish these issues. However, other nations such as the UK, which is 50% atheist, are unlikely to fully commit to Faithful America's proposals. Yet the group clearly demonstrates confidence in this optimistic statement and it also parallels with America's determination to lead the world in every aspect of life, including social issues.

One of their aims is to 'promote economic security for all,' which is a highly ambitious statement seeing as the class gap between the rich and the poor is arguably increasing in America. This statement also highlights that there is a connection between capitalism and religion. Without money, the world can not become a better place. (This is evident in the presence of their donation page.) The importance of money can also be related to the American Dream, as the majority of Americans are likely to believe that the dream is only achieved through the obtainment of wealth.

Additionally, they wish to 'restore America's commitment to human rights and diplomacy.' This implies that America has declined in its compassion, due to the abuses of human rights being exercised currently. Therefore, the group is basing their principles on the Bill of Rights. Consequently, there is also a link between politics and religion, because without political decisions, improvements can not be enforced. Individual acts of compassion will not suffice with a population of over 300 million. Further, the reference to diplomacy shows that the group wishes for America to have a more dominant role within the world, even though America is largely influential currently. They imply that it is America's duty to protect the vulnerable in other countries from human rights abuses, however there is only so much pressure America can enforce upon other countries. America's vision of democracy does not necessarily appeal to everyone.

Another aim is to 'prevent the catastrophic effects of climate change,' therefore the group wishes to protect the environment as it was created by God. This also suggests that the group is not extreme, because some religious sects, who are usually Evangelicals, hold the belief that America should encourage the end times by continuing to increase global warming. Faithful America appear to be a progressive group, because they are looking towards the future, even though they look towards the past; the Bible, for guidance. One of the ways of reducing the impact of climate change is to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions that America produces. This is a highly difficult task, seeing as the country wishes to maintain its superpower status and is therefore unlikely to decrease its industrial developments.

Their homepage includes many stories which demonstrate the changes that Faithful America are responsible for. For example, the group protested against the 'Family Research President Tony Perkins,' by delivering a petition of '20,000' signatures. Perkins has been accused of an 'extensive record of hate speech against gay and lesbian Americans.' The group is clearly demonstrating a liberal view, because although the Bible states that homosexuality is a sin, Faithful America believes that equality overrules this. Therefore they do not read the Bible literally. Instead, Faithful America claims to be a 'grassroots movement,' therefore it wishes to promote America's traditional values, of democracy, freedom and happiness. But at the same time, it wishes to promote progress through their ambitions to transform society.

Gay identity in contemporary USA

Obama's view on gay marriage is very typical of many people within America at the present time, and more commonly people from the pasts views on same-sex marriage. After receiving what appears to be quite a simple request from the host, "Define marriage", Obama instantly responds and reinforces the fact that he believes marriage is the connection between specifically a man and a woman; which is greeted by a lengthy round of applause from the audience.

Although he does state the fact that due to his Christian beliefs he thinks marriage is something that is holy and involves God, as well as the man and the woman; Obama cleverly makes sure that he doesn't think gay people shouldn't be legally separated as it would go against their human and civil rights- this ensures that he remains popular amongst his people as the president.

What this does show is that America is quite socially undeveloped in respect to its view on gay marriage. In the UK and plenty of other countries worldwide, gay marriage is acceptable and is within the law, however, in some states in the US, it is illegal- proving how Americans aren't always the most welcoming of change and aspects of their culture that are deemed to be different or abnormal.

Many campaigns within America have led to same sex partnerships to become increasingly acceptable in the US, such as the 'It Gets Better' youtube campaign, which aimed to support gay people, especially gay american youths. A large majority of the comments on this video itself focus on how America is a "Free country" and gay people should be allowed to do what they want, and that the government should focus on more important things such as its own debt and the high unemployment rates within America. Despite these supportive comments and campaigns, there are still plenty of Americans who are very set in their traditional ways and are extremely against gay marriage because it goes against the bible- something which is very important as such a high percentage of the American population are Christian. This shows two very contrasting sides of the scale, and explains the conflicting views and importance that beliefs on gay marriage hold within America, in both a religious and a political way.

It Gets Better: Apple Employees

The It Gets Better Project was created by Dan Savage and his husband in 2010 in response to the teen suicides that occur across America because of young people who are bullied because of their sexuality, or their assumed sexuality. The project aims to prevent suicides amongst the youth and instead intends to highlight LGBT members of society and gives them a voice in order to tell their own stories.

The project has gained supporters from all different walks of life, including people from the entertainment industry, such as Lady GaGa, Chris Colfer and Zachary Quinto, but members of politics have also made pledges, including President Obama. The presence of such high profile figures in America putting their names towards the cause helps to highlight the severity of the issue within modern society. No longer is it a case of "don't ask, don't tell", but now LGBT members are encouraged to be who they are.

