Headliners

Making fun of the news and the people in it...

"Hey, Bush, I'm one of your biggest supporters! Surprised?"

Gay Republican Rebel - story

Headliners

Making fun of the news and the people in it...

"You know, I bet a little blush on the cheeks, darken the eyebrows, some false eyelashes, and let my hair grow out a bit and I could pass for the Church Lady. Maybe I could get one of my preists to doll me up." -

Gay Men Can Be Catholic Priests - story

Making fun of the news and the people in it...

"I'm mean. I'm a queen. I'm an Aids fighting machine."

Elton donates to Nepal's HIV fight - story

Headliners

Making fun of the news and the people in it...

"Hmmm, filled out a gay questionaire, huh? Funny, you don't look lesbo to me."

Court Pick Is Unknown Quantity - story

Headliners

Making fun of the news and the people in it...

"If I can't have sex, I'll be damned if I'm going to let those homos have it."

Catholic churches lead signature drive for ban on gay marriage - story

Headliners

Making fun of the news and the people who are in it....

"Wow, this butt plug really does make one feel special!"

Roberts Confirmed Chief Justice - story

Headliners

Making fun of the news and the people who are in it....

"I just know those fags are behind this push against me."

Bush Loses Ally as Delay Resigns - story

The Tale of Two Penguins, Betrayal, and the Christian Right Frenzy

Remember Roy and Silo? The couple made headlines a few months back as the loving pair of gay penguins. During their six year relationship, they adopted a rock and tried to hatch it. Zoo keepers, after trying to break them up first by introducing some swanky female penguins, finally gave up and supplied them with a real penguin egg to hatch. They faithfully hatched the egg and successfully raised Tango, a baby girl penguin.

Normally, this would be a story zoo keepers would joke and laugh about over a few beers at Happy Hour.

Not quite.

Somewhere along the way, the Happy Hour story made headlines. Gay activists proudly pointed to the pair as proof that homosexuality is a natural state, not a perverted choice as some would like us to believe. International protests broke out when zoo keepers tried to convert Roy and Silo using their own version of an ex-gay ministry - by separating them and introducing female penguins.

Christians and the conservative right brushed the story off. "Penguins are animals," they said. Animals do all sorts of things people would never do. That's what separates us from the animals.

Then along comes the summer surprise hit - March of the Penguins. The documentary tells the tale of the emperor penguin and how the male and female battle the harsh Antarctic winter for months on end to raise their little penguin. Christians latched onto the story as being symbolic of the importance of monogamous relationships and the need for a devoted mother and father in raising children. If we all were more like the emperor penguin, God would smile upon us and we would be blessed as individuals and as a nation.

While the Christians were busy praising the emperor penguin as being good role models for people to learn the God-inspired lesson of monogamy, faithfulness, and parental devotion to the children, something quite extraordinary transpired in Roy and Silo's household.

First, their daughter, Tango, grew up and paired off with another female penguin. Then Silo's eye began wandering after the pair were kicked out of their nesting area by more aggressive penguins. This past mating season, he caught glimpse of a female penguin from California named Scrappy. Silo left Roy for Scrappy and Roy has been left standing in the corner, alone and staring at the wall.

The Christian Right are beside themselves with joy. On the Focus on the Family website - a gay hate group founded by the influential radio host James C. Dobson - a commentator, Warren Throckmorten, wrote: "For those who have pointed to Roy and Silo as models for us all, these developments must be disappointing. Some gay activists might actually be angry."

Not exactly, though.

As Roberta Sklar, a spokeswoman for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, put it: "There's almost an obsession with questions such as, 'Is sexual orientation a birthright or a choice?' And looking at the behavior of two penguins in captivity is not a way to answer that question."

Of course, that doesn't stop the Christians from pointing the accusatory finger. Silo and Roy went through a phase and in the process of going against nature, hurt a child by turning their daughter into a lesbian. If that isn't proof enough that homosexuality is unnatural and that homosexuals make bad parents, then the Great Social Experiment of allowing gay marriages and gay parents will surely bring the wrath of God upon us.

At least the penguins are dressed in formal attire for the Coming of the Lord's Wrath.

Oh, and in case you've read this far and are a little concerned: just because penguins waddle around all prim and proper in their tuxedos, that doesn't make them sophisticated Messengers of God trying to teach us moral behaviors.

They are living their life the way God created them to live it. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Be sure to visit Little Guy Protest and submit your bill to Congress asking them to repeal the Defense of Marriage act and reaffirm states' rights by honoring, without prejudice, individual state marriage laws.

The Christian Agenda Exposed Part II

story
The Christian Agenda Exposed Part I

In Michigan, they're pushing to eliminate domestic partnership benefits. (story) In California, they're pushing to ban same sex marriage and civil unions, eliminate domestic benefits, and deny children of same sex couples the same legal protections every other child is afforded. (story).

In Massaachusetts, they're willing to throw out a refernedum that would give voters a chance to ban same sex marriage, but leave provisions for civil unions in favor for an outright ban on same sex marriage and civil unions.

Who are they? Various Christian groups and "concerned" citizens. In all three states, the leading opposition groups are headed by an organization usually having some positive name that includes key words like "family" and "concerned" conjoined with official sounding terms like "institute" or "research". These organizations all have their roots with the national organization, The Family Research Council, a known homophobic organization.

The Michigan Family Institute is no exception.

In 2004, when the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled that the state's constitution allowed same sex marriages and gay couples could not be denied the basic civil right to marry, the Michigan Family Institute kicked into high gear. They worked hard to gain enough signatures to put a referendum through the state legislature that would ban same sex marriage, but allow civil unions.

Call it panic mode. They needed something fast to counter the gay threat to marriage.

