Utah Joins the War on Contraception

Just weeks after California Representative Darrell Issa felt the need to call a special hearing to bemoan the oppression of the Catholic Church’s First Amendment rights–the freedom of religion–Utah Republicans are ready to legislate away another First Amendment right, their teachers’ right to free speech. The Utah House passed a bill, HB363, that would allow schools to ban sex ed and prohibits instruction in the use of contraception by a 45-28 vote. The bill now moves on to the state Senate.

But not to worry, the bill’s sponsor,  Rep. Bill Wright, R-Holden, “a dairyman“(!), has got the doublespeak down. Perhaps realizing that banning the discussion of contraception (under the guise of forbidding ”advocacy” of its use) might leave educators tongue-tied–and on the brink of a crime spree–if asked a direct question about contraception, he maintained that teachers could respond to students’ questions on the matter. How, exactly, he couldn’t say. The language of the bill states: “An instructor may respond to a spontaneous question as long as the response is consistent with the [bill's] provisions.”

Wright can be added to the ever-growing list of public officials who have gone on the record with their light-years-beyond-the-mainstream belief that birth control is a dodge, an “intellectually dishonest” way of “getting away with” sex. Boldly ignoring the biological truth that even married women aren’t able to get pregnant every day of their married life, he, along with Senator Santorum and the Catholic Church, have decided that sex is for procreation only and that the consequences of unprotected premarital sex aren’t grave enough already. (Apparently the threat of eternal damnation isn’t what it used to be.) Though Wright, like Santorum and the Church, professes to be protecting all of us from the consequences our mainstream “brainwashing” has left us unable to recognize without their intervention, everybody knows the wages of sexual sins are not distributed equally. To be sure, the Mormon influence in Utah may make it harder for an unmarried dad to shirk his parental responsibilities. Still, we all know who gets pregnant and who had to wear that scarlet letter.

There’s reason for hope though, even in this ultra-conservative state. Anyone who has visited Utah over the past thirty years can tell you how much influence the Mormon Church has lost over the state liquor laws. Where there once was no MTV, “16 and Pregnant” airs unmolested. And a Democratic lawmaker from Salt Lake City like Rep. Brian King can fight the self-appointed contraception police and go on the record saying that bills like HB363 make ”reasonable people think we have lost it up here on the Hill.”

Where Do Romney & Huntsman Stand on Abortion?

Yesterday Jon Huntsman announced his bid for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination. Huntsman is the former governor of the state of Utah, and he recently resigned as the US Ambassador to China.  So far the media has focused primarily on Huntsman’s positions on foreign policy and economic issues, as has Huntsman himself.  Huntsman has often been called a moderate on social policy issues, such as immigration and same sex marriage.  Nevertheless, he did sign three anti-abortion bills his last year as governor of Utah.  The overwhelming lack of information about Huntsman’s stance on abortion on his campaign website makes me wonder: where does Jon Huntsman actually stand on abortion?

Mitt Romney came under fire last week for his refusal to sign a pledge from the Susan B. Anthony List. Ever the moderate, Romney argued that the pledge, which rejects federal funding for health care facilities that provide abortion, would be very costly to hospitals who rely on federal Medicaid dollars. The anti-choice group took Romney’s refusal as a sign that he’s a “flip-flopper” on abortion, especially given the mudslinging Romney received in the 2008 election for his perceived support of Planned Parenthood. Romney is currently the GOP frontrunner (which means next to nothing this far out from the election), but his stance on abortion could hurt his campaign much more than people’s questions surrounding his Mormonism. [Read more...]

Virgins Last Longer! Where Has All the Science Gone?

You might have recently read about a study that concluded that couples who wait until they are married to have sex have longer, stronger marriages than those who fornicate before they get hitched. The study was originally published in the American Psychological Association’s Journal of Family Psychology and has been picked up by Live Science, PsychCentral.com , WebMD , AOL Health, and U.S. News Health Report.

The findings of the study were based on results from an online marital assessment called “RELATE.” Researchers selected a sample of 2,035 married individuals from the database to match the demographics of the married American population. The press release does not indicate which demographic study results they used to match their sample to, nor does it detail whether the demographics of the married population included homosexual couples, common-law marriages or polygamous relationships.

The crux of the study results hinge on the assessment question: “When did you become sexual in this relationship?” Results of the study showed the relationship stability of the abstainers was 22 percent higher than those who had relations before marriage, the abstainers’ relationship satisfaction was rated 20 percent higher, the sexual quality of their relationship was rated 15 percent better, and their communication was rated as 12 percent better than those hussies who shamelessly rolled in the hay before the wedding.

