Leading sentence in our local newspaper …
Under pressure from a conservative advocacy group, the Hallmark Channel has pulled ads for a wedding-planning website that featured two brides kissing at the altar.
The conservative group that insisted the ad be pulled was the “One Million Moms,” part of the American Family Association, a fundamentalist Protestant organization that opposes LGBT rights and expression, pornography, and abortion. The Association defines itself as a “Christian organization promoting the biblical ethic of decency in American society.”
Regrettably, the CEO of Hallmark’s parent company buckled under the pressure from this group and stated the ad was “aired in error” and that the “Hallmark Channel will continue to be a safe and family-friendly network.”
I can’t help but ask … whose family are they being “friendly” to?
Interestingly, at the end of the article, it mentioned that Hallmark had actually been considering more same-sex themed content.
In fact, in mid-November in an interview with “The Hollywood Reporter,” the CEO was quoted as saying the company was “open to really any type of movie of any type of relationship.”
Hmmmm. Can’t imagine what changed his thinking.
I could say more … much more … on this topic, but instead I will simply refer readers to the quote I used in this post:
Religious liberty is the freedom to believe in anything you like, or to believe in nothing at all. But it certainly does not carry with it the right to force others to live by those beliefs.
UPDATE: RollingStone.com reported that the Hallmark Channel has apologized, saying (after facing a wave of criticism) “this was the wrong decision.” They have since reinstated the four previously-pulled commercials that featured two brides kissing.
YES! True religious liberty reigns!
Nan's Notebook 
AWESOME that they put those ads back up! Man, that is great news!
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Fear not, Dear Nan, there is always Netflix and The First Temptation of Christ.
It’s like Life of Brian in Portuguese with a gay Jesus.
Hilarious.
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Might watch that tonight. Christians are SCREAMING about how awful NetFlix is for even having it on their service. Glad it has not been pulled and they haven’t given into the Christian fascists who want them to.
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Clever, Ark. But not exactly the point of the post … 🙄
BTW, I don’t think I could stomach TFTC … or any other similarly-related movie. Not even funny ones. ICK.
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Not the point?
Have you read of the hysterical reactions from certain Christians about this movie being blasphemous and how it should be banned or removed?
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Must admit … no, I haven’t read anything about the uproar. I rarely read Christian blogs, only very occasionally visit Twitter, and my FB “friends” are pretty quiet about religious topics. Also, I don’t recall seeing anything in the local paper.
But to your point … they just don’t get it. NOBODY is forcing them to watch the movie. And contrary to what they think/believe, they do NOT have the right to prevent others from watching it!
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I wholeheartedly agree, but you should watch at least the first 5 or 10 minutes just so’s you can have a laughter blow out, and if you haven’t nearly wet yourself laughing
then my name isn’t Ethel.
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Better change your name. I agree the plot was a capital idea, but it just wasn’t my cup of tea. I barely made it to the 5 minute mark. 🥱😴
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I had to look up the definition of liberty.
“the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one’s way of life, behavior, or political views.”
Not a word about religion. It is implied, but hey, say it.
Shalom.
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To me their turnaround shows the power of the people. We can cause change we we unite for the good of all.
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I think people need to remember that Hallmark is a company, so their motive is to do what they think is profitable. So I guess the good news in all this is that they decided that it’s not profitable to be bigoted to the LGBTQ+ community.
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I posted about this episode on Tuesday. After Hallmark initially caved to One Million Moms (which I hear actually contains 999,999 fewer moms than their name lays claim to, and that’s assuming the nutcase with the fax machine has reproduced), it took them only two days to realize they’d blundered and reverse course.
I don’t see what this has to do with ‘religious liberty” one way or the other. Hallmark is a business and they’re entitled to decide what kind of ads or programs to run. As Brendan observed, they quickly realized that bigots are a lot smaller market than people who are offended by bigotry.
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I consider it a matter of religious liberty because the organization tried to exert their religious beliefs on a business. IMO, if people want to live by the standards of their religion, they are totally free to do so. But they do not have the “liberty” to tell businesses or organizations to cease and desist simply because it offends their religious standards.
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Ah, then it’s “religious liberty” as the term has been Orwellized by the fundies.
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BOOM! I have to pretty much align with you Infidel. Many private Texas businesses proudly flaunt(?) their liberty to refuse services/products to other businesses or customers that are not Protestant Evangelical Biblically-based. Sadly, in Texas they’ve been allowed to refuse lifting a finger for ANYONE unlike them or who/whom they disapprove on religious grounds. 🤬 And if THAT wasn’t repulsive enough, then of course those same businesses or corporations (in the South?) can also refuse “healthcare” reimbursements or preventative care to any female employees wanting abortifacient regiments/meds or covering birth-control pills! 🤬🤬🤬
And our nation and its CORE Founding Fathers, DoI, Bill of Rights, Constitution, Amendments, and many past Supreme Court landmark decisions have all dictated properly that this nation is NOT a Christian nation, but a neutral (Secular) nation in its governing showing NO FAVOR to any one faith/religion… grrrrr, at least on our nation’s most sanctified documents—in theory! But not always in practice. 😔
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…..because the founders were well aware of the history of horrors in Europe caused by governments endorsing one religious sect over another, which meant struggles between religious factions over who would win the official privileged position, and brutal abuses by whoever won. The lesson was that government had to be neutral on religion.
