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News Release Archives 2009 - Part I
 

News Release
For Immediate Release:  June 30, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Traditional Values Group Urges Allegheny County Council to Defeat Discriminatory Ordinance

(Pittsburgh) – Tomorrow evening the Allegheny County Council is poised to vote on a homosexual special rights ordinance which will discriminate against those with deeply held religious beliefs that homosexuality, bisexuality and transgenderism are wrong.  It will also force all businesses with four or more employees to hire homosexuals, bisexuals and transgenders.  A so-called ‘religious exemption’ was added on June 18^th and voted out of committee at that time.  Today the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional values group, faxed each of the Allegheny County Council members outlining the ramifications to the county if Ordinance 4201-08 is passed.

“Those Council members who support this ordinance don’t realize the dangerous situations that will be created if they pass Ordinance 4201-08.  How many grandfathers, husbands and fathers in Allegheny County want their granddaughters, wives and daughters forced to use the same public restroom as a man who thinks he is a woman.  The June 18^th ‘religious exemption’ amendment was simply a feel good amendment and did nothing to make a disastrous bill good,” commented Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

·         A religious exemption will not prevent businesses from being forced to hire men who will come to work dressed as a woman. 

·         It will not prevent county pools from being forced to allow these same men who think they are women to use the women’s locker and shower facilities. 

·         The Boy Scouts would face discrimination if this ordinance passes because they ban open homosexual leaders and members.  Under this ordinance this would be deemed discriminatory and the Scouts would be prevented from using government facilities.  Currently Troop 350 uses the Castle Shannon Borough Building for their meetings.  This would end if Councilwoman Joan Cleary continues her support of Ordinance 4201-08 and it passes.

·         Day care centers would be forced to hire homosexuals, bisexuals and transgenders.  So the question children will have for their parents will be, “Why is that man wearing a dress?”

“One of the reasons the supporters of this ordinance is using to get it passed is that it will help the economy of Allegheny County.  That same reason has been used before in other places, but it has made no difference.  Erie County which has such an ordinance is facing a budget crisis as is Philadelphia which has had this type ordinance even longer.   And apparently Pittsburgh’s homosexual special rights ordinance hasn’t helped them either as they have ongoing financial problems,” further commented Gramley.

The real purpose of this ordinance is to give special rights to homosexuals, bisexuals and transgenders.  This effort completely ignores the fact that civil rights protection has historically been extended in consideration of immutable or unchangeable characteristics, political powerlessness and the inability to earn a livable wage.  Homosexuality is changeable, thousands of ex-gays attest to that, homosexuals are not politically powerless and they are able to make a decent wage.   Ordinance 4201-08 is not necessary and the majority of people in Allegheny County do not support it.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  June 25, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

PA Human Relations Commission Chair Has Ties to Radical Homosexual Activist

(Harrisburg) --  Until recently it was a little known fact that Stephen Glassman, Chairman of the PA Human Relations Commission, was a board member of the radical Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network (GLSEN).   Upon the appointment of Kevin Jennings, the founder and former Executive Director of GLSEN, on May 19 to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office Safe and Drug Free Schools, a 1998 article was uncovered that revealed Glassman’s connection to GLSEN and Jennings.   The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide pro-family and education group has faxed Governor Ed Rendell to voice concerns about Stephen Glassman’s connection to such a radical group. 

“Many times in the past the AFA of PA has voiced concerns about Stephen Glassman’s agenda in using his position as chairman of the PA Human Relations Commission as a bully pulpit to promote the homosexual lifestyle.    However, to discover that he was a former board member of GLSEN is probably the most troubling and poses a greater danger to Pennsylvania’s children,” commented Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

GLSEN, apparently with the full support of Stephen Glassman, seeks to normalize homosexual acts by teaching children as young as kindergarten that ‘gay is okay’ and if you think you are homosexual, then act upon those thoughts and feelings.  GLSEN’s recommended book list has also included books that go into graphic detail of sexual encounters between older men and teenage boys. 

When Governor Rendell took office in 2003 he ‘promoted’ Glassman from PA Human Relations Commissioner to Chairman of the Commission. 

·         Within a few years Glassman was supporting bills that would add ‘sexual orientation and gender identity or expression’ to the PA Human Relations Act and the PA Fair Educational Opportunities Act – the two acts that fall under the responsibility of the PA Human Relations Commission to enforce.  Glassman has continued his support of bills like H.B. 1400 last session and H.B. 300 this session, both through testimony and lobbying.

·         Each time a Marriage Protection Amendment bill has been introduced in Harrisburg Glassman has worked against its passage.  Additionally, in July 2006 Glassman signed onto a letter entitled, ‘Beyond Same-Sex Marriage -- A NEW STRATEGIC VISION FOR ALL OUR FAMILIES & RELATIONSHIPS.”  It’s purpose was to “seek to offer friends and colleagues everywhere a new vision for securing governmental and private institutional recognition of diverse kinds of partnerships, households, kinship relationships and families.”

·         He has lobbied local municipalities to add ‘sexual orientation and gender identity to their Human Relations Ordinances.  Most recently, in November, he was in Pittsburgh testifying before the Allegheny County Council in support of Ordinance 4201-08 – an ordinance that would create a countywide Human Relations Commission and an Allegheny County ordinance which would include ‘sexual orientation and gender identity’ in the list of protected classes.

The AFA of PA has asked Governor Rendell to remove Stephen Glassman from the PA Human Relations Commission.

“In light of this more recent revelation about Glassman, it has become increasingly evident that his continued involvement in the PA Human Relations Commission is not in the best interest of Pennsylvania and the majority of her citizens both young and old,” concluded Gramley.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  June 19, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

New Democrat Specter “Comes Out of Closet” to Fully Support Homosexual Agenda

(Harrisburg)  While Senator Arlen Specter was a Republican he usually voted to promote everything homosexual – one of the reasons he was considered a RINO – Republican In Name Only.    But last weekend’s Philly Pride Parade and Festival was the first time he had attended a homosexual event.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide pro-family group, noted that this apparently is an effort to garner more of the homosexual vote in Specter’s 2010 re-election bid  - more evidence that he is  greatly concerned about the strength of his likely Republican opponent, former Congressman Pat Toomey.  

“Republican Specter’s many votes promoting homosexuality was one of the reasons so many said it was hard to tell the Republicans from the Democrats.  Unfortunately, he is not the only RINO in the party. Specter apparently is more comfortable as a Democrat and does not fear voter retaliation if he participates in a homosexual event,” Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA said.

Southeastern Pennsylvania with the anti-family, anti-Christian  influence of Philadelphia spreading like a cancer does not represent the rest of the Commonwealth.  Thus Senator Specter does not represent the vast majority of Pennsylvanians who opposes the validation of the homosexual lifestyle through the force of law.  He best represents his hometown of Philadelphia.

Senator Specter’s support of the hate crime law and the Employment Non-Discrimination Act fit into the Democratic platform.   His party switch places him in a party which better represents his political stands, but it does not change the fact that he does not represent the political stands of most Pennsylvanians.

As Specter continues to openly reveal his radical positions it will not bode well for his re-election in 2010.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  June 5, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley   1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Parents Should be VERY Concerned with Kevin Jennings’ Appointment to Safe and Drug Free Schools

(Harrisburg) –  On May 19, very quietly and under the radar screen, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan appointed homosexual activist Kevin Jennings to the post of Assistant Deputy Secretary, Office of Safe & Drug Free Schools.    The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA) is repulsed by the idea that Jennings, who has a twisted idea of safety, will help make official policy for our nation’s school children.

“Since Jennings was one of President Obama’s fundraisers during his campaign, apparently this is payback time by giving Jennings access to America’s impressionable children to further indoctrinate them that ‘gay is okay,’” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

Kevin Jennings is the founder of the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network (GLSEN) and was its Executive Director until August 2008.  Under his leadership GLSEN has sponsored events where pornographic material was handed out (Brookline High School, Brookline, MA in 2005), how to sessions on engaging in homosexual acts (this became known as Fistgate) were given to school children (high school conference held at Tufts University in 2000) and he  has created political activists out of high schools students through GLSEN’s “Days of Action” such as Day of Silence, TransAction Day and Ally Week.

In a White Plains, New York GLSEN conference in 2006, the theme of Dani Newsum's keynote address was the 'Ally' concept, getting straight kids to support and fight for homosexual 'rights.' She stated that heterosexist- thinking (that all people are born heterosexual) is 'sick, unhealthy, not accepted.'

In his book One Teacher in Ten, Kevin Jennings reported the story of a 15-year-old boy named "Brewster" who came to him in 1989 for assistance. Jennings said the boy was having difficulty in school and did not know why. However, during a speech in Iowa five years ago, Jennings stated that "Brewster" had confided to him that he had a sexual encounter with an older man in Boston. Jennings claims he responded to the teen by saying, "I hope you knew to use a condom." The apparent case of sex abuse was not reported to authorities.

“Kevin Jennings, along with Arne Duncan who supported the ‘gay school’ in Chicago, only spells trouble for our nation’s schools . . . trouble that they cannot afford.  Our schools are being used in a great social experiment and it’s the children who are the guinea pigs,” Gramley said.