On September 14, the state legislature is set to vote on the referendum to allow it to be put before the voters. Not surprisingly, in the almost two years since the Christian groups pushed for the referendum, they are now abandoning it. In their own words, "This amendment must be defeated."

They shout that commandment in bold face letters on their website followed by a step-by-step plan to defeat the 2006 referendum and get the more restrictive 2008 referendum in its place. They've had almost two years to come up with an alternative that not only bans same sex unions, but would also ban civil unions. The implication, of course, is that same sex couples would then be legally denied many of the state benefits of being married - including domestic partnership and legal protection for the children of same sex couples.

The argument has never been about protecting marriage. It has always been about marginalizing homosexuals to the fringes of society. It has always been about sweeping the gay problem back into the closet - and throwing the key away.

Don't be fooled by their positive spin. The Christian agenda is clear. Demonize homosexuals as a threat to society. Once the threat is established in the minds of the average person, controlling the gay problem becomes easy.

And it will still be socially acceptable to preach against their sins, blame them for the ills of society, and to hate them.

Without the legalized discrimination, more and more people will see their rhetoric for what it is - intolerance, bigotry, and/or hate.

The Christian Agenda Exposed

Related Stories: Michigan Denies Domestic Benefits

CA Supreme Court Affirms Gay Parents' Role

Even though the push for legal, same sex marriage got its start back in the early 1970's, it wasn't until 1993 that the battle began in full force. That was the year that the Hawaii Supreme Court suggested that a ban on same sex marriage may violate the state constitution.

Conservatives and the religious right gathered in full strength. Since then, their battle cry has boiled down to an argument of preserving the sacred institution of marriage and nothing about denying anyone rights.

In 2003, when Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same sex marriage, a firestorm swept the country. That code phrase for legalized discrimination, "protect the sanctity of marriage" mobilized 11 states to pass constitutional amendments defining marriage as between a man and a woman, only.

"It's not about denying rights," the voters were told. "Gays can enjoy all the rights they want in some form of legal civil union."

Voters bought that cheap slogan hook, line, and sinker. Some still do.

But now the truth of the Christian agenda is being exposed. The same sex marriage arguments are all about rights. No matter what you call a same sex relationship - marriage, civil union, a couple with some marriage rights - the fear of the Christian Right is that those people will become acceptable in society. No society can ever accept that - at any cost.

Now, the Christian Right isn't even bothering to hide their true agenda.

In Michigan last year, voters passed an amendment to the state constitution which read "To secure and preserve the benefits of marriage for our society and for future generations of children, the union of one man and one woman in marriage shall be the only agreement recognized as marriage or similar union for any purpose."

Those last six words, or similar union for any purpose, were used to negate the domestic partnership benefits already set into law. While the judge as not yet ruled on the challenge to the legal opinion from the state's attorney general that negated the domestic benefits laws, one of the arguments presented was that the intent of the law had nothing to do with denying benefits to same sex couples. An attorney for the governor of Michigan even presented a brochure put out by backers of the amendment - primarily an offshoot of the group, Focus on the Family - that clearly said the amendment would maintain the status quo of Michigan, i.e. domestic benefit laws weren't in jeopardy.

Gary Glenn, president of the Midland-based American Family Association of Michigan - a primary backer of the amendment, had another story to tell the reporters. The secondary intent of the amendment, and the purpose of those six words, were to ensure the traditional marriage would be honored "including the provision of taxpayer-financed spousal benefits," he claimed.

He just may be the first person to publically expose the real Christian agenda.

Jumping over to California, the state Supreme court just ruled that same sex couples have the same parental responsibilities as their heterosexual counterparts, including child support and custody rights.

Now one would think this is a clear cut case of protecting the children and has nothing to do with same sex marriage.

Wrong.

After the ruling, Randy Thomasson, president of Campaign for Children and Families, which opposes gay marriage, said the court's position "goes against nature."

"Despite junk science and frustrating rulings like this, children still need a mother and a father," Thomasson said. "A child does not have two mommies or two daddies; a child comes into this world because she has a mother who gave her egg and a father who gave his sperm."

The court's stand "ignores the self-evident truth that God designed a man and a woman to fit together and participate in the miracle of procreation," he said.

What's he saying? The children of same sex couples are less deserving of protection of the law than children born to a man and a woman.

Still think it's not about keeping homosexuals as second class citizens? Denying them equal footing in our society? Consider this. Opponents of same sex marriage in California are diligently trying to get several referendums on next year's ballot that would roll back many of the gains in domestic benefits.

The Christian agenda is clear. After more than twelve years of lying to the voters, their real goal on the same sex marriage issue has nothing to do with "protecting the sanctity of marriage" and everything to do with sweeping homosexuals back into the closet.

And at least in Michigan and California, at the expense of the children if need be.

A Ray Of Hope?

On a follow up about the two gay Iranian teens who were hung (story):



A ray of hope? An excerpt from an article on 365gay.com covering this story:

Is gay life in Iran as dire as some reports on this case suggest?

According to a new interview with the publishers of the Iranian gay magazine MAHA conducted by the Web site GayRussia.ru, it is not.

The magazine is distributed from inside Iran via e-mail in PDF format. (If it were published on the Web or in traditional magazine format, it likely would be blocked or banned by the government.) The magazine has 600 subscribers.

"After eight months of hard work, eight issues and four supplements have appeared, covering issues such as gays and family, depression among GLBT, a report about lesbians in Iran, etc.," the publishers wrote in the e-mail interview. "MAHA also publishes a separate supplement for gay aid and to help GLBT to find a friend. Today MAHA has two editors, one gay and one lesbian, and MAHA's readers are all over the country and even some Iranian GLBT in exile."
The publishers said gays are no longer routinely persecuted in Iran.