Of course One Not-Million Mom and her Twitter followers have probably barely heard of Oliver Cromwell or Bloody Mary, never mind learning anything from their roles in history.
Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it — except when, thank goodness, they aren’t powerful enough any more. Bloody Mary burned hundreds of people at the stake for being Protestant, but all this bunch can do is make public idiots of themselves over TV commercials. Still, it’s sad that so many have already forgotten the truths about religion learned by previous generations at such a dreadful price.
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HEAR HEAR Infidel! Hear, hear. 👏👍
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I followed this story too Nan and was disgusted by the RADICAL RIGHT. When organizations or groups like One Million Moms pull bullshit like this, I am reminded how so very many white European immigrants from the 1700’s and 1800’s fled Europe—and all its wars, political and religious oppression, and economic inequality-volatility, etc.—to arrive here to live FREE and INDEPENDENT of all those who constantly sought/seek to control (private matters in the home?) masses of peoples, entire continents!
Isn’t it ironic (or sad) how history repeats itself time and time again?
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Free and independent, providing no one is being hurt. It was not that long ago what happened in private stayed in private, but that meant wife abuse and child abuse went unpunished. I hope we are not going backwards in those areas, but the number of states making abortions punishable by death tells me we are. Why are such laws being allowed to be passed with so little public outrage?
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That is the question isn’t it rawgod? Its answer, its full and THOROUGH, unbiased answer can be partly or greatly answered by reading 2-3 times two books I found to be extremely enlightening:
Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right by Jane Mayer, and…
Democracy In Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America by Nancy MacLean.
These are a profound introduction into how the vast majority of American citizens have either lost their civil duties or denied them at pure, true democracy’s detriment. When the shrinking minority is ruling the bigger and quickly growing majority in a pure democracy WITHOUT violence… then the people’s enemy has covertly infiltrated the innermost workings of the state while the majority ignorantly, naively slumbers.
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The titles surprise me not in the least. Violence returns bigger profits than non-violence. Until we change that, we change nothing.
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Ala the illegal invasion of Iraq in 2003 by the U.S. which violated numerous U.N. and International laws. But of course the largest war-machine nations like China, Russia, and the U.S. have NEVER played by the same international rules/laws we make other countries obey. Pffffffttttt!!! 🙄
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Like Trump, they don’t have to follow they rules. They make them, so they know how to break them.
Trump? Well, he just knows everything. He tells us so every day.
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…yes, the Führer does so thru his Tweet-waffen.
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IMO, rather than worry about the footage of two brides kissing, Christians would do well to focus on strengthening all families in general, and in particular, addressing the high rates of divorce in the churches. Lord have mercy!!!
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It seems, Becky, that many believers find it more satisfying to criticize and condemn those outside the church, rather than looking at what’s happening in their own backyard.
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Sadly, that’s exactly right, Nan.
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I understand their concern for blasphemy, though I think they are mistaken in this case.
The absolutely most blasphemous thing going on lately, has been the support of Christians for Donald (the anti-Christ) Trump. Why do they fail to see that?
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So then should we not also use their bible to demand that all adulterers be denied all rights and even have adulterers put to death according to Levitical and Deuteronomy teachings?
Leviticus 20:10 If a man commits adultery with the wife of his neighbor, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.
Deuteronomy 22:22-24 If a man is found lying with the wife of another man, both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman. So you shall purge the evil from Israel. “If there is a betrothed virgin, and a man meets her in the city and lies with her, then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she did not cry for help though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbor’s wife. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.
Thomas Jefferson starts out with his Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, where, the actual law of the statute says as follows:
II. Be it enacted by the General Assembly, that no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods…
James Madison stated, when he introduced the Bill of Rights to Congress:
“The civil rights of none shall be abridged on account of religious belief or worship, nor shall any national religion be established, nor shall the full and equal rights of conscious in any manner, or on any pretext, be infringed.”
John Adams made it even more clear in his Treaty of Tripoli, article 11:
Art. 11. As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.
George Washington repeated John Adams words and added to them:
“The government of the United States, is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion. The United States of America should have a foundation free from the influence of clergy.”
And one more from Thomas Jefferson:
“Christianity neither is, nor ever was, a part of the common law.”
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Good quotes. Of course the problem is, too many believers are totally unaware of them and rely, instead, on their definition of
“religious liberty.”
Thanks for stopping by. Don’t be a stranger.
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