Some follow-up on "An Essay on the Homosexual Revolution" or, the "Gay Manifesto". (See "Be Afraid. ... Be VERY Afraid", 2/19/05 below) . Apparently, the original essay included the following introductory line, which did not appear in the reprint in the Congressional Record:
"This essay is an outré, madness, a tragic, cruel fantasy, an eruption of inner rage, on how the oppressed desperately dream of being the oppressor."
Would the inclusion of this introductory line in any way change the meaning, intent, or impact of the essay? As a friend wrote to MassResistance:
I'd seen the Gay Manifesto before, but seeing it again inspired me to see what the other side says in response. They admit it was written by a gay activist in 1987 and read into the Congressional Record in 1989. They dismiss it as a satire, but they quote the author's censored introduction: "the oppressed desperately dream of being the oppressor." So what's the major complaint? Isn't that the point; the oppressed dreamed of being the oppressor, and 20 years later aren't they well on their way? The analysis below is from http://rainbowallianceopenfaith.homestead.com/GayAgenda.html
The Gay Agenda--How The Conservative Religious Right Created a Lie
(See Also: The American Family Association and the 'Gay Nostradamus')
The "Gay Agenda" is but one of the many lies promulgated by radical religious political activists.
The Radical Religious Right has repeatedly referenced an article written by Michael Swift in 1987 at the request of the Gay Community News as satirical "proof" of the so-called "Gay Agenda". The article is titled "The Gay Manifesto".
One of the most notable examples of the religious right referencing this article is the video "Gay Rights, Special Rights", put out by Lou Sheldon's Traditional Values Coalition. The video cites it with ominous music and pictures of children.
But when the religious right cites this text, they always omit the vital first line, which sets the context for the piece. In other words, every other version of this found on the net and in the literature of religious right political activists is part of the radical right's great lie about gay people.
"This essay is an outré, madness, a tragic, cruel fantasy, an eruption of inner rage, on how the oppressed desperately dream of being the oppressor."
In fact, a "shocked, so very very shocked" congressperson read the article in the Congressional Record in 1989. Funny thing, though, the opening disclaimer was deliberately omitted.
So ... That line doesn't come across as a "disclaimer" to us. What we're dealing with is their angry dream come true.