She was referring to a recent article by Walter Williams entitled, “Dumbest Generation Getting Dumber,” where he opens with this sentence:  “The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) is an international comparison of 15-year-olds conducted by The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) that measures applied learning and problem-solving ability. In 2006, U.S. students ranked 25th of 30 advanced nations in math and 24th in science. McKinsey & Company, in releasing its report "The Economic Impact of the Achievement Gap in America's Schools" (April 2009) said, "Several other facts paint a worrisome picture. First, the longer American children are in school, the worse they perform compared to their international peers.”

“Apparently the longer our children are in school the more social engineering they are involved in and the less academic learning takes place.  Kevin Jennings will use this new appointment to further his social engineering agenda, all under the guise of ‘safe schools,’  while our kids and our nation continue losing in the world market of ideas,” concluded Gramley.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  May 28, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Legalizing Same-sex Marriage -- Senator Leach is Wrong Again, Pro-family Group Says

(Harrisburg) – Yesterday Senator Daylin Leach introduced what proponents of homosexual “marriage” call a “marriage equality” bill.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a supporter of natural one man one woman marriage, opposes this assault on true marriage.

“Senator Leach is yet again out of step with the majority of Pennsylvanians.  One day earlier this year he introduced a bill to force insurance coverage of contraceptives  and another to force hospitals to provide emergency contraceptives to sexual assault victims.  About a week and a half later he introduced a bill to legalize physician assisted suicide.  Now he introduces a so-called marriage equality bill -- further proof he does not understand Pennsylvania or her people,” Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA noted.

In September 2005 the Philadelphia Inquirer reported on an offensive blog maintained by then State Representative Leach.   The writer of that article stated, “His blog is laced with references to pornography and strip clubs, a lust for whiskey and women, and disdain for President Bush and Céline Dion.  Then there are some politically incorrect quips about Palestinians and "a third-world type" who cleans hotel rooms.”   After complaints from the AFA of PA, local public outcry and a letter from Barry Morrison, then regional director of the Anti-Defamation League in Philadelphia, calling some of Leach’s  writings "offensive" and complaining that they "reinforced negative stereotypes,” Daylin Leach permanently removed his blog. 

“Newly elected PA Senator Daylin Leach is among those trying to hijack the civil rights movement by equating homosexuality with race and ethnicity.  Unnatural homosexual ‘marriage’ has nothing to do with equality and civil rights and everything to do with 2 percent of the nation’s population trying to remake marriage in their image.   The majority of Pennsylvania voters want their legislators to give them an opportunity to vote on a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman, not move in the direction Leach is headed,” further stated Gramley.

Senator John Eichelberger’s marriage protection amendment would get Pennsylvania back in the mainstream of America and join the thirty states that have already passed constitutional amendments defining marriage as between one man and one woman. 

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  May 26, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

President Obama Fails in Choice of Supreme Court Nominee

(Harrisburg)  -- President Obama’s choice of Sonja Sotomayor to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter does not reflect what Americans want in a justice within in the nation’s court system, noted the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional values group.

“The American people do not want a judicial activist sitting on the bench, who views our Constitution as a living, changing document.   The President has chosen a nominee who will indulge her left-wing policy preferences instead of neutrally applying the law.  Obama’s choice of Sotomayor fully exposes how he interprets the United States Supreme Court’s role as one of creating policy, not interpreting the law with our Constitution as a standard.  Even though his choice of Sotomayor will not change the makeup of the Court, it does not bode well for potential future nominations,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

Judge Sotomayor has repeatedly stated that the courts are where policy is made, although she has recently backed away from those statements, apparently that’s her judicial philosophy in a nutshell.  She also has stated that race and personal experience should play a role in legal decision. 

·         Judge Sotomayor will allow her feelings and personal politics to stand in the way of basic fairness.  In a recent case, Ricci v. DeStefano, Sotomayor sided with a city that used racially discriminatory practices to deny promotions to firefighters.  The per curiam opinion Sotomayor joined went so far out of its way to bury the firefighters’ important claims of unfair treatment that her colleague, Judge Jose Cabranes, a Clinton appointee, chastised her.

• According to Judge Cabranes, Sotomayor’s opinion “contains no reference whatsoever to the constitutional claims at he core of this case” and its “perfunctory disposition rests uneasily with the weighty issues presented by this appeal.”  Even the liberal Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen expressed disappointment with the case, stating, “Ricci is not just a legal case but a man who has been deprived of the pursuit of happiness on account of race.”

• Sotomayor’s terrible decision in Ricci is under review by the Supreme Court and an opinion is expected by the end of June. 

·         Sotomayor readily admits that she applies her feelings and personal politics when deciding cases.  In a 2002 speech at Berkeley, she stated that she believes it is appropriate for a judge to consider their “experiences as women and people of color,” which she believes should “affect our decisions.”  She went on to say in that same speech “I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experience would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life.”  She reiterated her commitment to that lawless judicial philosophy at Duke Law School in 2005 when she stated that the “Court of Appeals is where policy is made.”

·         The poor quality of Sotomayor’s decisions is reflected in her terrible record of reversals by the Supreme Court.  Judge Sotomayor has had 5 decisions reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court, 3 of which have been reversed.  In Knight v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, Chief Justice Roberts stated that her method of reading the statute in question “flies in the face of the statutory language.”

·         Sotomayor is a favorite of far left special interest groups.  In addition to her record as a hard left judicial activist, Sotomayor has been recommended for the Supreme Court by Nan Aron of the very liberal Alliance for Justice, who stated in a 2004 memo to the Senate Judiciary Committee that Sotomayor had “been through an initial vetting and fit into the criteria that we believe should be the standard for any Supreme Court justice.”

·         Sotomayor is not a bipartisan pick simply because Bush 41 appointed her to the district court.  President George H.W. Bush nominated Sotomayor in 1991 only because the New York senators had forced on the White House a deal that enabled Senator Moynihan to name one of every four district-court nominees in New York.   In 1998, 29 Republican senators voted against President Clinton’s nomination of Sotomayor to the Second Circuit.

Additionally,

·         Despite 17 years on the bench, Sotomayor has never directly decided whether a law regulating abortion is constitutional.

·         Sotomayor does not believe that the Second Amendment right to bear arms applies to individuals.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  May 26, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.8914.437.5355

California Supreme Court Upholds Will of the People, But  . . .

(Harrisburg) – Today’s decision by the California Supreme Court to uphold Proposition 8 which places the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman in that state’s constitution was the right decision.  Proposition 8’s November 4^th clear 5-point victory expressed the will of the people of California and the Supreme Court refrained from judicial activism in upholding the voters’ will.   However, by not negating the 18,000 so-called same-sex marriages performed between June 17^th and November 4^th, the court has ignored a problem they created, noted the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA). 

“On June 4, 2008 a request to stay the court’s order to permit so-called same-sex marriage until after the November 4^th vote on California’s Proposition 8 was denied by the California Supreme Court.   The whole issue of what to do with 18,000 same-gender ‘marriages’ could have been avoided by a decision to stay the order,” remarked Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

Historically constitutional amendments have not allowed a practice to be grandfathered.   When the Thirteenth Amendment was ratified, all slavery was ended.  Slave owners at the time of the ratification could not claim grandfather rights in order to continue owning their slaves.  Even so, the California Supreme Court should have dissolved the 18,000 same-gender “marriages” because in not doing so it places Pennsylvania and other states without Marriage Protection Amendments (MPA) at risk.

“The 18,000 California unnatural marriages should cause great concern to all who know what marriage really is.  Of greater concern should be that a state Supreme Court refuses to undo the damage they made.  Because of their refusal any of those individuals involved in these so-called marriage could come to Pennsylvania or any other state without a MPA and challenge that state’s Defense of Marriage Act,” further remarked Gramley.

The California Supreme Court’s inability to do the right thing on both issues that were before them places California in unknown territory.

“Homosexual activists plan protests this evening in response to the decision.   Will they be violent as they were right after the passage of Proposition 8?  Will they target the individuals and businesses that donated to the passage of Proposition 8? 

 Will they target the churches and pastors who supported Prop 8?  The true face of those pushing for the normalcy of the homosexual lifestyle will once again be revealed tonight,” noted Gramley.

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ews Release
For Immediate Release:  May 19, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Introduction of Pennsylvania Marriage Protection Amendment Announced

(Harrisburg) – Today Senator John Eichelberger (R-30) announced his plans to introduce Pennsylvania’s Marriage Protection Amendment.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA) fully supports his efforts and believes Pennsylvania must act quickly to preserve natural marriage.

“Senator Eichelberger knows the majority of Pennsylvanians support one man one woman marriage and simply want an opportunity to vote on the definition of marriage.  As we see homosexual activists working over time in the New England states and judicial activism in Iowa which was specifically targeted because of its liberal Supreme Court judges and lack of residency laws, it is time for Pennsylvania legislators to do what is right and allow the people to vote,” commented Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

Pennsylvania is one of a minority of states that has not passed a constitutional amendment defining marriage as solely between one man and one woman.  Thus far thirty states have passed Marriage Protection Amendments including California.  The people have spoken in those states and taken the additional step beyond a Defense of Marriage Act to amend their state constitution.

“We need only look at the Iowa case to see that a Defense of Marriage Act is not sufficient.  Because of our lengthy constitution amendment process, we cannot wait any longer.  Pennsylvania’s children deserve to be protected and deserve to know what real marriage is – that which is between a man and a woman.  Surely legislators can get it right on this third try,” further remarked Gramley.