"The regime does not systematically persecute gays anymore, there are still some gay Web sites, there are some parks and cinemas where everyone knows that these places are meeting places for gays," they wrote. "Furthermore it is legal in Iran that a transsexual applies for sex change and it is fully accepted by the government.

"There are some media which sometimes -- not often -- write about such issues. Having said that, the Islamic law, according to which gay punishment is death, is still in force, but it is thought [to be] not much followed by the regime nowadays.

"Thanks to the Internet and contact with the international community, people get the info, and Iran society has changed a lot, and support for GLBT rights is growing in Iran, though we still have a long way to go," the publishers said. "On the whole, we are optimistic about the future as Iran's situation cannot continue [as is] and people are pushing for reforms and changes."

Why NARTH Is a Hate Group

Note: This is a rough draft that some day I'll polish up for my website.

From Narth's own website:

...says Nicolosi. "And, when the research comes in--as indeed it has--showing gays and lesbians to be less psychologically healthy than straights."

"Also, many people coming from a homosexual background have, sadly, spent so many years in self-protection and self-absorption that they have difficulty in giving to others."

"That doesn't make the reality of change any less valid than it does for the alcoholic who returns to drinking, or the anorexic who returns to unhealthy eating patterns." (Reinforces NARTH's position that homosexuality is a disease or disorder that requires treatment.)

"The conclusion arrived at by the researchers, based upon these figures, is that the rate of abuse between urban homosexual men in intimate relationships 'is a very serious public health problem.' The study compared the rate of abuse among homosexual men (22%) to the rate of abuse to heterosexual men (8%) and concluded that homosexual men are more violent.

"Unfortunately, the AMA appears to have accepted the unsubstantiated claim that the numerous psychological problems and self-destructive behavior found among persons who self-identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual (GLB) are caused by social discrimination. It has ignored substantial evidence that these negative outcomes are related to the homosexuality itself."

Citing Stein (1999, Oxford University Press), they find corroboration in his conclusion that "Even if one's sexual orientation is primarily biological and not a choice, much of what is ethically relevant about being a lesbian or gay man is not biologically based and is not determined, [such as] engaging in sexual acts with a person of the same gender."

"The Concept of Disorder Derives from a Moral Concept" - Subtitle to an article that links homosexuality to pedophilia. The article goes on to explain that the APA ignores moral considerations when determining what is and what is not psychological disorder. In simple terms, if you believe something is morally wrong, then it is a disorder that requires treatment. That is their philosophy with homosexuality - they believe it is morally wrong so they fix it. See above quote.

Ok, you get the idea. Let's face it. Hate groups are smart, today. The KKK doesn't go around saying "The niggers are inferior to Whites." Nope. They couch politically correct language between questionable studies and personal testimonials to "prove" their stance that Black people are inferior to Whites.

Narth uses the same technique. They use professional sounding language to hide their two basic principles:

1. Homosexuality is a disease that can be cured either through "incremental change" to heterosexuality or by celibacy
2. Homosexuality is a moral choice even is a biological component can be proven

They believe homosexuality is caused by one of two factors: either the failure of the self-identified gay to have formed a meaningful relationship early on with his/her same-gender parent or they were victims of childhood sexual abuse.

Both presumptions are easily disputed, especially in today's world where many heterosexual children grow up in single-parent households. Why aren't they all gay?

So yes, NARTH is nothing more than a prejudicial hate group.

More Evidence of Biological Link To Homosexuality

Complete Story
Courtesy Southern Voice

More and more, the evidence seems to point to a biological link to homosexuality.

The interesting point in the above article is that the gay rams' part of the brain that is thought to control the sex drive is half the size of the brains of hetero sheep. A study a couple of years ago in Canada found that the part of the human brain that controls the sex drive was half the size in gay men as opposed to heterosexual men. Another study a few years ago showed a statistically significant correlation between homosexuality and being the second born son. Something like almost 2/3rds of homosexual men were the second born son. Researchers theorized that possibly the mother's body "remembered" giving birth to one male child, so with the second male child, not enough estrogen or estrogen-like hormones were produced to fully "masculinize" the brain. They have found the same effects in the gay rams.

Despite the growing evidence of a biological link, no doubt many Christians will cling to their "love the sinner, hate the sin" philosophy.

Translation: gay bashing will be around for a long time.

Two Iranian Gay Teens' Last Day

The last day of life for Mahmoud Asgari, 16, and Ayaz Marhoni, 18. Both were publically hung for being gay.

Complete Story

Write Your Own Bill

We're still short on participation, so once again, we're running the Write Your Own Bill Campaign again this month. If you wrote your bill last month, there's no need to write one again this month.

If you wrote one in May or June and never received a response from your senators or representatives, you may want to write another one this month. Sometimes you have to repeat yourself a few times before your elected officials hear you.

For those of you who signed up for the semi-monthly newsletter, yes, I'm a few days late. I hope to have it out by mid month.

I do thank everyone who has at least looked at the site. I extend a big hearty thank you to everyone who participated in the campaign and have shown an interest in keeping updated by joining the newsletter mailing list. Feel free to click on the link above and join the newsletter if you haven't already. It's a painless couple of clicks to do.

Teen Sent To Ex-Gay Ministry Update

Zach's back - sort of.

On Aug 1, he posted a new blog entry. In the blog he railed against groups using his blog for their "one-sided (biased) agendas" and that "homosexuality is still a factor in my life" but "not who I am, it never has been".

Ah, yes - the homophobic key word -agenda. People who have followed Zach's blog insist the latest is not his entry. The writing style and "voice" is different. Zach went so far as to delete all prior posts so that there is no record of what he has said - and how he said it - in the past.

