Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

Shake-Up At Anti-Gay Illinois Group
by Amy Wooten
2006-08-23

This article shared 3975 times since Wed Aug 23, 2006
facebook twitter google +1 reddit email


Peter LaBarbera, executive director of the ultra-conservative, anti-gay Illinois Family Institute ( IFI ) , is leaving his position to re-launch a group he founded in 1996, Americans for Truth ( AFT ) , an anti-gay group left dormant for a number of years.

Taking his place is former IFI senior policy analyst Dave Smith, who is very involved in Protect Marriage Illinois' downhill battle to place an anti-gay marriage referendum on the November ballot. Protect Marriage Illinois ( PMI ) is a sister organization to IFI. Although some members of the GLBT community feel that LaBarbera was pushed out due to the failure of the referendum under his leadership, as well as other items on IFI's agenda, LaBarbera told Windy City Times these claims are 'totally erroneous,' and that he simply wants to focus on AFT, a group with a specifically focused anti-gay agenda.

LaBarbera added in a voicemail to Windy City Times that the theory does not make sense, considering one of PMI's key leaders has been promoted to head IFI.

'I am delighted that soon I will be able to devote my full time and energies to Americans for Truth and its goal of educating citizens on the threat that the powerful and well-funded GLBT movement poses to children, marriage and freedom,' LaBarbera posted on the AFT Web site. 'Homosexual, bisexual and transsexual groups spend tens of millions of dollars every year to market and normalize their abhorrent lifestyles, yet after all these years there is not a single, serious national group dedicated specifically to exposing and countering their agendas.'

Bob Schwartz of Gay Liberation Network ( GLN ) sees LaBarbera's departure as a large victory for the GLBT community. 'We consider this resignation to be a significant event. It's a defeat for the right wing in Illinois.'

Schwartz and GLN feel that LaBarbera didn't so much resign, but was pushed out by IFI members for 'massively miscalculating' on the anti-gay marriage referendum, wasting a large amount of money and time. They also speculate that LaBarbera's failure to get African-American churches to come on board, and his obsession countering the 'homosexual agenda' in a multi-issue group such as IFI, caused the group to toss its leader. Furthermore, Schwartz said, many pro-gay groups like GLN continuously counter-protested IFI's every move—particularly during its 'haphazardly thrown together' Gay Games protests—often outnumbering the anti-gay group and causing it to lose steam.

'We think LaBarbera has been told to hit the road,' Schwartz added.

According to IFI, that's not the case. 'They don't have their facts right, and its all just speculation on their part,' Smith told Windy City Times with a laugh. 'Besides, we don't consider the marriage amendment a failure,' he continued. 'We gathered over 400,000 signatures.'

On Aug. 11, the Illinois State Board of Elections announced that it would not certify PMI's measure to place a non-binding anti-gay marriage referendum on the Nov. 7 ballot. When the state took a sample of the signatures collected, only 91 percent of the signatures were valid. The state requires that 95 percent of the signatures collected be valid.

Smith added that the Illinois State Board of Elections 'squashed' IFI's First Amendment rights, and described their laws as 'draconian.' He said IFI will continue to fight the decision, and hopes the 7th Circuit Court will rule in its favor.

Smith insists LaBarbera's departure was a personal decision, and IFI did not give him the boot. 'Peter has this desire to take on this effort,' Smith said. 'Anyone who knows Peter knows this is his heart's desire—to seek the truth and expose the homosexual agenda for what it is.'

Smith described LaBarbera's Americans for Truth as the right's equivalent to the Human Rights Campaign because it has a narrow focus, and wished LaBarbera the best.

Right-wing conservative organizations have a habit of shuffling their leaders around. Take, for instance, LaBarbera, who had been a higher-up for Concerned Women for America and the Family Research Council before coming to the IFI.

AFT, formerly known as Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, was founded in 1996 by LaBarbera, and was based in Washington, D.C. In August of 2000, AFT was incorporated into 'ex-gay' Michael Johnson's Kerusso Ministries. Now located in suburban Naperville, AFT will focus on countering the 'homosexual agenda.' On board is Matt Barber, who gained national attention when he was fired from Allstate Insurance Company for writing an anti-gay article.

Schwartz doubts that AFT will obtain the power it seeks. 'I doubt there's room for another anti-gay group,' he said.

AFT recently received a $1,000 grant from The Pro-Family Charitable Trust of Abiding Truth Ministries for re-launching.


This article shared 3975 times since Wed Aug 23, 2006
facebook twitter google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

SHOWBIZ Lady Gaga, 'P-Valley,' Wendy Williams, Luke Evans, 'Queer Eye,' 'Transition' 2024-03-15
- Lady Gaga came to the defense of Dylan Mulvaney after a post with the trans influencer/activist for International Women's Day received hateful responses, People Magazine noted. On Instagram, Gaga stated, "It's appalling to me that a ...