The possibility of New York and New Jersey passing laws legalizing same-sex marriage soon makes this issue even more important.  Historically marriage has been between the opposite sexes and it has been proven that children do best when raised by their married biological mother and father.  In recent years the desires of adults have been placed ahead of what is best for children in this attempt to redefine marriage.   A nation that does not protect its children is in trouble.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  May 2, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

PA Governor Rendell and Anti-Family Equality Forum

(Philadelphia) – As Governor Rendell is the Honorary Dinner Chair at Equality Forum’s ‘International Equality Dinner’ tonight, he turns his back on the majority of Pennsylvanians.   The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA) notes this is further evidence of Rendell’s inability to connect with or even understand that Pennsylvanians do not believe the homosexual lifestyle is normal and don’t want their elected officials to force that agenda. 

This event is part of Equality Forum’s week-long event of panel discussions and seminars discussing homosexual marriage, adoption by homosexuals, ‘religion’, transgenders, bisexuals and health issues.    Additionally, one session is about the LGBT sensitivity training given to the Philadelphia Police Department.  Its overall purpose, with the help of our tax dollars, is to undermine traditional marriage and family. 

Equality Forum is using the International Equality Dinner  this year to honor San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsome who briefly legalized same-sex marriage in 2004.  His illegal activity was quickly shutdown by the courts.   They’ve also chosen to honor the very liberal New York Times which is one of America’s most homosexual-friendly news sources.    It is so liberal a national boycott has been called.  

“San Francisco and the New York Times go hand in hand, evidenced by the booth at last year’s sadomasochism fest Folsom Street Fair. I suppose it’s only fitting that Governor Rendell, Mayor Newsome and the New York Times share the same stage.  They have the same goals . . . to destroy traditional marriage and traditional family and to ‘normalize’ through the force of law a very dangerous lifestyle,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

The AFA of PA calls on Governor Rendell to stop permitting the use of our tax dollars through Department of Community and Economic Development grants to anti-family activities like Equality Forum.  During this time of a $1 billion financial shortfall in the 2008 and 2009 budget, every penny should be used wisely.  Tax payers increasingly are expressing discontentment over the misuse of their tax dollars.   As Governor Rendell and the legislative body works out the budget, they should keep the taxpayers—their bosses --  in mind.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:   April 30, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

As Hate Crimes Bill Passes  13  Pennsylvania Congressmen Give Protections to Pedophiles

(Harrisburg) – Yesterday’s 249-175vote to pass H.R. 1913 out of the House shows either a lack of understanding on the dangers of this bill or a total sellout to a politically powerful special  interest group.  Thirteen Pennsylvania Congressmen voted to restrict free speech and for the eventual criminal prosecution of religious leaders and members of religious groups based on their speech and previously protected activities.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide pro-family organization, also expressed concern that this poorly written bill would lead to protections being extended to pedophiles and those involved in bestiality.

“H.R. 1913 has no definition of sexual orientation and an amendment to specifically say pedophiles would not be protected was voted down by Democrats with lesbian Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) saying it was not necessary.  So, apparently the 249 who voted in favor of this bill believe pedophiles should be a protected class under the civil rights law.  And apparently they believe the other sexual orientations should be protected also, ” Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA noted today.

This bill has nothing to do with ‘hate,’ but everything to do about those pushing for the normalcy of the homosexual lifestyle.  Wyoming did not have a hate crimes law when Matthew Shepherd was killed, yet his murderers are spending the rest of their lives in jail.  That state still does not have a hate crimes law, yet murder, assault and battery and vandalism are still prosecuted. 

“There is no need for so-called hate crime laws.  Such laws create unequal protection under the law giving greater legal protection to those on ‘the list.’   This goes  directly against the 14^th Amendment of the Constitution which says ‘nor (shall any state) deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.’   H.R. 1913 adds an enhanced sentence of 10 years imprisonment if it is deemed the perpetrators thoughts are hateful at the time of the commission of the crime,” further noted Gramley.

Additionally, we here in Pennsylvania know first hand how these laws can be used to deny the First Amendment rights of speech and assembly to those who believe that engaging in homosexual acts are sinful.  In October 2004 eleven Christians were arrested, jailed and charged with hate crimes while singing choruses and reading Scripture at a homosexual event in Philadelphia.  They were charged under the ethnic intimidation law in which the legislature had added ‘sexual orientation and gender identity’ in November 2002.  In December 2004 the Philadelphia prosecutor said the Bible was hate speech.

Pennsylvania Congressman Jason Altmire, Robert Brady, Kathy Dahlkemper, Charles Dent (R), Michael Doyle, Chakah Fattah, Jim Gerlach  (R ), Tim Holden, Paul Kanjorski, Patrick Murphy, Todd Russell Platts (R ), Allyson Schwartz, and Joe Sestak voted in favor of pedophiles and arresting pastors and priests.  Congressman John Murtha, who has supported such bills in the past, did not vote.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  April 30, 2009
Contact: Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

American Family Association of Pennsylvania Joins Groups Asking for Resignation of Department of Homeland Security Secretary

(Harrisburg)  -- Twenty-two groups are sponsoring ads asking for the resignation or removal of Department of Homeland Security  (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano in response to the ‘Rightwing Extremism” report issued on April 7, 2009. The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a traditional values group, joined the coalition asking for Napolitano’s resignation. 

“This outrageous report states that those advocating for smaller government, more state’s rights (the 10^th Amendment), the right to bear arms, traditional one man one woman marriage and opposes abortion should be viewed as potential domestic terrorists.  Soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan should also be closely monitored by DHS and viewed as potential terrorists.  This report was sent to all law enforcement throughout the country targeting those who hold traditional values and we are supposed to just sit by and do nothing in response?  Napolitano must go,” Diane Gramley, President of the AFA of PA remarked.

The full page color ad is currently appearing in the Washington Times and will begin appearing in other major news outlets soon.

The ad demands Napolitano's resignation or removal, retraction of the report, and an apology from President Barack Obama.

“The Obama administration is increasingly distancing itself from the views of the majority of Americans and this report is just more evidence that he just doesn’t get it when it comes to the Constitution or the American way of life,’ further noted Gramley.

The ad and list of other sponsoring organizations can be found at nopoliticalprofiling.com  http://www.nopoliticalprofiling.com/

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  April 30, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley   1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Tax Payer Dollars Used to Fund Homosexual Events and Organizations

(Philadelphia) As Harrisburg crunches the numbers in this economic downturn, will Governor  Rendell and legislators  remove the ‘pork’ from the budget that has been used to fund homosexual events and organizations.  An investigation by the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA) has revealed that since 2003 $325,000 has been given to Philadelphia’s Equality Forum through grants from the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED).   The most recent grant for $50,000 will go through June 30, 2010.   Equality Advocates Pennsylvania, a homosexual legal organization, received $25,000 this year to help cover salary needs.

The 2008-09 budget is expected to reach a $2.3 billion shortfall by the end of the fiscal year.  The proposed budget reduces  funding  for 346 programs and eliminates  funding  for 101 programs. 

“The proposed budget shows a decrease in funding for the DCED, but where will the cuts actually occur?  Will next year’s funds be used for real community and economic development or bogus economic development through grants to Equality Forum and Equality Advocates?” questioned Diane Gramley, President of the AFA of PA.

Equality Forum’s week-long event runs through this week and includes panel discussions about “same-sex families,” transgenderism, homosexual adoption, bisexuality and a religious colloquy with open homosexual Bishop V. Gene Robinson whose consecration by the Episcopal leadership has split that church.    Equality Advocates Pennsylvania lobby against efforts to get a Pennsylvania Marriage Protection Amendment before the people and lobby for special rights bills such as H.B. 300. 

“Events and organizations that are pushing the normalization of this dangerous lifestyle should not be funded by our hard-earned tax dollars.  Pennsylvanians are struggling to make ends meet and the misuse of our tax dollars in this way further show that the Governor and some legislators in Harrisburg are out of touch with everyday Pennsylvanians,” Gramley further commented.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  April 29, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Pennsylvania’s ‘Pro-Life Senator’ Votes for Pro-Abortion HHS Secretary Nominee

(Harrisburg) – Yesterday’s 65-31 confirmation vote for Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius for Secretary of Health and Human Services included the ‘yea’ vote from Senator Robert Casey, Jr.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide pro-life group, expressed outrage that the United States Senator representing Pennsylvania who claims to be pro-life voted for her confirmation.  

“Governor Sebelius’ political ties to abortionist George Tiller and 11^th hour veto of a bill that would have advanced women’s health in Kansas are but two reasons why she should have been disqualified from consideration for secretary of the principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans.  Apparently she knows nothing of protecting the health of many Americans,” commented Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

On April 23^rd Governor Sebelius vetoed a bill that would have required abortionists to report the specific reasons for post-viability abortions, reinforcing her reputation as a pro-abortion extremist.  George Tiller, who performs abortions through all nine months of pregnancy and would benefit directly from this veto, personally contributed $200,000 to ProKanDo, a political action committee he controlled, to defeat Kathleen Sebelius’ challenger in the 2002 Kansas gubernatorial race.  According to a letter signed by Tiller, he wanted to “make sure we have a pro-choice Governor.”

