Over the past decade, many anti-LGBT advocates have fought to share the spotlight against marriage equality, reports the Human Rights Campaign on the HRC Blog. They have done countless interviews, made documentaries, introduced legislation and have traveled the globe to stand against loving, committed same-sex couples and the LGBT community.
Here are some of the nation’s most notorious and outspoken opponents of equality for LGBT people:
Maggie Gallagher – Former President, National Organization for Marriage (NOM): Gallagher, a leader of the anti-LGBT movement, co-founded NOM, the leading anti-LGBT equality group in the U.S. Throughout her career, she has made a long list of atrocious accusations and lies. She has equated same-sex marriage with adultery, claimed polygamy is better than same-sex marriage and has avidly opposed anti-discrimination laws. She has also suggested that gay people can “control” their behavior, admitting she sees homosexuality as “an unfortunate thing” and that both same-sex couples and supporters of marriage equality are “committing several kinds of very serious sins.”
Brian Brown – President, National Organization for Marriage: Brown became president of NOM in September 2011, cutting his anti-equality chops at the Family Institute of Connecticut, which he led from 2001-2007. Under Brown’s leadership, NOM has tried – and failed—to block the national momentum for marriage equality. After losing the fight at nearly every turn, NOM is now taken its mission across the ocean to a more receptive audience.
Since 2012, Brown has publicly supported anti-LGBT movements in France, Russia, Australia, Spain and Trinidad and Tobago. Strong evidence has emerged that NOM is planning to formalize its worldwide mission of hate with the launch of an “International Organization for Marriage.” Last year, he was featured in HRC Global’s newest report, Exposed: The Export of Hate.
Roy Moore – Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court: Moore made headlines earlier this year when he attempted to stop marriage equality in Alabama. He urged state governors to sign on to his campaign to define marriage as between one man and one woman and repeatedly attempted to block probate judges from complying with a federal ruling striking down the state’s discriminatory same-sex marriage ban. He also told the Associated Press that, “The moral foundation of our country is under attack.”
While Moore was previously removed by the state’s Supreme Court in 2003 for ignoring the order of a federal court, an ethics complaint with the Judicial Inquiry Commission of Alabama was filed again this year seeking the removal of Chief Justice Roy Moore from the state supreme court for violating the obligations of his office. HRC Alabama also filed an Alabama Open Records request for the government email and phone records of Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore.
Anita Bryant – Singer, Entertainer and Anti-LGBT Spokesperson: Throughout her career, Anita Bryant took pride in her “national crusade” against LGBT rights. While she frequently spoke about sin and the threat LGBT people are to children and led rallies across the nation, she is best known for being pied in the face during a press conference.
Jesse Helms – American Senator: In his term as Senator, Helms became infamous for outrage and disgust with the LGBT community. He introduced multiple discriminatory measures in the 80s and 90s and opposed the appointment of Roberta Achtenberg, LGBT people serving in the military and HIV/AIDS research. When marriage equality came into the headlines in the 1990s, Helms told a reporter, ““They even want to get married. How do you like them apples?”
Sally Kern – Oklahoma State Legislator: Since elected into office in 2005, Kern has come out against the LGBT community and same-sex marriage. She once claimed that LGBT people are a bigger threat to the nation than terrorism and has sponsored and promoted a slew of anti-LGBT legislation throughout her career. In an interview in 2009, she reiterated her opposition to same-sex marriage, explaining, “Granting marriage status to homosexuals who comprise little more than 3 percent of the population would be like granting all applicants admission to a prestigious college just because a few meet the qualifications. That school’s status would fall. Likewise, the status of marriage will fall if same-sex marriage is legalized.”
This month, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) will hear oral arguments as they prepare to decide whether the U.S. Constitution allows for states to discriminate against same-sex couples by denying them the right to marry or refusing to recognize their marriages performed in jurisdictions where they are legal.
While the historic Supreme Court cases in 2013 (United States v. Windsor and Hollingsworth v. Perry) struck down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act and brought marriage equality back to California, the current case before SCOTUS has the potential to allow for nationwide marriage equality.