The video produced by Apple employees is surprisingly significant in the way that it depicts ordinary members of a work force who all share something in common: they have all been discriminated against. Often, it is the case for most LGBT people and sadly the struggle against such prejudice has almost become a part of their identity. However, the Apple employees in this video do talk about their own experiences growing up, but they also contrast it with how they live their lives today. Being discriminated against shouldn't be an essential factor of being a LGBT teen in America. Bullying is not a right of passage and it is not something to be tolerated. Most importantly, the Apple employees stress that it is also not acceptable that so many of them faced suicidal thoughts, let alone actual suicide attempts.

For a young member of the LGBT community, seeing such a video might give them hope for a brighter future. Here is a group of people who work for the same company who have shared similar experiences, who have all been told they are wrong, just like the teens of America have been told today. What is paramount, however, is the fact that here is also a group of people who are not wrong, will not accept that they are wrong, and have got through it. Because they survived, they have these wonderful, everyday experiences that they otherwise wouldn't have had had they taken their own lives.

The fact that such a mainstream company such as Apple is proud of their employees, no matter what their sexual orientation, shows the youth of America that times are changing and will continue to change as they grow older. What seems like a struggle today won't necessarily be a struggle tomorrow, and the more accepting they are of themselves, the more accepting America and the rest of the world will be of their community.

Reality Bytes Back

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxhf3TqP6-k

Reality Bytes Back is an online gossip show, generally focusing on the issues raised by popular TV shows and popular culture. The show does not seem to be too professional as both presenters seem to be more interested in 'bitching' about famous people than actually presenting relevant information.

During this episode,they show a clip of Real Housewife, why is a reality TV show based on 'well off' wives surrounding Orange County region in America. In this particular clip three of the housewives are dining for lunch, and they discuss each other's marriages, however one of

them is a lesbian. This women seems confident enough to not only express her relationship to her friends but also on national television, her confidence in telling, suggests that American seems to be fine with this type of sexuality. Even the show hosts are for gay marriage, saying it's their own choice, however one of the housewives disagrees with lesbian sexuality, describing it as 'not a real marriage'. She then further discriminates against it using her strong religious theory believing that god did not intend for this too happen. Therefore the religious culture or more so Christianity within America is presented as anti-gay, although this is from one women's perspective.

Reality Bytes Back hosts then suggest that the only reason why this anti-gay women is on the 'Housewives' is because she can produce controversy and disproves of gay situations, therefore by believing it would cause controversy it must be unusual behavior, which seems quite true as the show hosts disagree with the anti-gay slurs and perception.

As Reality Bytes Back is a celebrity based news feed, it suggests that the show will try to entice the audience with the most outrageous actions or issues of present time. However this show does not seem to be a reliable source of information as I believe the hosts are generally 'bitching' about a celebrity and the anti-gay slur give them another reason to offend her. Also the actual reality show explores the lives of very privileged women and does not represent the common class and will therefore describe issues that are not relevant to the majority of Americans.

Gay Marriage Within America

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cR4N8oEQR3c

This is a speech made by student Jacob Kraybill of Goshen College, a Christian based institution situated in Indiana. Kraybill makes a very passionate argument toward the legalisation of same sex marriage within America, whilst using the oppressions that he himself faces as a homosexual to strengthen his argument. In general, Kraybill argues that the legalisation of gay marriage should be a concern for all citizens, not just within Indiana, but within the USA as a whole. He states, "I believe the legislation of gay marriage should be a concern for all people in our society...The discrimination that gay couples are subject to everyday is completely unethical and morally wrong. As intelligent compassionate Christians, who care about the marginalised around us, we should recognise this as a social justice issue."

Kraybill uses the example of the gay couple Bill Flanigan and Robert Daniels to reinforce his argument. The pair were registered as domestic partners, as they were unable to legally wed in their home state of California. Regardless, Kraybill states that they did everything they could to achieve the same legal status as heterosexual couples. On a trip to Washington D.C, Robert became unwell and was rushed to hospital. When Bill asked to see Robert and talk to his doctor, Bill was refused as the hospital said that he was not 'part of Robert's family.' Kraybill notes that even with legal documentation (their registered domestic partnership) the hospital still denied him the right to see Robert. It was not until Robert's immediate family arrived, that Bill was granted access. By that time Robert was intensive care and died a few days later. The importance of this is the injustice and segregation that homosexual people suffer everyday. Kraybill also notes how in 2004, the US General Accounting Office released a report stating that there are over 1,000 individual rights and benefits which homosexual people are denied, rights that heterosexual people receive. What is paramount here is that Kraybill is not just arguing for the legislation of same sex marriage, but for equality between man, irrespective of sexual preference.

