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News Release
For Immediate Release: July 17, 2009
Contact: Diane Gramley 1.814.271.9078 or 1.814.437.5355

Ignoring the Facts, Senators Specter and Casey Vote to Expand Hate Crimes and Protect Pedophiles

(Harrisburg) – Pennsylvania’s two Senators just don’t get it and continue bowing to pressure from a special interest group that represents less than three percent of the population of the United States. Apparently in their zeal to co-sponsor and vote for this hate crimes amendment to the Defense Authorization Act, they failed to notice that there are no definitions for ‘sexual orientation’ or ‘gender identity,’ observed the American Family Association of Pennsylvania (AFA of PA), a statewide family values group.

“Our two Senators and the other ‘yea’ votes on this amendment just voted to give pedophiles and all others engaged in deviant sexual orientations special protections under the law. Additionally, until now these protections were only extended to those with unchangeable characteristics such as race and ethnicity. The Senators turned their backs on history and the fact that there are thousands of ex-gays, proof that homosexuals are not born that way,” stated Diane Gramley, president of the AFA of PA.

In a faxed letter to Senators Specter and Casey, the AFA of PA noted, “Here in Pennsylvania we know how these laws can ‘evolve.’ During State House floor debate on a hate crimes bill in 2002, we were assured that the bill had nothing to do with what was said and everything to do with blood on the streets. Within two years, 11 Christians were arrested in Philadelphia and charged with a hate crime. Their offense? They were singing choruses and reading Scripture at a homosexual event. This is the natural progression of hate crimes legislation.”

No matter what is being said now by homosexual organizations, the 2004 scenario in Philadelphia is what they want seen played out across the country. The true purpose of this hate crimes amendment is to silence, or at the least, chill the free speech rights of those with deeply held religious beliefs that homosexual acts are sinful. In recent years, we’ve heard homosexual activists’ rhetoric change to where a common line is ‘hateful words lead to violence against LGBT people.’ Also increasingly it has become apparent that they define ‘hateful words’ as anything said that disagrees with them. In coming years, their true intent will be exposed.

Overall Specter’s and Casey’s vote really came as no surprise. Last month Senator Specter attended his first ‘gay pride’ event in Philadelphia, something he never did as a Republican. And apparently Senator Casey is still in payback mode to the homosexuals who got him into office in 2006.

It’s a sad day in America’s history when United States Senators vote to extend special legal protections to those who sexually molest children and have sexual relations with animals. Without a definition of ‘sexual orientation,’ that is what they did the evening of July 16^th.

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