He hasn't posted since Aug 1. Hasn't finished his brainwashing training, yet, I reckon.

Aug Reminder: The Aug effort is underway. Read more....

U.S.C. 2257

Note: While this new law doesn't relate to gay marriage, I thought the restriction on the freedom of speech may interest some readers.


A new law that greatly restricts freedom of speech went into effect last June. It lasted ten hours before Attorney General Gonzales put enforcement on hold until Sep 7 while arguments brought before the government by the Free Speech Coalition are heard.

If you own a website and aren't a member of the Coalition, you are subject to enforcement of this law today.

The law requires any primary producer of Internet porn to maintain documentation of the age of any people who appear in the nude. Such strict requirements were always required of the primary producers of porn on the Net or elsewhere.

The law goes one step further. All secondary producers of porn are required to keep the same documentation on hand, too. That means if you post the cover of Debbie Does Dallas on you website, you need to contact everyone pictured on the cover in the nude and obtain and verify their age and id and keep that documentation on hand. If you are selling that movie, you need to get that information from every performer in the movie. In the past, you wouldn't have had to do that because you knew the producers of the movie had already collected the information and was readily available for inspection by the Feds.

But the law doesn't stop there. All the personal, swingers, and amatuer sites where members post their own pictures are subject to the same law. In the past if you posted your own picture, you were the primary producer of the porn and responsible for yourself. Now the owner of the website must get that proof from you before you can post your picture.

In effect, the law will shut these sites down.

Fine, you might think. Porn producers can take their business overseas. But if an American portal, like Google, allows you to view that porn, then American webmasters are in violation of the law.

So what happens if you post a nude pic of yourself? You must have proof of your id and age ready for inspection at any time, unannounced, between the hours of 8 AM to 6 PM, 365 days a year. Failure to do so could land you in jail for up to five years.

And yet mainstream media is strangely quiet about this invasion of our free speech rights.

Silencing of the Homosexuals Part II

related story

(For those who missed Part I, you can read it here.)

If you can't twist them to conform to your standards, shove them back in the closet where no one can see the dirty laundry.

Them are gay, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered people. The dirty laundry is the topic of sex. And the closet is on the fringe of society where most people won't bother to take a gander.

In the conservative right's and Christian right's effort to marginalize homosexuals and make them appear as less than normal, they have banned books, banned discussions of homosexuality in public schools, recinded discrimination and equal rights laws, and now - in at least one county in Florida - have banned official recognition of "gay pride, little g, little p".

The county is Hillsborough. Thanks to the effort of one homophobe, Ronda Storms, the county has deleted all references to homosexuality in its Human Rights Ordinance and now refuses to recognize gay pride. It is unclear if the ordinance means just the Gay Pride celebrations during the month of June or anything gay. Storms apparently wanted the ambiguity by refusing to capitalize the g and p.

Since the county is intent on setting the moral standard for America by example, what has the county produced so far?

• A father who beat his three year old son to death because he "wanted to toughen him up". During testimony in the father's murder trial, she said he was afraid his son might be gay.
• A 24-year-old teacher who had sex with her 14-year-old student in the backseat of her car while the boy's 15-year-old cousin drove them around. No, she wasn't teaching sex ed and drivers ed at the same time. She may claim a temprary insanity defense.
• We can't forget about the 8-year-old boy who beat his 7-month-old half-sister to death because her "crying made him mad". The murder occurred while the boy and his half sister were visiting the boy's father and his girlfriend. Note the "stability" of the heterosexual relationships involved.
• And let's not forget the plight of two migrant workers from Mexico - Areli Nava, 15, gave birth to Leonel Reye's son in a Florida hospital. Reyes is 24. The state immediately seized custody of the newborn. You see, in Florida, the sexual relations between the two are illegal because Areli is 15 - even though in their own country, their relationship is perfectly legal and, in this case, supported by both families. In fact, in Reyes country, a woman over 17 is "too old" to marry. The two, accompanied by Areli's parents, braved hurricanes to get their family reunited. The mother and child are still in state custody and the father is allowed supervised visits. He showed up to court with pay stubs in hand to show he can support the mother and child. The mother's parents showed up to plead with the court to allow Reyes to marry their daughter as all parties had planned. "He's a good man," pleaded Areli's father. Until Reyes completes a sex offender program, he won't be allowed to be reunited with his bride-to-be and son. He is required to complete the program even though he has never been charged with a sexual offense nor ruled a danger to Areli or his son. This is one story among thousands of migrant worker's cultural clash with Florida laws.

In all fairness, one can't judge a county, or any locale for that matter, by picking and choosing cases to present as evidence. One has to wonder, though, if these cases are symptomatic of a failing conservative agenda liberally infused with Christian philosophy.

Tell Hillsborough County what you think of their "gay pride, little g, little p" ban.

Teen Sent to Ex-Gay Ministry

From Zach's blog just before his parent's "shipped him off to camp":

Thanks. Thank you for all of the comments and messages, they mean a lot. really. I was shocked to see all of this... of course I haven't been on a computer, phone, nor have I seen any friends in a week almost-- Soon. Soon, this will be all over. My mother has said the worst things to me for three days straight... three days. I went numb. That's the only way I can get through this. I agree, if you're thinking that these posts might be dramatized.. but the proof of the programs ideas are sitting in the rules. I pray this blows over. I can't take this... noone can... not really, this kind of thing tears you apart emotionally. To introduce THIS subject... I'm not a suicidal person... really I'm not.. I think it's stupid - really. But.. I can't help it, no im not going to commit suicide, all I can think about is killing my mother and myself. It's so horrible. This is what it's doing to me... I have this horrible feeling all of the time... I wish this on no person... I'm so satisfied--happy's too strong of a word the state I'm in-- that everyone's taking the time to email and write letters in complaint to these people. I dont know if it will do anything, but if something did happen it would be -- awesome.