“Senator Casey has once again failed the pro-life test.  He cannot truly be pro-life and then vote for the confirmation of someone like Kathleen Sebelius.  Pennsylvanians are becoming more and more aware that Senator Robert Casey, Jr. is not pro-life like his dad and thus not worthy of the support of those who view life as sacred,” further commented Gramley.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  April 8, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley 1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

With This Attitude, Rick Warren Will Never be “America’s Pastor”

(Harrisburg) --   To some, Pastor Rick Warren seems to have stepped into the place the Reverend Billy Graham once stood – ‘America’s Pastor.’   But according to the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide pro-family organization, Rick Warren just took a giant step away from  the rest of America.  During Monday’s CNN’s Larry King Live program, Warren apologized for his support of California’s Proposition 8 – the Marriage Protection Amendment.  And in his confusion even said he had never endorsed Proposition 8.   The AFA of PA is calling on Rick Warren to apologize to members of his Saddleback Church and all other Bible-believing Christians in America and the world.

“Pastor Warren has been tiptoeing around the homosexual issue for several years.  Monday night he came out of the shadows and into America’s spotlight as an opponent of Marriage Protection Amendments—thus a supporter of same-sex marriage.  ‘America’s Pastor’ should know how God defines marriage,” Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA remarked in response to Warren’s comments on Larry King’s program.

In December 2007 the AFA of PA blasted Pastor Rick Warren for his politically correct ‘World AIDS Day Conference’ where the truth was never spoken about the connection between engaging in the homosexual lifestyle and AIDS.    Two and a half months later that truth was finally spoken by Matt Foreman, Executive Director of the National Gay and Lesbian Taskforce, when he shocked attendees of the National Conference on Lesbian-Gay-Bisexual-Transgender Equality in Detroit by calling HIV "a gay disease."  

In 2006 the AFA of PA was part of the AIDS Truth Coalition also asking Warren to address homosexual and ‘gay’ promiscuity through demanding the closure of gay bathhouses and sex clubs in order to stem the AIDS pandemic.  

“The majority of Americans, both churched and non-churched, know that marriage is between one man and one woman.  Thirty states have passed Marriage Protection Amendments.  Pastor Rick Warren is not America’s Pastor – American does not need a pastor who does not know what marriage is,” further commented Gramley.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  April 7, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley   1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

AFA of PA Joins National Group Asking that Parents Keep Their Kids Home on Gay Day of Silence

(Harrisburg)  --  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional values organization, has joined  a national coalition of pro-family organizations is urging parents to call their children out of school on April 17 if their local school will be permitting students or teachers to remain silent during instructional time for the Day of Silence. The Day of Silence (DOS) is a political action formally sponsored by the partisan political action group, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), since 2001.

The implicit purpose of the Day of Silence is to undermine the belief that homosexuality is immoral. It is the belief of the sponsors of the Walkout that parents should no longer passively accept the political usurpation of taxpayer- funded public school classrooms through student silence.

If schools permit student silence during instructional time, teachers either create activities around student silence or exempt silent students from any activity that involves speaking. In some schools, even teachers are permitted to remain silent during their classes.

DOS participants have a captive audience, many of whom disagree with and are made uncomfortable by the politicization of their classroom. Many students and teachers dislike the DOS because its implicit political message generates dissension within the school community for an entire day every year.

According to  the Day of Silence website,  last year “Hundreds of thousands of students at more than 8,000 schools participated,” which means that hundreds of thousands of students at 8,000 schools remained silent during instructional time, and yet public school administrators persist in telling gullible parents that this political action is not disruptive to the educational process.

“The AFA of PA is proud to again join the coalition in helping educate parents on what the Day of Silence is and encouraging them to keep their students home on April 17^th if their child’s school allows students to actively participate in the Day of Silence.  GLSEN is using our nation’s children as lab rats in their great social experiment called ‘unquestioning acceptance of homosexuality,’ noted Diane Gramley, president o f the AFA of PA.

“Last year, our organization fielded hundreds of calls from concerned parents and school officials, who wanted to know more about the Day of Silence and who did not want to be associated with it in any way,” said Linda Harvey of Mission America. “This day is not about ‘tolerance’ as it claims, but about forcing propaganda and acceptance of high-risk behavior into the schools with no opposing views allowed.”

Laurie Higgins of the Illinois Family Institute acknowledges that “all of civilized society must oppose bullying, but GLSEN and the DOS seek to combat bullying by the illegitimate means of using public education to affirm volitional homosexual behavior as moral despite the fact that many taxpayers view it as immoral.”

Schools have a legal right to require verbal student participation. According to the ACLU and Lambda Legal, a ”school can regulate what students say. . . and it can also insist that students respond to questions, make presentations, etc.” 

Parents are encouraged to call their children's middle schools and high schools to ask whether the administration and teachers will permit students to remain silent during class on the Day of Silence. If so, parents can express their opposition by calling their children out of school on that day and sending letters of explanation to their administrators, their children's teachers, and school board members.

Endorsed by: Abiding Truth Ministries; AFA Michigan; AFA Pennsylvania; AFA National; Americans for Truth; Association of Maryland Families; Called2Action; Campaign for Children and Families; Capitol Resource Institute; Citizens for Community Values of Ohio; Coalition of Conscience; Community Issues Council; Concerned Women for America National; Concerned Women for America Washington; Culture Campaign; Faith2Action; Faith, Family & Freedom Alliance; Illinois Family Institute; Indiana Voice; Liberty Alliance Action; Liberty Counsel; Maine Family Policy Council; MassResistance; Mission America; Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (PFOX)

News Release
For Immediate Release:  April 3, 2009
Contact:   Diane Gramley   1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Iowa Supreme Court’s Decision Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage Shows Need for PA Marriage Amendment

(Harrisburg) – Today’s unanimous decision by the Iowa Supreme Court to throw out that state’s Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) proves the warnings of the American Family Association of Pennsylvania  (AFA of PA) and others have been valid.  Those who hold that one man one woman marriage is the only true definition of marriage have been ridiculed when trying to push for the right of Pennsylvanians to vote on a Marriage Protect Amendment (MPA). 

“One of the reasons thrown at us during the two attempts to get a ballot initiative before the people has been that ‘we have a Defense of Marriage Act.’  As we said during those times and reiterate today – a DOMA is not enough,” Diane Gramley, president of the statewide organization, said in response to the news out of Iowa. 

Increasingly traditional marriage is under attack in surrounding states . . . New Jersey homosexuals are seeking to expand the civil union law to legalized same-sex marriage; New York recognizes same-sex marriages from other states and countries.  Additionally, homosexual activist groups have their eye on all of New England in their 2012 Project. 

Iowa’s Supreme Court’s decision is yet further evidence of judicial tyranny.  These justices are not just interpreting law, but rewriting that state’s marriage laws.

“Pennsylvania legislators can no longer hide behind the ‘but we have a Defense of Marriage Act’ line because that law is no longer safe.  Iowa’s Supreme Court’s activism can be replicated in Pennsylvania – all it will take is one PA Supreme Court decision to place us in the same situation as Iowa.  Today’s Iowa decision shows our concerns are valid.  Pennsylvanians need to be given the opportunity to vote on marriage,” further commented Gramley.

Especially now, the true colors of legislators will be revealed if they do not support a Marriage Protection Amendment.  It will reveal that they simply do not have the best interest of Pennsylvania and her children in mind.  Through all this great social experiment of so-called same-sex marriage, it will be the children who suffer the most.  

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  April 1, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley   1.814.437.5355 or 1.81r.271.9078

Sexual Assault Case Again Proves Boy Scout Policy is Right

(Pittsburgh) – A Butler County, PA doctor has been accused of sexually assaulting teenage boys when he was a Boy Scout leader almost two decades ago.   Homosexual activists and others who are trying to force the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) to allow homosexual leaders and members are wrong and this developing case is yet another example of just how wrong the effort to redefine the BSA is, noted the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide pro-family organization.  The AFA of PA has contacted the Cradle of Liberty Scout Council (COLBSA) in Philadelphia noting this story as yet another example of why they must maintain their policy and continue the fight to remain in their downtown headquarters.

This story of coercion is especially poignant in Pennsylvania as COLBSA is still fighting to remain in the headquarters they built and have maintained since 1929 on property the 1928 City Council gave them free use of in perpetuity.   In 1982 the city added ‘sexual orientation ‘  to its Fair Practices Ordinance and COLBSA have been under attack since 2000 when the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Boy Scouts, as a private organization, could choose the leaders and members of their choice. 

“Reading  stories about Boy Scout leaders or former leaders who have molested the young men in their charge, strengthens our case that it would be dangerous for the Boy Scouts of America to cave into the pressure being exerted upon them by homosexual activists,” Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA remarked.

Additionally, the Tribune-Review article reveals that pornographic movies were shown to the young Scouts prior to the molestation.  This method of desensitization is often used by molesters to “prove” to the victim that the activity in which they are engaging is ‘normal and acceptable.’   The AFA of PA has often referred to research that has shown the connection between the use of pornographic material and molestation.

“We read too many cases about men coming forward decades later and pointing a finger at their former Scout leader and revealing a story of molestation.  The Boy Scouts of America must maintain their current policy.  Additionally, law enforcement and all who are concerned with the well-being of society need to make the connection between the use of pornographic material and molestation.   The consumption of pornographic material – not just illegal child pornography – is dangerous,” further noted Gramley.

Some statistics to consider:

Homosexualities,  a Simon and Schuster book by Alan Bell, reports that 25 percent of homosexual men admit to having had sex with boys who are 16 or under.

 A survey of readers was conducted by “The Advocate,” a homosexual newsmagazine. Of the 2,500 respondents, 21 percent admitted that an adult man committed a sexual act with them by the age they were 15.

