In an audio press conference Jan. 31, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force ( NGLTF ) discussed a report that revealed a network of 2.5 million people willing to fight for LGBT equality. The news was welcome to those who say that they have endured constant attacks from the religious right.
The study, entitled 'David v. Goliath' and conducted by the National Religious Leadership Roundtable ( an interfaith collaborative under NGLTF's umbrella ) , discusses three types of faith-based groups that secular progressive organizations can tap as resources: denominations, denominational networks and bridge-builders. Denominations are LGBT-identified or -inclusive, while the networks ( or chapters ) are LGBT-related but are mostly organized within traditional religious groups. Bridge-builders are religious organizations that deal with faith, LGBT issues and some other identity-based facet, such as race or gender; examples include Queer Asian Spirit and Al-Fatiha, a Muslim LGBT organization.
During the call, Matt Foreman, NGLTF's executive director, said often overlooked are 'the vital and robust discussions that are going on about our rights in churches and synagogues across the country.' He added that the progress occurring in religious institutions actually 'outstrips what's going on in our state legislatures.'
Richard Lindsay, an NGLTF communications associate and co-author of the study, said that 'we set out to create a snapshot of progressive people of faith who are working on issues that affect the gay community.' He then discussed the methodology involved in compiling the report and talked about the three aforementioned categories of organizations. He also noted that the report is 'representative as a cross-section of the community but is [ certainly ] not exhaustive.'
Rev. Rebecca Voelkel of the Institute for Welcoming Resources talked about the opposition to the pro-LGBT religious groups. 'Radical right organizations had been relying on the Communist threat to raise funds,' she said. 'However, because this particular enemy as fallen, [ they felt the ] need to shift to a new enemy—and that's where homosexuality came in.'
See www.theTaskForce.org .