He was due to leave camp on Jun 20. He hasn't been heard from in the blogosphere world and no one knows if he is still away in the camp or not. His blog gained international attention and launched a series of investigations into the Love in Action camp by Tenn authorities. Many bloggers who interacted with him are very concerned that he is being isolated from the world until he "changes". On gay who was forced by his parents into the program for two years is particularly concerned for his mental well being. He says that the decline in Zach's mental state is apparent in his blog.

Yes, I'll definitely be following up on this story so if anyone learns anything new, please let me know.

Update: (20 Jun 05 1:45 PM EDT) PFLAG reports that Zach's initial 2-week stay has been extended another six weeks. Since he is cut off from the outside world and using the computer, we'll have to wait to see if he emerges a changed man espousing the ex-gay life or a damaged boy bitter at the world for treating him as they have.

UCC Endorses Gay Marriage

story

In an historic vote, the United Church of Christ passed a resolution that endorses same sex marriage. The vote means that the UCC is the largest mainstream Christian religion to officially recognize and endorse gay marriage.

In addition, the resolution encourages its congregation to develop wedding policies, endorse nondiscriminatory and gay rights legislation, oppose discriminatory legislation, including constitutional amendments, which deny homosexuals equal rights, and calls for an end to the rhetoric that promotes devisiveness and hatred towards homosexuals.

Specifically, as posted on the UCC website, the marriage equality resolution

1. Affirms equal marriage rights for couples regardless of gender and declares that the government should not interfere with couples regardless of gender who choose to marry and share fully in the rights, responsibilities and commitment of legally recognized marriage;
2. Affirms equal access to the basic rights, institutional protections and quality of life conferred by the recognition of marriage,
3. Calls for an end to rhetoric that fuels hostility, misunderstanding, fear and hatred expressed toward gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons,
4. Asks officers of the church to communicate the resolution to local, state and national legislators, urging them to support equal marriage rights,
5. Calls upon all settings of the church to engage in serious, respectful and prayerful discussion of the covenantal relationship of marriage and equal marriage rights,
6. Calls upon congregations, after prayerful, biblical, theological, and historical study, to consider adopting Wedding Policies that do not discriminate against couples based on gender, and
7. Urges congregations and individuals of the UCC to prayerfully consider and support local, state and national legislation to grant equal marriage rights to couples regardless of gender, and to work against legislation, including constitutional amendments, which denies rights to couples based on gender.

Now, if only all those other Christian denominations would follow suit....

Nah. I'm sure those seven points are far too controversial for them to adopt.

Fight Discrimination in Florida

Last month, County Commissioner Ronda Storms in Hillsborough County, Florida banned any recognition of “gay pride, little p, little g”. (story ) Her use of “little g, little p”, added to the ambiguity of the county ordinance and has a lot of people up in arms, including the Mayor of Tampa.

This isn’t the first time Storms has shown her homophobia, either. A few years ago, she successfully rescinded the county’s Human Rights Ordinance that protected homosexuals. At the time, she claimed the “government should not be in the business of saying this is acceptable behavior.''

If you live in Hillsborough County, Florida, now would be a good time to let your commissioners know how you feel. If you want a good idea of what to write, you might want to use the First United Church of Tampa’s letter as an example. (their letter)

If you live outside of Hillsborough County, Florida, you can still let the commissioners know how
you feel about the “gay pride, little g, little p” ban. You can use the letter linked above for ideas of what to write, but tailor it to your needs as an “outsider”.

For address/contact information and sample letter, please visit Little Guy Protest's effort. Please let them know if you plan to participate. An easy to fill, anonymous form is provided.

Quiet Acceptance From the Homophobes - Naturally

The twice-divorced Angelina Jolie adopted a Ethiopian, baby girl who was left orphaned by AIDS. While she has been linked romantically to Brad Pitt and Pitt did accompany her to Ethiopia to file the adoption papers, a source told People magazine that the two aren't planning to start the family together. "Angelina is adopting as a single mother and she wants that emphasized," the source said.

Earlier this year, after a trip to Ethiopia, Jolie said, "My son is in love with Africa, so he has been asking for an African brother or sister."

He got his wish.

Now, where is the conservative's and Christian right's uproar? A single Mom adopting? And adopting because her son wanted an "African brother or sister" as if African children are to be traded as commodities?

A gay couple's adopting gets the conservative's panties in a wad. Just ask anyone in Florida (where gay adoption is illegal) or Texas (where gay adoption ban legislation is pending). But a single Mom adopting doesn't raise an eyebrow.

The hypocritical silence is deafening. Can you hear the silent approval of single-parent adoption and the thunderous roar of gay condemnation?

I can.

Maybe it has to do with Jolie being rich and able to buy what she wants - including an African child.

Be sure to check out Little Guy Protest's campain in favor of gay marriage.

For all the Racists, Bigots, and Homophobes

My note: I wrote this in response to the continual bantering against the need for hate crime legislation, anti-discrimination laws, affirmative action programs, and anything against homosexuals spewed on the myriad of BBs on the web. I doubt any of them actually see themselves as racists, bigots, or homophobes, but their words speak for themselves.

Imagine for a moment that you are a wheelchair bound, Black transsexual. Despite your faithful attendance at your Church and the practicing of its magic that is supposed to help you through life, you feel the Church of Satan isn't enough to protect your from the inujustices of the world.