Lead study author Dean Busby, professor at Brigham Young University’s School of Family Life is quoted as saying: “There’s more to a relationship than sex, but we did find that those who waited longer were happier with the sexual aspect of their relationship.”

According to Brigham Young University’s press release: ‘because religious belief often plays a role for couples who choose to wait, Busby and his co-authors controlled for the influence of religious involvement in their analysis.’ Busby also says: “Regardless of religiosity, waiting helps the relationship form better communication processes, and these help improve long-term stability and relationship satisfaction.”

The press release then goes on to quote sociologist Mark Regnerus of the University of Texas at Austin, who was not involved with the study, and just happens to be the author of “Forbidden Fruit: Sex and Religion in the lives of American Teenagers” and the forthcoming “Premarital Sex in America,” a study of the sexual lives of emerging heterosexual adults. Regnerus teaches courses like The Making of American Christianity and Introduction to Sociology, Judaism and Christianity in Sociological Perspective. Regnerus had this to say: “Couples who hit the honeymoon too early – that is, prioritize sex promptly at the outset of a relationship – often find their relationships underdeveloped when it comes to the qualities that make relationships stable and spouses reliable and trustworthy.”  What those qualities are, exactly, he does not share with the class. [Read more...]

Candlelight Vigil at Mormon Temple Raises Spirits…And Eyebrows

The Friday after Thanksgiving is typically a big day for Mormons in Phoenix. The Mormon Temple flips the switch on hundreds of thousands of Christmas lights on Black Friday, kicking off one of the Mormon Church’s biggest outreach events of the year.

This year the lighting ceremony was contrasted by a group of approximately 100 LGBTQ activists, many of them former Mormons, who wanted to use the lighting ceremony as an opportunity to raise awareness about the high suicide rate amongst LGBTQ Mormons. Participants held candles and distributed contact information for Affirmation, a support group for LGBTQ Mormons, and The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention hotline for queer youth.

Bobby Parker, one of the event organizers, explains that “We said, ‘Merry Christmas!’ and handed people a card. If they asked what it was, we said, ‘We’re giving the gift of life this Christmas. There are suicide prevention numbers on both sides and information for gay and lesbian Mormons.” [Read more...]

Pro-LGBTQ Demostration Planned at Mormon Temple

Last month we told you about a speech that Mormon leader Boyd K. Packer gave at the Mormon Church’s bi-annual general conference, where Packer stated that being gay is a choice, and that God wouldn’t make people gay, since homosexuality is a sin. This speech is part of the same old, same old for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. But in light of the recent media attention on LGTBQ youth suicides, it’s time to say that enough is enough.

The Phoenix GLBT Coalition for Mormon Action is planning a demonstration aimed at stopping gay Mormon suicides in Arizona, set for Friday, November 26th from 6:00-10:00 PM, coinciding with the Christmas lighting ceremony at the Mormon Temple in Mesa. The purpose of the demonstration is to make gay Mormons aware of The Trevor Project Suicide Prevention National Hotline and the local Gay and Lesbian organization for gay Mormons, Phoenix Affirmation. The demonstration will also continue the national message, “It Gets Better.”

Packer has been called upon to recant his words in a talk given to the 13,000,000 members of the church via satellite from Salt Lake City. The organizers of the November 26th rally believe these words have put the estimated 40,000-60,000 gay Mormons in Arizona in grave danger and may contribute to suicides. Utah, which is the stronghold of the Mormon faith, has a suicide rate 3 times the national average. [Read more...]

A Response to Last Week’s Protests Against the Mormon Church

Last week LBGTQ activists staged a die-in at the headquarters of the Mormon Church to protest LDS leader Boyd K. Packer’s comments at the biannual General Conference regarding LGBTQ individuals. Packer stated that being gay is a choice, and that God wouldn’t make people gay, since homosexuality is a sin. This statement is nothing new, of course. But in light of all of the media attention surrounding LGBTQ youth suicide, queer activists were understandably fed up with the Mormon Church’s stance, especially since the state of Utah has one of the highest suicide rates in the country.

Since today is National Coming Out Day, I’d like to issue my own response to Elder Boyd K. Packer.

