Posts by Andy Birkey

Rep. Keith Ellison is urging members of Congress not to scrap the Goldstone report (pdf) on war crimes allegedly committed during the conflict culminating in December 2008 and January 2009 between Hamas and Israel. A resolution in Congress, backed by Republicans, would condemn the report, written by UN investigator Richard Goldstone, as unfriendly to Israel. [...]

Friday was historic for LGBT Americans as President Obama signed into law a hate crimes bill that includes sexual orientation and gender identity. But some among Minnesota’s religious right didn’t receive the news warmly, saying the law will bring the wrath of God down on America, that Obama is an “anti-Christian radical” and that the bill was a plot by “homosexuals” to silence Christians.

The Rev. Nate Bjorge quit his position with the First Lutheran Church in Little Falls last week after the church voted to remain a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The ELCA, the nation’s largest Lutheran denomination, voted to allow churches to roster gay and lesbian pastors at a meeting in Minneapolis [...]

The religious right has long railed against Halloween, condemning its pagan roots and claiming it promotes witchcraft and the occult. This year some groups are embracing the day as a time to reach kids with a pro-life and Christian message, while others use the day to burn “wicked” books and CDs. And one writer for Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network warns parents that witches curse Halloween candy.

On Nov. 9, the Citizens Council on Health Care will host a fundraiser with a woman who says Obama’s policies are similar to those that brought the rise of Nazi Germany and that Obama could be paving the way for the Antichrist. On Thursday, Rep. Michele Bachmann taped a glowing endorsement of the fundraiser.

An anonymous flier in Maplewood last week targeting openly gay city council candidate Jim Llanas has raised a ruckus in advance of Tuesday’s city election. But the situation in Maplewood is not unique: LGBT candidates across the country are facing anonymous attacks. The sad part is, they often work.

Minnesota’s largest anti-abortion group, Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, is vigorously opposing all of the health reform proposals being offered by Democrats in Congress — and it’s not just about abortion. Several Republican talking points have crept into the group’s campaign, and most of them have been debunked by the very fact-checkers the group uses [...]

President Obama signed the Matthew Shepard Act into law on Wednesday ending a decade of efforts by LGBT and human rights groups to get sexual orientation and gender identity included in federal hate crime laws.

The Minnesota Council of Nonprofits (MCN) announced today that the organization will support the health care reform package moving through Congress, but only if it includes provisions for nonprofit agencies.

On Monday, Rep. Keith Ellison read a statement condemning the actions of four Republican House members who are calling for an investigation of Muslim interns in Congress. The statement was written by Ellison and supported by the Tri-Caucus, a group composed of the Congressional Black Caucus, the Asian Caucus and the Hispanic Caucus.