Research scientist and professor of psychiatry Gene G. Abel, M.D., has conducted a study of non-incarcerated child sex offenders and has found that homosexuals “sexually molest young boys with an incidence that is occurring five times greater than the molestation of girls.”  More specifically, the report shows that, on average, 150.2 boys are molested per homosexual offender, whereas only 19.8 girls are molested per heterosexual offender. Homosexual offenders admitted between 23.4 and 281.7 acts of molesting boys.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  March 9, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley   1.814.437.5355 or 1.814.271.9078

President Obama is Wrong to Allow Federally Funded Embryonic Stem Cell Research

(Harrisburg) – Today President Obama took another step in isolating himself from pro-life Americans.   His first step was in rescinding the Mexico City Policy which had prohibited the use of federal taxpayer dollars to fund overseas abortions.  His second step was taken today when he signed an executive order allowing for the use of federal dollars to fund embryonic stem cell research.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional values organization, notes that President Obama’s continued attacks on the strong pro-life stands of millions of Americans will further polarize the country.

“The destruction of innocent life, which is the first requirement in this so-called scientific research is repulsive to many voters. . .  . including many who voted for the new President.  This type ‘change’ is not good for the country.  Additionally, during these tough economic times, this is a misuse of federal dollars and takes us down the road of killing potential new Americans,” remarked Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

The AFA of PA and other pro-life groups are not the only ones to raise serious questions about President Obama’s decision.  Bernadine Healy, the former head of the National Institutes of Health and the American Red Cross wrote in U.S News and World Report that induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells) and adult stem cell research successes have "diminished" the prospect that ESCR is the future of regenerative medicine.

"Even for strong backers of embryonic stem cell research, [Obama's decision] is no longer as self-evident as it was, because there is markedly diminished need for expanding these cell lines for either patient therapy or basic research," Healy explained.

 The President is ignoring the medical breakthroughs that have taken place using adult stem cells.  In fact the use of embryonic stem cells in patients have resulted in tragic situations, most recently in Israel.  Embryonic stem cells have formed tumors when injected into animals and immune systems have rejected the insertion of the cells. Those are two big hurdles embryonic stem cells have yet to overcome that don't plague either adult stem cell research or the new iPS cells created by direct reprogramming.

“President Obama describes embryonic stem cell research as sound science.  Killing human embryos is not sound science.  Why does the President want to advance research that even scientists involved in the field are doubting will be successful?” asked Gramley.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  March 5, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

So, What is the Real Intention of Pittsburgh’s New Sex Ed Curriculum?

(Pittsburgh) – Last week the Pittsburgh School District board approved a new comprehensive sex education program.  Students will not only be taught that abstinence is the sure way to avoid pregnancy and disease, but also about contraception, dating and alternative lifestyles.  For the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide pro-family group, this raises many concerns.  In response, the group has contacted Dr. Jerri Lippert, chief academic officer of the district, and the school board which voted to approve this new program.

“The inclusion of sexual orientation and gender roles in this new curriculum makes it very clear that they will be promoting homosexuality, bisexuality and transgenderism to impressionable high school students. Many of today’s schools are no longer academic institutions, but social engineering institutions,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

Additionally the school board has just given a green light to allowing sexually confused males to use the girls’ restroom in the schools and to come to school wearing a dress, make-up and high heels.  As noted in the letter to the school board members:  “How does such a decision coincide with your district’s “Core Beliefs,” specifically—‘We want maximum academic achievement of all students’ and ‘We want a safe and orderly environment for all students and employees.’”

The letters to Dr. Lippert and the school board included the list of 30 sexual orientations and noted that this decision has nothing to do about teen pregnancy, but everything to do about promoting a dangerous lifestyle.  The letters also asked whether students would be given Centers for Disease Control statistics which point to men who have sex with men as the biggest reason for the spread of the HIV virus and that bisexuals create the road for the HIV virus into the heterosexual community.  How about CDC stats that show an epidemic of syphilis and gonorrhea among homosexual males?

“Dr. Lippert said the district was not going to promote or condone any lifestyle.  They all need to face the fact that the administration and school board of Pittsburgh Public Schools is promoting the homosexual, bisexual and transgender lifestyles—they are telling the kids, ‘Anything goes, it’s all okay.’  The district has just created a very unsafe and unhealthy situation,” Gramley further noted.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  February 27, 2009
Contact:   Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Statewide Group Condemns Use of Tax Dollars to Fund Homosexual Activism Training for Students

(Harrisburg) --  Yesterday Dickinson College hosted the ‘Second Annual Gay Straight Alliance Leadership Summit.’  This was an event to train members of Gay Straight Alliances (GSAs) and teachers how to become activists to promote homosexual, bisexual, transgender lifestyles.   Additionally, one session asked them to question ‘fixed labels’ concerning sexuality.   Unbeknownst to the taxpayers of Pennsylvania, they helped pay for the event.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional values group, has contacted state lawmakers about this misguided use of hard earned tax dollars.

“Pennsylvania faced a $2.3 billion budget deficit before the federal government’s bailout through the so-called stimulus package.  The Pennsylvania Department of Education’s co-sponsorship of this event is yet another example of how our tax dollars are being misused, and in this case on an agenda the majority of Pennsylvanians do not approve,” stated Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

As the AFA of PA has warned in the past, the real goal of homosexual organizations such as the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network which wants students to form GSAs is to create homosexual/transgender activists.  Students and teachers took an entire school day to learn how to promote a lifestyle which, according to the Centers for Disease Control, is the major cause of HIV/AIDS among men.  In fact, between 2001 and 2006, male-to-male sex was the largest HIV transmission category in the U.S., and the only one associated with an increasing number of HIV/AIDS diagnoses.

The jump was highest — an increase of 12.4 percent — among boys and men between the ages of 13 and 24 years who had sex with other males, particularly among ethnic minorities.

 For more details on the dangers involved with participation in the homosexual lifestyle, read Dr. John Diggs report. 

 “These underage children – the entire alphabet soup of LGBTQA -- are being encouraged to question their sexuality and identify however they feel the most comfortable.  One session was about religion and sexuality – was it designed to have these students question their parents religious beliefs on homosexuality?   The children of Pennsylvania are being used as guinea pigs and the tax payers are being forced to help pay for the experimentation.  To describe this as outrageous is an understatement,” concluded Gramley.

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NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  February 26, 2009
CONTACT:  Diane Gramley 1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Scranton Bishop Praised for His Actions

(Harrisburg) – In recent days Bishop Joseph Martino of the Scranton Diocese has been in the news.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional values group, recently thanked him for his bold pro-family, pro-life stands.  

The Bishop has

• opposed Misericordia University, a Catholic-affiliated school, hosting of homosexual activist Keith Boykin last week; 

• he has asked Senator Bob Casey’s to reverse his vote against a pro-life amendment to SCHIP that would have reinstated the Mexico City Policy, thus banning taxpayer funding of overseas abortions; 

• he recently sent a letter asking the Irish-American organizations planning St. Patrick’s Day festivities not to “in any way honor pro-abortion officials.”  

“It is refreshing to have a religious leader which holds traditional values to take a public stand for those values.  He has been under intense media scrutiny and his message was not well received by Misericordia University, but he did not back down,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

The letter said in part, “If those who hold traditional values fail to respond to these attacks, our nation is lost.   Increasingly we see institutions of higher education, even those with religious affiliation, invite speakers of questionable motives/agendas to speak to their students.  Politicians, both Catholic and Protestant, have a tendency to compartmentalize their lives and not allow their religious beliefs to influence their votes in the political realm . . . this is wrong and tragic for the country.”

“Our hope is that more religious leaders will follow Bishop Martino’s example and take public stands for life and the family,” Gramley further stated.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  February 13, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Memo to Rest of America:  Majority of Pennsylvanians DO NOT Agree with Senator Arlen Specter

(Harrisburg) – Tonight’s  final 60-38 Senate vote to approve H.R. 1, the so-called ‘stimulus’ bill, was only possible because of Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter’s lack of leadership.  For this we apologize to America.  According to the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional values group, Senator Specter’s offices were inundated with calls from constituents asking him not to support the bill.   The pressure from constituents placed on Senator Specter to vote ‘no’ on this bill was negated by the Democrats payback of $6.5 billion in medical research Specter wanted kept in the bill. 

“Rather than tighten their fiscal ship, 306 elected officials in Washington, D.C. voted to strap our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren with the debt to pay for their inability to control  spending.  Handing the largest spending bill in American history to the next several generations to pay off is immoral,” stated Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

As before all 176 House Republicans voted against the bill and only three Republican Senators (Senators Specter, Snowe and Collins) voted for it.  In reality, all Senators and Congressmen who care about the future of America should have voted ‘no’ as none of them had read the entire 1,073 page bill.  What future atrocities will be found hidden in its pages?  How many more National Endowment for the Arts grants, federal  employee cars, fish hatchery money and tax benefits for golf carts and ATVs are hidden in the bill?

“We are forgetting that it was not FDR’s government programs that got us out of the Great Depression, it was World War II.  Sinking money into building roads and bridges, more food stamps and unemployment benefits will not stimulate the economy.  Building and furnishing a new headquarters for Homeland Security will not fix the problem.  We are in a hole and the only way to get out is to stop digging.  The majority of legislators in Washington, D.C. apparently do not understand this concept,” Gramley noted.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  February 11, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.437.5355 or 1.814.271.9078

Allegheny County Council Urged to Watch TV Special “Speechless” Tonight

(Pittsburgh) -- Today the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA) invited Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato and each of the County Council members to watch the American Family Association special “Speechless” tonight at 9:00 p.m. on WPCB, channel 40.