Dear Elder Packer,

You don’t know me, but I’ve got news for you – the Mormon Church is missing out on a good thing by alienating queer folks from its congregations. I used to be your typical Molly Mormon. I went to church every week, I baked bread, did my genealogy, and participated in every little service project I could find. I even attended BYU for a semester . . . all in an effort to prove that I could be the perfect Mormon girl that God wanted me to be.

But then, something happened. Matthew Sheppard was brutally murdered in October of 1998 – by two Mormons, I might add – and I realized that I had to get out of the state of Utah in order to be who I truly was.

I am a lesbian, Elder Packer. You say that it is a choice, but it’s no more a choice than you having gray hair or a big nose. Being a lesbian is a part of who I am, but it’s not all that I am. I still bake bread. I still love doing my genealogy. And I still give service to others whenever I can. I am a daughter, a granddaughter, a pet-mother, and a wife. My partner and I live in our little house together, and we’re quite happy, thank you very much. In fact, Shannon is the best thing that ever happened to me. And yes, I prayed for Shannon, and God answered that prayer. [Read more...]

Planned Parenthood is Protecting Choice Right in the Heart of Utah

Feminist Conversations is a weekly column where we interview pro-choice advocates from around the country to find out what feminism means to them, and what pro-choice activism looks like in their neck of the woods. This week we’re talking to Karrie Galloway, the CEO of Planned Parenthood of Utah.

When most people think of Utah, the first image that they conjure up usually isn’t a Planned Parenthood clinic. And yet, Planned Parenthood has a very strong presence in the state of Utah. They operate nine clinics, from Logan in the northern part of the state, to St. George in the southwest corner. Planned Parenthood of Utah recently opened a clinic in Orem, which is home to Utah Valley University and the next door neighbor of Provo, home to Brigham Young University. The Planned Parenthood clinic in Orem is the fastest growing in the state, experiencing an 18% increase in its patient load since the clinic opened in 2009.

Karrie Galloway attributes that growth to several factors. “The Utah Valley is a very quickly growing community, with a large population of young people who are between the ages of 18-26. Utah has a fairly young demographic in general, and it also has a high fertility rate. People are coming to Planned Parenthood to access our family planning services to help them space their children.” [Read more...]

Is Utah Becoming More Gay-Friendly?

salt_lake_lds_mormon_templeI was pretty shocked by the news last week that an out gay candidate won a seat on the Salt Lake City Council. I was shocked, though, when I heard that the city council passed a nondiscrimination policy that includes sexual orientation and gender identity. The Mormon Church had initially opposed the law, but they switched sides this week. According to Gaypolitics.com:

Utah lawmakers tend to quickly fall in line when the influential church makes a rare foray into legislative politics. So Tuesday’s action could have broad effects in this highly conservative state where more than 80 percent of lawmakers and the governor are church members.

“What happened here tonight I do believe is a historic event,” said Brandie Balken, director of the gay rights advocacy group Equality Utah. “I think it establishes that we can stand together on common ground that we don’t have to agree on everything, but there are lot of things that we can work on and be allies.”

[Read more...]

October is National Coming Out Month

Gay Mormon pro-loveComing Out used to have it’s own day, then it morphed into a week, and now it has its own month. So in honor of National Coming Out Month, I’m coming out. I actually came out as a lesbian 10 years ago, so I guess this might be my aluminum anniversary. Anyone who tries to give me tin jewelery, though, deserves a stern look of disappointment – I prefer silver, thank you very much.

I graduated in 1998 from a predominantly Mormon high school. I had a few inklings in high school that I was attracted to girls, but growing up in the LDS community kept me from actually considering those ideas as a serious possibility. I attended BYU for a semester – mostly to prove to myself and God that I was everything that a good Mormon girl should be. But in the Fall of 1998, something happened – Matthew Shepard, a college student from Wyoming, was murdered because he was gay. This tragedy was a wake up call for me, and at the end of the Fall semester, I left BYU to move back to Arizona. I didn’t “officially” come out until the following year. But let’s be real for just a minute – I was a declared Women’s Studies major, I had short, spiky hair, and I wore a lot of camo at the time. I was a lesbian, I just wasn’t ready to embrace the label yet.

My official coming out “announcement” came in the form of me shaving my head. My mom freaked out because my sexuality was now brazenly apparent to anyone who looked at me, and she kicked me out of the house. I was really lucky – I moved in with my debate coach and was able to stay in school because he supported me, both financially and emotionally, while I became comfortable publicly identifying as a lesbian. I’m very fortunate that my mom and I have a good relationship now – thanks to ten years, some therapy, and a lot of hard work on both of our parts. [Read more...]