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 