What injustices do you think they are? What do you think are appropriate remedies to those injustices?

If you're mind is a bit too small too imagine a handicapped, transsexual, Black Satanist, which most likely it probably is, then pick one of those minority groups and pretend for a moment you aren't a White, middle class suburbanite, but are Black or handicapped or gay/transgendered or a member of a religion other than a mainstream Christian religion (Satanist, Wiccan, Islamist, Hindu - pick one, any one).

And, yes, we all know you are at least White. We can tell by what you write with 99.9% certaintity.

Now picture yourself as a minority:

As you are wheeling yourself to your Church, a group of teenage thugs tease and taunt you because you are worthless cripple sucking off of society while everyone else has to work hard. Since they never hit you, the most they get is a slap on the wrist for juvenile delinquency. Since they targetted you for being in a wheelchair, do you think their punishment should have been more severe (hate crime)? What about if you came home from Church and found your door spray painted with "Satan ain't watching you, but we are. Burn at the stake you witch!" The vandals are caught and charged with criminal trespassing (a misdemeanor) and vandalism (another misdemeanor). They're ordered to pay for a new door and sentenced to 80 hours community service, typical sentence for first time misdemeanor offenses. Should their punishment have been more severe? Do you really believe the teen's parents (those perfect role models who raised and taught them to act that way) will mete out a more severe punishment to teach them a lesson in tolerance?

Oh, yeah, that's right. A reminder to you tunneled-vision practioners of hate. Religion is protected under hate crimes legislation, including your Christian religions. So is disability and race. Sexual orientation/identity isn't always a protected status.

Being Black, how would you describe your quality of life, especially when you are trying to navigate in a White world? You're an inner city Black youth. You graduate high school in the top third of your class. What do you think are your chances of being accepted to a good-named university? (We know Harvard is out of the question.) Let's say you work hard and through scholarships and affirmative action programs, you manage to tweak your way through a community college. How far behind are you compared to your White, suburbanite peers? How much harder will you have to work to attain a middle management level job than your White suburbanite peers - the ones who teased you on the way to Church? How many Black CEOs of fortune 500 companies are there?

Being gay/transgendered, how safe do you feel being yourself in public? Dare to hold your boyfriend's/girlfriend's hand at the mall while shopping together? How about hanging up pictures of you and your "other" in your cube? Talk about your vacation gay cruise? Do you think your company can fire you because you don't fit the "family image" the company is trying to project? How about being evicted from your apartment because the complex is family-orientated with children running around and you make your neighbors nervous?

Of course, you can't answer these questions. No one really expects you to answer them. Discrimination doesn't happen and when it does, it's all the social programs discriminating against the Whites. Affirmative action deprives qualified Whites an equal opportunity to acceptance in a school or a job. Hate crime legislation makes crimes against minorities more important than crimes against Whites. And anything that gives homosexuals a fair shake in the world is forcing acceptance of something Christians are strongly opposed.

See the trend? If something threatens the secure world of White Christians, then it must be bad.

Be sure to write your own bill to Congress in support of gay marriage...

Little Guy Protest's First Newsletter - Who We Are

Little Guy Protest
Gay Marriage
A Civil Rights Issue

Volume 1
15 Jun 05

This being Little Guy Protest's first newsletter, please excuse any formatting errors. I feel I need to get that out of the way up front as I am learning this new mail client and what it can and cannot do.

I want to take the time to thank our new subscribers and truly hope that you find this issue and future issues informative, helpful, and insightful.

With the formalities out of the way, let's get down to business.

Some of you may be wondering exactly who is behind Little Guy Protest. For starters, let's say "we" is really one little guy - me, Mark Darien, and every subscriber to this newsletter. I can write until I'm blue in the face, but without you participating and spreading the ideas contained on the site, Little Guy Protest will only be one website among millions that goes largely unnoticed.

We have no corporate sponsorship nor do we have any political groups supporting or financing us in any way. I never ask for money and expect none. The most I have done is added some Google ads to some of the pages.

Yes, it takes a lot of time and a little bit of money to maintain Little Guy Protest so if you absolutely feel a need to donate something to keep the site up and running, there are a couple of things you may do.

First, and foremost, participate in the monthly campaign and the secondary campaigns as you see fit. Participation is the key to success.
You may also click on an ad sometime. It doesn't matter if you buy or not. Just click on it.

If you aren't the ad-clicker type, join our editorial staff. Visitors to our site appreciate variety and they most likely will get bored reading my stuff all the time. Please keep in mind that I cannot pay you for your submission. I will, however, fully credit the article to you and only publish it on Little Guy Protest.

While joining the editorial staff is open to all visitors to the site, I extend an invite to you, the subscriber of this newsletter, to join our news staff. There's plenty of examples on the site of the quality of writing and factual reporting that I'm looking for.

If you are interested in writing for Little Guy Protest, please email me and specify whether you want to compile news stories or write editorials so I know which submission guidelines to send you.

You may have noticed that I have added a comments section to the end of the news stories and editorials. Feel free to respond to the articles and if you opt to allow me to publish your response, I will have a Letter to the Editor page to spice up the variety of the site. Also, the campaigns now have an option to allow you to tell us if you will or won't participate. Please take the time to let us know so we can give everyone else an idea of our level of participation. (Ok, so its not a scientific measurement, but every little bit of feedback helps.)
And lastly, spread the word about this site any way you see fit. Tell your friends. Share it in online communities. If you run a website or a blog, post a link if you feel Little Guy Protest will compliment your site.

For the sake of brevity, I will not summarize all the improvements to the site nor recap the many stories and few editorials that have been added. Please feel free to check it out, though!

If you haven't done so already, please visit June's efforts.

