Fort Worth, Texas Councilman Joel Burns has become a hero and role model by his speech promoting hope for gay teens who feel depressed and threatened because of their sexuality.
Burns gave a 13 minute emotional speech which went viral on You Tube, in which he described his own struggle to come to grips with his sexual orientation years ago.
He implored desperate teens not to lose faith and hope in a future, and wept over the spate of suicides of teens as young as 11 and as late teen as 18 in recent weeks, due to constant bullying on the internet, and rejection by churches and parents who claim to be “religious”, but are committing the greatest sin imaginable–the repudiation of children! 🙁
What churches, parents and classmates of these young men and women are doing is in reality the greatest abuse imaginable, and it is time for people of good will to demand that the hate and harassment and bullying and condemnation STOP in the name of human decency!
So Joel Burns, who could be risking his political career by being so open and emotional about this issue, should be seen as an inspiration, and the kind of politician that we need more of in the future, instead of the many phony, self serving office holders who will stop at nothing to promote hate and division in their quest for power! 🙁
And this includes talk show hosts who constantly spew hate and venom, in the mad quest for power and wealth, and have no conscience at all on this issue, as well as others they promote to divide America! 🙁 And it is not necessary to list who the author means, as anyone with any awareness of what is going on, knows who they are! 🙁
I watched that speech and I was really moved by it. I think the time for equal rights for gays and lesbians will be coming very soon.
Only if Florida could start getting there with the gay rights movement. This is the only state in the country that outright bans Gay Adoption
Actually, the Department of Children and Families in Florida has just ended the 33 year ban on gay adoption. This occurred three weeks after a Miami appellate court ruled the law unconstitutional. It is unlikely that Bill McCollum, the Florida Attorney General, who lost the GOP nomination for Governor to Rick Scott in September, will appeal that decision, and Governor Charlie Crist has already indicated it is time to end the ban. So Florida finally becomes the last state to end the ban on gay adoption!
Everyone I know including Southern Baptists are saying they think Councilman Burns is destined for the US Senate, not because he meant to do something to put him in the limelight but because of his heart and caompassion, and courage.