Gay News

Smollett asks state supreme court to overturn conviction 2024-02-07
- Embattled actor Jussie Smollett has asked the Illinois Supreme Court to review and overturn an appellate ruling upholding his conviction for a hate-crime hoax that took place more than five years ago, The Chicago Sun-Times noted. ...


Gay News

Club Q shooter faces more than 50 federal hate-crime charges 2024-01-17
- On Jan. 16, the shooter who killed five people—Daniel Davis Aston, Kelly Loving, Derrick Rump, Raymond Green Vance and Ashley Paugh—and injured 40 others at the Colorado Springs LGBTQIA+ nightclub Club Q pled not guilty to ...


Gay News

Jussie Smollett loses appeal, might head back to jail 2023-12-01
- Embattled out gay actor Jussie Smollett could soon be back behind bars after an Illinois appeals court backed the ex-Empire actor's disorderly conduct convictions stemming from a faked 2019 hate crime and lying to Chicago cops, ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Trevor Project, anti-trans crimes, priest sentenced, hate-crimes unit 2023-11-24
- The Trevor Project announced the extension of its partnership with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, reaffirming its commitment to providing specialized assistance to LGBTQ+ people who call 9-8-8, The Advocate reported. Interim Senior Vice President ...


Gay News

OPINION Renewing state's Invest in Kids program is investing in anti-LGBTQ+ hate 2023-10-23
- In February 2020, Bishop Thomas Paprocki of the Diocese of Springfield warned transgender students in the Diocese's educational system that they "may be expelled from the school" if they live their lives authentically. Lansing Christian School ...


Gay News

Indivisible Illinois hosts online discussion about rise in hate crimes in Illinois 2023-10-20
- Advocates, elected officials and researchers shared ways people can prevent and respond to hate crimes during a Oct. 19 online meeting hosted by Indivisible Illinois, a grassroots coalition of Illinoisans who organize around "urgent and long-term ...


Gay News

Attorney General Kwame Raoul highlights resources to address hate crimes 2023-10-17
--From a press release - Chicago — Attorney General Kwame Raoul released the following statement strongly condemning the heinous acts committed in Plainfield this past weekend and reminding residents to report hate crimes in Illinois, including to his office's Civil Rig ...


Gay News

Statement from President Joe Biden on 25th anniversary of Matthew Shepard's death 2023-10-12
--From a press release - BRIEFING ROOM STATEMENTS AND RELEASES Twenty-five years ago today, Matthew Shepard lost his life to a brutal act of hate and violence that shocked our nation and the world. The week prior, Matthew had been viciously ...


Gay News

GLAAD: GOP primary debate includes question on anti-LGBTQ+ violence, candidates duck 2023-09-28
--From a press release - GLAAD: "Instead of addressing the critical issue of the safety and rights of all Americans, GOP primary candidates ignored the rise in violence and hateful rhetoric aimed at the LGBTQ community and our allies. Several chose ...


Gay News

Man pleads guilty to hate crime at UpRising Bakery 2023-08-17
- Alsip, Illinois resident Joseph I. Collins, 25, pled guilty on Aug. 16 to committing a hate crime last summer at UpRising Bakery and Cafe, a Lake in the Hills business that was preparing to host a ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Drag news, HIV-bias lawsuit, Disney, Brittney Griner, gay dancer 2023-08-04
- Swastika flag-toting neo-Nazis, some of them armed, were at a Wisconsin LGBTQ+ Pride celebration that included a drag show, The Advocate reported. Members of the neo-Nazi extremist group Blood Tribe joined other right-wing hate groups, like ...


Gay News

Dancer O'Shae Sibley murdered amid rising violence against LGBTQs; GLAAD highlights trend 2023-08-01
--From a press release - At least five LGBTQ people have been murdered in recent weeks, following a dramatic spike in anti-LGBTQ hate and harassment during Pride month. GLAAD: "[O'Shae] Sibley's shocking murder follows a disturbing rise in violence and harassment ...


Gay News

Baseball team cuts player who defends anti-LGBTQ+ post 2023-07-05
- Last month, the Toronto Blue Jays cut pitcher Anthony Bass after he said he didn't think an anti-LGBTQ+ social media post he shared last month was hateful, NBC News noted. The move happened hours before Bass ...


Gay News

Prime Minister Trudeau condemns Canadian university stabbings 2023-07-01
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned the June 28 stabbings of a professor and two students in a gender-studies class at the University of Waterloo after police revealed the motive was hate-related, calling it "heinous violence," ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS






Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.