“This special helps highlight the potential problems if Ordinance 4201-08 passes.  This ordinance will have a negative impact upon the entire county,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

The TV Special will reveal the truth about:

• The claim that homosexuals are born that way and cannot change.
• The negative impact on children resulting from schools promoting the gay lifestyle,
• Protected minority status for homosexuals.
• Same-sex marriage, and
• Legislative initiatives like Hate Crime and the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

And, it will:

• Attack the major lies of militant gay activists head-on.
• Alert viewers about what’s at stake for the family if they get what they want.
• Present helpful information to stop the radical homosexual political agenda.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  February 10, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley   1.814.437.5355 or 1.814.271.9078 

Waynesboro School Board Must Do What is Best For Students

(Harrisburg)  --  All students should be provided a safe learning environment, but the formation of a Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) will not aid in that endeavor.  It will, rather, create an environment which promotes a lifestyle that is destructive to students, according to the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional values organization.   The AFA of PA has provided information about the dangers of GSAs to Waynesboro school board members and concerned parents.

The 6-3 vote tonight to allow a GSA at Waynesboro Area High School shows that school board members are not educated on the dangers of permitting such a club.  The AFA of PA applauds board members Leland Lemley, Firmadge Crutchfield, and Edward Wilson for their ‘no’ vote.  It is the students who are the victims of the majority vote.

“Students who have approached the Waynesboro School Board about forming a GSA are being misled by the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network (GLSEN) and are not being told all the facts.  They are not being told of the dangers of the homosexual lifestyle nor the real intent of GLSEN which is to create political activists,” remarked Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

Examples of political activism include:

1.)  A 2006 GLSEN ‘Healing the Hurt Conference” for high school and college students held in White Plains, NY:   The theme of Dani Newsum's keynote address was the 'Ally' concept, getting straight kids to support and fight for homosexual 'rights.' She states that heterosexist- thinking (that all people are born heterosexual) is 'sick, unhealthy, not accepted.'  An eyewitness account describes the conference as an agenda that clearly normalizes homosexuality, undermines parental control, and encourages in some subtle and not so subtle ways, rebellion against traditional religious beliefs and governmental laws that do not propagate the homosexual agenda.

2.)    October 2005 in Pikesville, MD: The Pikesville’s Gay-Straight Student Alliance organized events at school during GLSEN’s “Ally Week” to encourage gay students to come out and straight students to support them.

3.)    February 27^th is GLSEN’s most recently announced “National Day of Action”.  It encourages GSAs to observe a TransAction Day to support and advocate for students who identify as transgender. 

4.)    The Day of Silence held each year in April is another GLSEN “National Day of Action”.  During this day members of GSAs remain silent, sometimes covering their mouth with duct tape, to show support for so-called homosexual civil rights.

5.)    In November 2005 when the first Transgender Day of Remembrance was held 100 GSAs participated.

In his book One Teacher in Ten, GLSEN founder Kevin Jennings reported the story of a 15-year-old boy named "Brewster" who came to him in 1989 for assistance. Jennings said the boy was having difficulty in school and did not know why. However, during a speech in Iowa five years ago, Jennings stated that "Brewster" had confided to him that he had a sexual encounter with an older man in Boston. Jennings claims he responded to the teen by saying, "I hope you knew to use a condom." The apparent case of sex abuse was not reported to authorities.

Have the organizers of the GSA or its sponsor Nicole Gladieux been told of the dangers of this lifestyle? 

• According to the Centers for Disease Control, HIV infection and AIDS have had a tremendous effect on men who have sex with men (MSM). MSM accounted for 71% of all HIV infections among male adults and adolescents in 2005.  According to the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest homosexual lobby group, those who identity as homosexual only make up 2.9% of the U.S. population.

• Homosexual writer Jack Hart wrote, “"Many sexually transmitted diseases (STD's) occur more often among gay men than in the general population. Several factors contribute to this difference: Gay men have the opportunity to engage in sex with more people than do most heterosexual men, and some practices common in the gay community -- especially rimming ["gay" slang for oral-anal stimulation] and anal intercourse [sodomy] -- are highly efficient ways of transmitting disease.."-- Jack Hart, author, Gay Sex: A Manual for Men Who Love Men (Allyson Publications: Boston, 1991), p. 156, in section on "Sexually Transmitted Disease." The writer goes on to write that "most common" sex-transmitted diseases other than HIV confronting homosexual men, including: chlamydia, crab lice, giardiasis, gonorrhea, hepatitis-A and -B, herpes simplex, nongonococcal urethritis, scabies, syphilis, and venereal warts.
• Dr. John Diggs has gone into great detail outlining the health dangers to those who engage in homosexual sex in “The Health Risks of Gay Sex”.  (Warning graphic descriptions)

“Allowing a GSA does not live up to Section (f) in the Equal Access Act that everyone seems to forget: “maintaining order and discipline on school premises, to protect the well-being of students and faculty.  The AFA of PA applauds the three school board members who voted against the formation of a GSA as they had the well-being of students in mind.  As school boards continue making these type decisions, it gives parents even more reason to pull their students out of public school,” further noted Gramley.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  February 3, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

State College Mayor Once Again Shows He Just Doesn’t Get it When it Comes to Traditional Marriage

(Harrisburg) --  Last March State College Mayor Bill Welch took part in a ceremony that, in the future, could be used to challenge Pennsylvania’s Defense of Marriage Act.    He performed the same-sex commitment ceremony for four same-sex couples on Penn State’s main campus.    During Monday night’s State College Borough Council meeting, the mayor stated his opposition to the Pennsylvania Defense of Marriage Ac, calling it dumb.   According to the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide pro-family group, the mayor’s actions continue to show his disrespect for one man one woman marriage and even his disrespect for the majority of his constituents in State College.

“Penn State’s presence in State College has made for a much more liberal municipality than the surrounding area, but I believe the majority of residents there still believe in traditional one man one woman marriage,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

In November 2007 then Philadelphia Mayor John Street officiated at a same-sex commitment ceremony at City Hall.  In March 2008 the State College Mayor did the same thing on Penn State’s campus.  As noted by Steven Goldstein of Garden State Equality, every time an elected official officiates at a same-sex commitment ceremony they are one step closer to the legalization of same-sex marriage.   Having an elected official make a public statement of distain for the Defense of Marriage Act is also an attempt to undermine its importance.

“Mayor Welch just doesn’t get it – deliberately creating a motherless or fatherless home, which is what he is advocating, is harmful to children.  Through his policies, he should be working to strengthen families and further protect children, instead he has indicated he wants to do the opposite,” observed Gramley.

State College Borough may look into establishing a domestic partner registry soon, forcing taxpayers to pay for the benefits of unmarried couples . . . another bad idea.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  January 29, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

“Pro-Life” Senator Bob Casey Votes to Fund Overseas Abortions – Again

(Harrisburg) – In September 2007 Senator Bob Casey was apparently confused about the Mexico City Policy.  He voted for Senator Sam Brownback’s amendment to a foreign operations appropriations bill preserving the federal government’s Mexico City Policy banning the use of taxpayer dollars for overseas abortions.  Twenty minutes later he voted for an amendment offered by Senator Barbara Boxer which would have overturned the Mexico City Policy and  give even more money for abortions.   Now 16 months later it appears he understands the Policy and where he stands.   But, according to the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide family values group, his stand further separates him from his father, Robert Casey, Sr.

“On Wednesday the Senate defeated Senator Mel Martinez’ amendment to S-Chip restoring the Mexico City Policy.   Only one Democrat voted in support of this bill to save babies and it was not Pennsylvania’s supposed pro-life Senator, but Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

It came as no surprise that Senator Specter joined Senate Democrats and voted to allow taxpayer money to go overseas to pay for abortions and lobby foreign countries to reverse their pro-life laws.  Some Latin American leaders are reacting strongly to the prospect of their country’s pro-life laws being assaulted because of the lifting of the Mexico City Policy.  According to one this is a horrible way for President Obama to begin to relate with the United States’ neighbors to the South.

Congresswoman Martha Lorena de Casco of Honduras expressed “deep regret and sorrow” that “one of President Obama’s first decisions is to revoke the Mexico City policy.  I interpret this action as a promotion of abortion and a threat to the national legislation of my country.”

“The surprise came when Senator Casey joined pro-abortion Senator Arlen Specter and voted to spend our tax dollars to kill babies overseas.  The pro-life platform he ran on continues to disintegrate and Pennsylvanians see exactly where he stands on the life issue and it is very disappointing,” Gramley concluded.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  January 22, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley   1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Pennsylvania Pro-Life Group Thanks Three Congressmen for Signing Letter to President;
President Obama Will Not Rescind Mexico City Policy Today

(Harrisburg) –  On January 16^th 78 U.S. Congressmen signed a bi-partisan letter to then President-elect Obama asking that  he not overturn the Mexico City Policy which bans the use of taxpayer dollars for overseas abortions.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide family advocacy organization, commends the strong life stand shown by three of Pennsylvania’s 19 Congressmen, but questions where the others are hiding.