And even if you have, but haven't told us if you plan on participating or not, please go back and let us know. It's completely anonymous!

Best regards to all,

Mark Darien

Gay Dad Wins Court Appeal

Awhile back, I posted a story about the gay Dad who was awarded custody of his son on the condition that his gay partner moved out. Another judge in Virginia had denied him a hearing claiming there was no change in circumstance to warrant revisiting the original custody terms despite the father's claims that his son became emotionally upset and sometimes in tears after his partner moved out.

A Maryland appellate court ruled the father was improperly denied a hearing. While the terms of the custody remain intact until the new court hearing, this ruling is a victory for gay rights.

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Under Fire

story

The "don't ask, don't tell" policy signed into law by President Clinton bans openly gay people from serving in the military. Court challenges, a move in Congress, and four straight months of the military falling short on its recruitment goals threaten to abolish the ban.

The telling sign that homosexuals serving in our military poses no harm to our national security is the 47% decline in discharges granted under the "don't ask, don't tell" policy since the start of the War on Terrorism.

On the one hand, we have the official stance from the military saying that the decline cannot be attributed to the decision by frontline commanders to retain openly gay soldiers. The decline may be that fewer homosexuals are opening up and being "discovered".

On the other hand, we can look at the historical trend in discharges for homosexuality. They peak during peacetime and fall dramatically during wartime. Even Rep. Wayne Gilchrest (R-MD) acknowledges that he personally knew gay soldiers who served in Vietnam.

The message the military is sending and our government is quietly endorsing: gays have no rights, but if we need their bodies, we'll let them fight and die for our country.

Now is a good time for the military - and Congress - to step up to the plate and eliminate the ban on gays in the military. They're proudly serving our country. They're proudly dying for our country. The least we could do is show them the respect and dignity afforded everyone else and allow them to serve whether others know they're gay or not.

In the Words of a Homophobe

Warning: reading not for the faint of heart.

In Feb 1999, Billy Jack Gaither, 39, was led to the woods where two good ol’ Alabama boys Steven Eric Mullins, 25, and Charles Monroe Butler, 21 killed him.

Mullins is the one who charged with the murder. His “sidekick”, Butler, claimed he didn’t know Mullin’s intentions that fateful night. His side of the story was that the three went to the woods and when Gaither started talking “queer stuff”, anger seized the both of them and they killed him.

In a plea bargain, though, Mullins testified Butler knew he intended to “do away with” Gaither before they even asked Gaither to join them in the woods, a place known by the local young people as a “party place.”

The killing hardly reflects a spontaneous act of anger. Mullins sliced Gaither’s throat, beat him, stabbed him, and threw him in the car. Gaither tried to escape so Mullins beat him with an axe handle that was conveniently leaning against the car. As Mullins dragged the bloody Gaither to a clearing, Butler had set two tires on fire with kerosene. They threw Gaither’s body on top of the burning tires.

Here’s the clincher: as the investigation unfolded, Mullins, the local skinhead with SS tattoes on his hand, apparently was gay himself and may have had an affair with Gaither. No one, including Butler, knew this until after the fact.

Both were sentenced to life in prison with no parole.

Below is the chilling details in Mullins’ and Butler’s own words, compliment’s of PBS’ Frontline Special, Assault on Gay America, yes, the PBS - the one the republicans want to shut down for their liberal bias. The link, by the way, has much useful information on homophobia including the characteristics shared by homophobes, e.g. Republican, conservative, Christian, little or no gay acquaintances etc. No wonder the republicans want the station shut down.


Mullins confession, in his words:

JEFF MOBBS, SYLACAUGA POLICE DEPT: Today is March the 3rd, Wednesday, 1999. It’s 6:03 p. Steve, we’re here on the death of Billy Jack Gaither. Can you tell us what happened back on, February 19, 1999?

STEVE MULLINS: Yes, I can. Uh, I called, I called Billy Jack about four o’clock and asked him to come pick me up so we could go out to the bar. Um, he came and picked me up about seven (7:00). From there, uh, he had already bought a six pack of beer and we rode around and I drank it, some of it. Rode around and, uh, then about 8:30, 8:45 he was gonna go in the Tavern and try to collect $20.00 from this guy. Um, I stayed in the car because I didn’t have any money to get in and didn’t really want to go in. Um, He came back out about an hour later which was about 9:15 or 9:30. We, uh, went to the 11th Frame, told Charles Butler that I was there with Billy Jack and he knew Billy Jack was . . .

JM: What do you call, what do you call Charles Butler?

SM: Charlsey.

JM: Charlsey?

SM: Charlsey.

JM: What is his real name?

SM: Charles Butler.

JM: Is it Sr. or Jr.?

SM: Jr.

JM: Charles Butler, Jr.

SM: Yeah.

JM: Okay.

SM: Um, told him who I was with, told him what I was thinking about doing.

JM: And that was?

SM: Um, killing Billy Jack. Um, it was after a few minutes and I went back outside and was waiting, we were waiting on Charlsey; waiting on him and then we went, went back or I went back inside to see if he was coming on or about ready to go and he finished up his game of pool and he come out and he got him some beer out of the back of his daddy’s truck, six pack took him a shot of moonshine, asked me if I wanted some, I didn’t, we left, uh . . .

JM: You, you told him that you were with Billy Jack Gaither? Is that correct?

SM: Right.

JM: Okay. And you told him what you were planning on doing?

SM: Right.

JM: And that was?

SM: Killing Billy Jack.

JM: And why were you planning on doing that? Why, why did you tell him that too?

SM: Because, I thought I could trust him and I knew he didn’t like queers either.

JM: So, what are you saying? Are you saying that he, he?