Furthermore, Kraybill also argues the misconceptions that many Americans view towards homosexuality in general. He argues that a lot of homophobia is based on a lack of knowledge and understanding about the subject. Indeed, this is could be argued to be true, particularly through the Anti-Gay legislation, the proposed 'Don't Teach Gay' bill and the view that if children do not learn about homosexuality, they will not 'become gay'. It is the prejudices that surround the subject, and the fact that people follow them, which distorts the views towards the subject. In effect, it is this which confuses people and children, and not homosexuality itself. Being gay is not a bad thing. It is the discrimination against it which creates the ideology that it is something bad and should not happen. These legislation acts could be seen to only further increase this lack of knowledge and enhance the oppressions that surround homosexuality. Not only this, Kraybill also argues how being homosexual is not a choice and uses his own personal experience to further reinforce this - "I didn't wake up one day and say to myself 'Hey, I think I'll be gay!' The reality is I'm just attracted to the same gender as myself, not because I chose it, but that's because of who I am."

In general, Kraybill's belief is that one of the key steps towards equality is the legislation of same sex marriage. He argues that this legislation would start many homosexual couples on a 'path of change' - a path that would encourage gay and lesbian people to be themselves, without feeling the need or pressure to hide their true identity. For homosexual people to be treated as equals, would allow for acceptance and equality within society. The reference of Bill and Robert's story undoubtedly portrays the significance of the inequality and prejudices that many gay couples still face today. In the words of Kraybill, homosexuality is "... not just a theoretical problem that can be shoved under the carpet. We are alive. And our rights are being denied."

Gay Identity

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioLOxiVgoPA

'The David Pakman Show' discusses the issues surrounding the anti-gay legislation which was proposed in Tennessee in 2011. The 'Don't Teach Gay' bill, if passed, would mean that public and elementary schools would be unable to teach children about homosexuality in any form, instead only heterosexuality would be taught. This bill was proposed by state senator Stacey Campfield, who was unwilling to respond to the request to talk on the radio show. Gay people in America are unable to experience freedom from discrimination if those in high authoritative positions, such as Campfield, discriminate against them, because laws can be passed which will effect the gay community.

The talk show presenter Lewis questions, 'What is the logic here, if they' (the children) 'don't know about it they won't become gay?' Campfield seems to hold this view, however it is extremely unlikely that the lack of education on homosexuality will prevent people from experiences feelings of homosexuality, because it is a natural occurrence, rather than a choice a person makes. However, if the law is passed, the youth of Tennessee will be unable to express their true identity, in fear of being different and also in fear of discrimination, or possibly worse.

The law would force those within schools, such as teachers and principles, to hold the same views as Campfield on homosexuality. Therefore, youths experiencing feelings of homosexuality would 'literally have no-one to discuss it with.' The prejudice against gay people would increase and the support for gay people would decrease.Pakman states that there is scientific evidence to prove that 'early detections of the signs of depression can help prevent suicides.' If even psychiatrists are forced to limit their role within schools by not being able to discuss homosexuality, these youths would become isolated from society, as they attempt to discover their identity without any assistance. This seems incomprehensible, seeing as teachers are supposed to educate children as well as support them. In addition, school is not simply about learning, as it also involves learning about oneself and developing one's identity.

Pakman attempts to understand the purpose behind the proposal, by questioning if the bill would create 'a more moral environment, a more Christian environment?' The bill clearly shows Campfield's strong Republican views, because his aim may be to allow the Bible to be more closely followed amongst the youth. For example, God teaches Moses, 'Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.' Leviticus 18:22. The conflict between homosexuality and religion is still evident in contemporary USA today, because the country is still largely religious. Therefore, it could be argued that if an American is gay, they are disobeying the Bible and consequently disobeying the word of God. This would make them immoral and as a result, their true identity should be hidden from society as they provide an unhealthy example to others.

The legislation 'does bring up issues of free speech,' because teachers would be controlled, when instead they should be allowed freedom to a certain extent in what they can teach. But moreover, the youths themselves will be unable to discuss homosexuality, even though freedom of speech is a right within the Constitution. The absence of homosexuality within schools would hinder education instead of improving it, because gays exist within America therefore youths need to be taught about their presence. This law implies that gay people are unworthy of being discussed, but in reality, gays are able to become successful and exercise intelligence just like anyone else. For example, 'would a school library be failing to comply with the law if there was a book on the shelf where a character is gay?' The work of gay people should be used within schools because it offers a broader insight into the world we live in. Children should not be taught to view the world from a narrow-minded perspective. If America is truly the land of freedom and democracy, gay identity should be recognised rather than ignored.