“Today is the 36^th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade which legalized abortion in all the states in America.  Unfortunately, that has expanded beyond the borders of the United States into foreign countries. Why is it only three of our Congressmen -- Joe Pitts, Jason Altmire and Glenn Thompson -- were willing to sign this important letter?  Is it not important to Pennsylvania’s other sixteen Congressmen that America’s image is tainted when we provide abortion money in countries where abortion may be illegal or restricted,” questioned Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

The Congressional letter says in part, “First developed in the Reagan Administration, this policy is important because it establishes a bright line between family planning activities and abortion, therefore ensuring that United States family planning funds are not co-opted by groups who promote abortion as a method of family planning.  Such activities would send a wrong message overseas that the United States promotes abortion."

The AFA of PA also agrees with the Congressmen that in these hard economic times Americans do not want their taxpayer dollars used to fund abortions.  Additionally public opinion polls regularly reflect that over 60 percent of Americans oppose any taxpayer funding for abortion. A December Harris Interactive Poll found 63 percent of Americans favor laws preventing the use of taxpayer funds for abortions.

President Obama has indicated that one of his first priorities will be to rescind the Mexico City Policy.  But apparently he has decided not to take this step today -- the day when hundreds of thousands of Americans descend on Washington in the annual March for Life.

 “Rescinding a policy which saves babies’ lives is bad policy for any administration.  The AFA of PA encourages President Obama to respect the pro-life laws of other countries and send a strong message that America cares about their women and children by not rescinding the Mexico City Policy,” Gramley remarked.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  January 22, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Note to Congressman John Murtha:  We Don’t Want Guantanamo Prisoners

(Harrisburg) – The astonishing offer by Congressman John Murtha to take the terrorist prisoners from Guantanamo and house them in his district, if President Obama closes the prison, is beyond comprehension.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide family organization, contacted Congressman Murtha and asked him to reconsider his offer.

“Apparently Congressman Murtha does not understand how dangerous these people are.  We’re not talking about your common pickpocket or arsonist; we’re talking about people who hate America and five of them who allegedly took part in the plan to kill almost 3,000 of us on September 11, 2001.  The Congressman’s offer is ludicrous,” commented Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

Family members of those killed on 911 and in other terrorist attacks are outraged at the prospect that these men may never see justice.  They are outraged that more American lives may be put at risk if the criminal proceedings are moved to American soil.  Twenty-one detainees face war crimes charges. 

How soon we forget the terror of September 11, 2001.  Four planes used as missiles to attack and destroy in New York City, Washington, D.C. and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.  Obviously Congressman Murtha has forgotten that if Flight 93 was a few more miles due north of where it went down in Shanksville, it would have hit his hometown of Johnstown.  Now he is willing to place the residents in his district at risk by offering to house these terrorists. 

The e-mail to Congressman Murtha said in part, “You said in a Fox News article, ‘They're no more dangerous in my district than in Guantanamo.’

The message continued:  “We don't believe the constituents in your district share your lack of concern over the terrorists being housed in their neighborhood.  Ninety miles of water between the terrorists and American soil provides a lot of protection for us.  What you propose is dangerous not only to the people in PA's 12th Congressional District, but to all Pennsylvanians and ultimately all of America.”

“On 911 Shanksville was part of Congressman Murtha’s district.  It is now part of Pennsylvania’s 9^th Congressional District.  We don’t see Congressman Bill Shuster offering to house the Guantanamo Bay prisoners.  Our hope is that Congressman Murtha will see the danger of placing American-hating terrorists in our backyards and withdraw his shameful offer,” Gramley continued.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  January 20, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley   1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Waynesboro Area School District Tries to Sneak in Gay Straight Alliance

(Harrisburg) --  According to the minutes of the Waynesboro Area School District it appears that any discussion of the proposed gay straight alliance happened one week ago.  Area residents were kept in the dark since the local paper The Record Herald failed to include this little tidbit of news in articles covering the school board meetings.   The only story to run concerning this was published in today’s paper.    Additionally, January 13^th’s agenda only says under VIII “Discussion Items”, letter D. “Discuss New School Club” without any mention of the fact that it was a “Gay Straight Alliance” being discussed.  The vote is scheduled for tonight.   This evening the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA, a statewide pro-family group, faxed a letter to the school board members outlining some of the problems associated with the formation of a sex club like the proposed Gay Straight Alliance.

 “The ultimate purpose of a Gay Straight Alliance is to create political activists for those seeking to say ‘gay is okay.’  The Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network (GLSEN) is the national organization working to get these clubs in schools.   They encourage GSAs to participate in the national Day of Silence each April.  This is when students remain silent the entire day to show support for homosexuality, handing out cards provided by GLSEN and many placing duct tape over their mouths.  This is not a good use of a taxpayer funded school day, but it is one things taxpayers can expect if this club is approved,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

Other concerns include GLSEN’s suggested reading lists which include many books, which go into graphic detail, about homosexual relationships between older men and teenage boys.  These books include Growing Up Gay/ Growing Up Lesbian, The Rainbow Boys, and The Challenges and Promise for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Youth.  GLSEN also provides material for use in GSAs.

“One of school board members primary concerns should be the well-being of the students in the districts they represent.  It would be much safer for the school board to approve a smoking club since male smokers shorten their lives by up to 7.2 years and men who have sex with men shorten their lives by up to 20 years,” Gramley continued.

The AFA of PA is asking the school board to do what is best for the students – not approve this club.  The organizers say they want to promote acceptance and understanding between individuals with different sexual orientation.  Does the school board realize there are 30 sexual orientations?  Which ones will be excluded from discussion in this club? 

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  January 19, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Boy Scout Troop Participates in History by Marching in Inaugural Parade:
But Do They Realize Where the President-Elect Stands on the Issue That is Threatening Their Existence?

(Philadelphia) – Tomorrow Boy Scout Troop 358, one of the oldest African American troops in the county, will be a part of history as it marches in the Inaugural Parade in Washington, D.C. as the first African-American becomes President of the United States.   Truly an honor for any Scout troop, however have the leaders of this troop taken a close look at an issue that will directly affect the very existence of Boy Scouting in America?   The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide family group, is questioning whether they realize that President-Elect Obama supports the very policies that are targeting their headquarters in Philadelphia. 

“Troop 358 is part of the Cradle of Liberty Scout Council which has been in a pitched battle with the City of Philadelphia to retain the headquarters they built and have maintained since 1929 on property the 1928 City Council gave the Scouts free use of in perpetuity or forever.  Last May the Cradle of Liberty Scout Council sued the city to prevent their eviction.  That case was given a green light to proceed by a judge last fall,” remarked Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA. 

Why is the City of Philadelphia seeking to evict the Scouts?  It is because of their ban on allowing open homosexual leaders and members.  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Scouts have the right, as a private organization, to choose who they want to be leaders and members.  Ever since that time they have been targeted by homosexual organizations and activists who are trying to remold the Boy Scouts of America in their image. 

In 1983 Philadelphia added “sexual orientation” to its Fair Practices Ordinance.  Two decades later, under pressure from homosexual groups, the attack against the Scouts began. 

Pressure on the Cradle of Liberty Scout Council, one of the largest in the nation serving over 69,000 youth, has been intense over the past six years as they lost hundreds of thousands of dollars of support from Pew Charitable Trust and Southeastern Pennsylvania United Way, in addition to the threat of eviction.

“Yes, it is a great honor to be part of the inaugural parade, but at what costs?  Do these Boy Scout leaders fully realize that President-elect Obama supports a wide range of so-called ‘gay rights’ measures.  He has said he will use the Office of President as a bully pulpit to advance their causes.  Obama, knowingly or unknowingly, may be a part of the end of the Boy Scouts of America as we know them,” Gramley further stated.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  January 19, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Martin Luther King and So-called ‘Gay’ Rights

(Pittsburgh) – Thursday, January 15^th during the Allegheny County Council meeting concerning Ordinance 4201-08 which would create a countywide human relations commission and add “actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity” to a human rights ordinance, the name of Martin Luther King was invoked many times by those who support this ordinance.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional value organization, has provided documentation to the Allegheny County Council which debunks the idea that Martin Luther King would consider so-called ‘gay rights’ to be civil rights.

“The actions we saw on Thursday evening are simply further evidence that homosexual activists are trying to hijack the civil rights movement.  For them to blatantly use Martin Luther King’s name on his actual birthday in this attempt to write the normalization of their dangerous lifestyle into law is outrageous,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

There is no evidence that Dr. King equated civil rights with ‘gay rights.’  One of his chief organizers was a black man who identified as homosexual, Bayard Rustin.  In a spring 1987 interview with “Open Hands,” a resource for ministries affirming the diversity of human sexuality, Rustin stated that he pushed King to speak up on his behalf, but King did not. In a May 25, 2007 Washington Blade, a homosexual newspaper, article entitled “King Family’s Mixed Legacy,” the author concludes, “While Coretta (King’s wife) and Yolanda (King’s daughter) have spoken out on gay civil rights, I am beginning to wonder now if MLK would have raised his voice on our behalf.”  In January 2005, Newsweek asked Alveda King, MLK’s niece, if Martin Luther King would be a champion for gay rights. “No, he would champion the word of God,” she said. “If he would have championed gay rights today, he would have done it while he was here. There was ample opportunity for him to champion gay rights during his lifetime, and he did not do so.”

