(First diary. Hope I do this correctly....)
First, I hope this does not disintegrate into the usual fight between those who make this about Obama--either defending him or attacking him. Those discussions go nowhere and aren't really productive.
What I'm hoping for is a little activism here. We surely all agree that what Max Blumenthal uncovered about Warren's much-vaunted AIDS ministry in Africa is horrific.
But since the Warren inauguration controversy erupted, the nature of work against AIDS in Africa has gone unexamined. Warren has not been particularly forthcoming to those who have attempted to look into it. His website contains scant information about the results of his program. However, an investigation into Warren’s involvement in Africa reveals a web of alliances with right-wing clergymen who have sidelined science-based approaches to combating AIDS in favor of abstinence-only education. More disturbingly, Warren’s allies have rolled back key elements of one of the continent’s most successful initiative, the so-called ABC program in Uganda. Stephen Lewis, the United Nations’ special envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa, told the New York Times their activism is "resulting in great damage and undoubtedly will cause significant numbers of infections which should never have occurred."
Warren’s man in Uganda is a charismatic pastor named Martin Ssempa. The head of the Makerere Community Church, a rapidly growing congregation, Ssempe enjoys close ties to his country’s First Lady, Janet Museveni, and is a favorite of the Bush White House. In the capitol of Kampala, Ssempa is known for his boisterous crusading. Ssempa’s stunts have included burning condoms in the name of Jesus and arranging the publication of names of homosexuals in cooperative local newspapers while lobbying for criminal penalties to imprison them.
If you haven't read the entire article, please do so. Essentially, Warren has teamed with his "brother," Martin Ssempa, to insist that condoms NOT be distributed or even advertised as a method of AIDS prevention. Instead, they preach abstinence only. Furthermore, Warren's "brother" has advocated for the persecution of homosexuals. The result is that, thanks to the thoroughly misguided efforts of Warren and his friend, more people will die--from AIDS and from gay-bashings.
This is the facet of Rick Warren that the mainstream media has failed to examine. Instead, pundits and journalists have dutifully transcribed the buzz invented by Warren's public relations consultant. The buzz, generated by his book and his appearance on Oprah, is that Warren is a new evangelical--more progressive and inclusive in spirit.
How many of you thought this? I did. I didn't give Warren much thought at all until the announcement that he was giving the inaugural invocation, but the more I've learned about his theology, the more horrified I am.
Warren has flown under the radar thanks to his friendly and warm affect and his very smart marketing. But when you look past the "gee, I love gays!" and look at the actions he's supported, it's clear that Warren subscribes to the same theology as Robertson, Dobson, and the late Jerry Falwell. He's just slicker.
Blumenthal's reporting of Warren's effort to reduce AIDS in Africa by pushing for abstinence-only programs and vilifying homosexuals needs to be exposed. When Warren takes the stage on Inauguration Day, people need to know who is speaking and what he really stands for. Then they can make informed choices about how much of his ministry they can countenance. But until they are informed, they may think he's just a teddy bear, a progressive trapped in a fundamentalist's faith, a guy thisclose to transforming the Religious Right.
He is not. He is doing real harm in Africa. He and we, as a nation, need to be confronted with that reality.
We--the American people "we"--need for CNN, MSNBC, and network news organizations to broadcast exactly what Warren has done in Africa to "fight AIDS." After you've read Blumenthal's piece, please consider emailing these news outlets to ask that they investigate Warren's activities in Africa and report on them.
Obama cannot un-invite Warren at this point, so insisting that he do so is a waste of energy. But this CAN be an opportunity to peel away Warren's image and expose the reality--a reality that even Warren may be in some denial about.
Let me be clear that I still have hope that Obama will work to repeal DOMA and DADT and pass ENDA. I am still glad that Obama, not McCain, is our new president. My intent in this diary is not to attack or defend Obama. It's to try to encourage people to do something constructive with their anger: push news organizations to report on Warren's activities and not leave it at "Warren loves gay people and goes to their houses!"
Not when he's in Uganda, he doesn't. And even here, his church has a nice program to straighten us out.
We cannot stop Warren from giving the invocation on a day that will, like the election itself--thanks to Proposition 8, be bittersweet for most LGBT people.
But we CAN do our best to make sure that people know more about Rick Warren. Please consider writing MSNBC, CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, and the editor of your local newspaper to request that they report on Warren's activities.
Thanks.