Both Martin Luther King’s youngest daughter Bernice and his niece Alveda recognize that homosexuals have never been refused the right to vote, have never been forced to sit in the back of the bus, have never been forced to attend segregated school and have never been forced to drink from ‘gay only’ water fountains.  This IS NOT a civil rights issue and Martin Luther King knew it.

“Historically civil rights protections have been extended to those with immutable or unchangeable characteristics like race and ethnicity, those who cannot make a livable wage, and those with political powerlessness.  None of these apply to homosexuals.  The attempt to pass ordinances like 4201-08 has nothing to do with civil rights and everything to do with special rights,” Gramley concluded.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  January 15, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Allegheny County Trying to Force Homosexual/Bisexual/Transgender Lifestyle on Citizens

(Pittsburgh) – Tonight a public hearing is to be held which will give citizens an opportunity to address the proposed Ordinance 4201-08 which will create an Allegheny County Human Relations Commission and add ‘actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity’ to the county wide human rights ordinance.  As citizens have become aware of the implications of the passage of this ordinance, they have become active in opposing it, according to the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide traditional values group.

“As we’ve educated people on what passage of this ordinance can mean, many have shaken their head in disbelief as to what their county council is considering,” remarked Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

Some of the ramifications include:

·         Forbidding the Boy Scouts from using county parks and other facilities because of their constitutional right to ban open homosexual leaders and members.  We just have to look at the Cradle of Liberty Scout Council and Philadelphia’s work in evicting them from their headquarters. 

·         The gender identity component of the ordinance means allowing men who think they are women in the women’s restroom and workplace shower facilities; as we’ve seen men in women’s fitting rooms in Philadelphia and  men in the women’s locker room at the city pool in Cleveland, Ohio.  

·         This ordinance would directly infringe upon religious liberties.  In New Jersey the Ocean Grove Methodist Camp is facing discrimination charges from the state because they prohibited a lesbian couple from using their pavilion for their civil union ceremony.

“This ordinance is an attempt to normalize a very dangerous lifestyle, even the Centers for Disease Control recognizes this in their HIV/AIDS statistics where it shows that over 50% of all HIV/AIDS cases are men who have sex with men.  This is not a civil rights issue homosexual, bisexual and transgender identities are not unchangeable characteristics.  Homosexuals have not been restricted to the back of the bus; there are no ‘gay only’ water fountains.  We are calling on the Allegheny County Council to do the right thing and vote ‘no’ on this ordinance,” concluded Gramley.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  January 12, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley --  1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Has the Owner Been Demonized by the Families of Flight 93, Inc. and the NPS?

(Somerset) – As the time draws near for an announcement on the asking price of the 275 acres remaining to be purchased in the approximately 2,200 acre Flight 93 Memorial one must ask whether the owner of that property, Svonavec, Inc., has been demonized in the process.  In response to the letter sent by the Families of Flight 93, Inc. to President Bush asking that he permit the use of eminent domain, the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA) faxed a letter to him last week asking that he NOT permit the use of eminent domain to seize the property of family-owned Svonavec, Inc.   Additionally, today the AFA of PA faxed a letter to Joanne Hanley,  National Park Service Superintendent of the Flight 93 National Memorial, asking what would happened to the items remaining at the Temporary Memorial, of special concern was the cross that was donated by the Somerset Christian Missionary and Alliance Church shortly after the crash. 

“The letter sent by the non-profit Families of Flight 93, Inc. appears to be a continued effort to demonize Svonavec, Inc. to force them to sell the property before a proper appraisal has been released.  Twice before independent appraisals have been rejected by the National Park Service, but they have never made that information public, one must ask ‘why.’  The Svonavecs are asking to be treated fairly, is that not the American way,” asked Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

The original Flight 93 law – Public Law 107-226 which passed and was signed into law during the 107^th Congress stated in Section 5 (8), “acquire from willing sellers the land or interests in land for the memorial site by donation, purchase with donated or appropriated funds, or exchange.”  The law was since changed to allow for eminent domain to be used to obtain the Svonavec property.  It was passed as an amendment to a federal appropriations bill. 

Gramley continued, “Our letter to Superintendent Hanley concentrated on what will happen to the Temporary Memorial which has played such an integral part in America’s ability to express feelings about what happened on 911.  In a completely free way Americans from across the country created their own memorial to the heroes of Flight 93.  One of the first items was the cross donated by an area church.  What will happen to the cross in this politically correct world where the First Amendment is misinterpreted to declare a wall of separation of church and state exists?”

In August of last year a cross made from steel of the World Trade Center was erected and dedicated at the Shanksville Volunteer Fire Department.  Shanksville Chief Terry Shaffer said the cross would serve as inspiration.   The AFA of PA believes all the visitors at the Flight 93 National Memorial needs that same inspiration whenever they visit and the cross donated by the Somerset church would deliver just that inspiration.  A formal request to keep the cross in the final memorial was contained in the letter to Superintendent Hanley.

The Flight 93 National Memorial General Management Plan Summary on page 23 states, “The Temporary Memorial will be retained in situ as long as visitation does not conflict with the construction of the memorial, but in the long-term, this feature will be removed to open views of the Bowl and crash site.  The location of the Temporary Memorial will be marked by benches along a trail extending through the Bowl.” 

The First Amendment of the Constitution says, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Concerns outlined in the letter to President Bush included:

·         Svonavec, Inc.’s Treasurer Mike Svonavec has said his family business, which has owned the property since 1961, will donate the actual crash site, but has asked for an independent appraisal of the remaining property.  Mr. Svonavec will not negotiate with the Families of Flight 93, Inc. and says he will only talk with the National Park Service.

·         An independent appraisal was done three years again, but later rejected without explanation from the National Park Service.   In March 2008, after a six-month selection process, the park service retained Utah-based LECG to independently appraise the property.  For reasons that remain unclear, the government’s Appraisal Services Directorate subsequently rejected LECG’s report.  Neither Mr. Svonvec nor a local newspaper, The Johnstown Tribune Democrat, have been able to obtain a copy of this latest appraisal.  

·         Additionally, it appears that there are attempts to demonize Svonavec, Inc.  Several news accounts have stated that the company has demanded $10 million for the property, when in actuality the Svonvec’s have not stated a price and are awaiting an independent outside appraisal.   Last spring the National Park reported that the owners of the reclaimed strip mine had announced that the Temporary Memorial must be moved.  When, in fact, Svonvec, Inc. never asked that the memorial be moved.  Yet, the National Park Service insisted the memorial be moved across the road onto property they had acquired.  How many taxpayer dollars were used to make this unnecessary move?   From February to June, 2007 Svonvec, Inc. paid $10,000 per month for security at the Temporary Memorial because federal reimbursements expired.  They were verbally attacked by the National Park Service when they placed a donation box at the site to help defray their security costs. 

The American Family Association of Pennsylvania is a statewide pro-family, anti-violence, traditional values organization.

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News Release
For Immediate Release:  January 7, 2009
Contact:  Diane Gramley   1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Thought Police on Duty -- Pennsylvania New Hate Crimes Legislation – is Wrong

(Harrisburg) – Even before the Pennsylvania legislative session began, PA State Senator Jim Ferlo (D-38) asked colleagues to pass a hate crimes law with the addition of sexual orientation, gender identity, ancestry, and mental and physical disability language.  In July 2008 the Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s decision that passage of Pennsylvania’s hate crimes law was done in an unconstitutional manner.   Senator Ferlo says passage of a similar law should be their top priority.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide pro-family organization, disagrees.  Yesterday newly elected state legislators were sworn in to serve the people of Pennsylvania.  The American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA) has contacted each State Senator and State Representative and asked them not to support any hate crimes legislation that may be introduced.

 “Hate crimes laws are not necessary – there are already laws against murder, assault, harassment, vandalism, arson, etc.   Hate crime laws are attempts to silence those who oppose the homosexual and transgender lifestyle – look who’s helping write most of these hate crime laws.  Besides why make a list of groups which get special protection under hate crimes legislation.  Hate crime laws make some victims more important than others and simply are not right,” noted Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

We here in Pennsylvania should remember the danger of hate crime laws.  In 2002 even with promises from lawmakers on the floor of the House that the law was about hooligans and blood on the streets, the AFA of PA warned that it would result in the loss of religious freedom and that is exactly what happened less than two years after that bill was signed into law.  In October 2004 eleven Christians were arrested in Philadelphia for singing choruses and reading Scripture at a ‘gay’ pride event.   They were arrested and charged with a hate crime.  Each faced 47 years in prison and $90,000 in fines.  Only after a judge took the time to view the video of an independent filmmaker, who was making a documentary, were the charges dropped.

Matthew Shepherd, the homosexual student killed in Wyoming, is always paraded before the nation as the reason hate crimes laws are necessary.  Investigation showed that he was not targeted because he was homosexual, but his death was the result of a botched robbery.  Yet, homosexual activists continue using his murder as a rallying point.  The murderers are each serving life sentences because Shepherd’s parents do not believe in the death penalty.  

“Lawmakers need to understand the danger of hate crimes legislation. Wyoming is one of many states that do not have hate crimes laws, yet they were able to deal with Matthew Shepherd’s murder as they deal with any murder – investigate, gather facts, seek the culprits, make the arrest and bring the accused to trial.  Wyoming doesn’t need a hate crimes law and neither does Pennsylvania.  All Americans should have equal protection under the law and we are calling on PA legislators to protect all Pennsylvanians in an equal fashion,” Gramley said.

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Copyright 2002-2009 American Family Association of PA