SM: So we left, uh, went back to his daddy’s house, Charles Butler, Sr. and he started getting ready and we discussed what, you know, what we were going to do, we talked about it. Um, we got Billy Jack to go out to the boat launch on Millerville Highway and Charles, Charlsey was taking a, relieving hisself at the front of the car. Me and Billy Jack was standing at the back and Billy Jack was watching him when he was taking a leak and I grabbed Billy Jack and threw him on the ground, cut his throat, and uh, he was just sitting, he was knelt on his hands and knees. I told Charlsey to open the, to pop the trunk and he went around and popped the trunk and Billy Jack tried to get up. I stabbed him twice in the rib cage and told him to stay where he was. Charlsey popped the trunk I told Billy Jack to get in the car. He did. We shut the trunk. I drove us to 165 Cedar Creek Circle and uh, got two tires, and a gallon of kerosene, box of matches and an ax handle.

JM: What did you use to, uh, cut his throat?

SM: A pocket knife. A plain old pocket knife.

JM: What did you do with it?

SM: I threw it in the river.

JM: Okay.

SM: Uh, got the two tires, the ax handle, the gallon of kerosene, the box of matches and went to Peckerwood Creek Road, um, uh, got the tires out of the trunk, the ax handle, propped it up against the car. Charlsey was lighting the, lighting the tires. Uh, I drug Billy Jack out onto the ground and uh, had my back fumed to him, he out of the blue knocked me down the hill into the creek um, and when I finally got back up to the, to the top he was trying to leave in the car. He was laying across the seats. Charlsey was gone. I found out later he had hit him and he took off running, um, I told Billy Jack that he couldn’t go nowhere or anywhere cause I didn’t have, I had the keys and I grabbed him by his pant’s legs and drug him away from the car and got the ax handle which was leaned up against the door of the car and started beating him with it and Charles, Charlsey showed back up and I took my shirt off and told him to get the blood out of the car and we talked and I was still beating him and when 1, I gave; out of energy and couldn’t do it anymore, um, the fire got to going and the tires started burning real well and I drug him into the flame and uh, we stood there for a few minutes and then we left. Went to the Exxon, no, went to the trailer at 165 Cedar Creek Circle, went there, I went inside and uh we both, me and Charles Butler both went inside and uh, he sat in the kitchen and I went back to my bedroom and got some things to take a bath with and took a, took a shower, got cleaned up, changed clothes and l asked Randall Jones if I could use his car to take this guy home and go out to the bar for a little while and um, we left, I uh, I drove Randall’s car and Charlsey drove Billy Jack’s car. We went . . .

JM: What happened to the clothes?

SM: Um, my pants and shoes and socks were left in my bedroom and the shirt was
burned.

JM: Where did, where did it get burned?

SM: On the fire.

JM: Okay.

SM: Along with the ax handle. Um, we left and went to the Exxon in Sylacauga on 280. Um, Charles parked the car on the left end of the building and sat there and waited and gave me the $20.00 to go in and get a gallons, a gallon or a dollars worth of gas, um, I did that, went in and got the gas, paid for it, got my jug, went back and got in the car, met him around on the end of the building, discussed where we were gonna go with the car and we left and we went to, out Millerville Highway to the trash dump and he took, drove the car back off into the mud and um, got, you know, I he, I gave him the gas and he started pouring gas all over the car and I was back in the car waiting on him and he set it on fire and we left and went to the Southern Station for about a hour and uh, took him home and I got back home about 3:30 a.m.

JM: Where are the pants at now?

SM: There in the trash. Superior Garbage picks the trash up and they carried them
off.

JM: What day do they pick up?

SM: 1, I don’t know, we, our trash they hadn’t paid the trash bill down there and so you know, the trash can got gone with it and it was probably last week, last Tuesday, I don’t, I don’t know what days they run 1, you know, Randall worked with them for a little while and we were supposedly getting free garbage pick up and he quit and they disposed of the garbage can, I guess last Tuesday.

JM: Say you called B. J.?

SM: Yes, yes I did.

JM: What was the conversation?

SM: Just, we were talking about going out to the bar.
JM: And when he got to pick you up, did he already have some beer? Do you know what kind it was?

SM: Bud Lite in bottles, six pack.

JM: You know where that watersheds place is? Boat launch, I think you called it.

SM: 1, I don’t know how to get to it I mean 1, you know, I know, well, I know, you know the road that carries you out that away, but I don’t know how to get exactly to it.

JM: What’s the name of that road?

SM: Alls I know is you go out Millerville Highway and you’ll see a little brown sign that’s got a boat ramp on, a boat being launched and that’s where you turn at. You go down to where it T’s and take a right.

JM: Left or right?

SM: Left. Uh, go down and you’ll come to that road will dead end to where a road T’s off and you take a right down to I don’t, you know, 1, I don’t, I know it’s out that away, I don’t know exactly where. I’ve been out there swimming but not to the boat ramp. That was .

JM: Whose idea was that to go out there?

SM: Charles’s. It was his idea to go to the boat ramp cause that was, that was his idea to go out there, I didn’t know where to go.

JM: And what happened to the, the uh, knife that you had?

SM: Threw it in the river.

JM: And you don’t know what kind it was?

SM: Uh, black handle, uh, stainless steel blade. That’s all I know, regular, regular size, you know, probably three inch blade, I guess. Three or four inch blade on it.

JM: How far out did you throw the knife?

SM: Uh, not being able to see, guessing by hearing the splash, probably twenty, thirty feet.

JM: So it’s pretty close to the bank?

SM: I guess, you know, its pitch black dark and I just chunked, you know it could be fifty feet. I just threw it and you know, I didn’t close it up or nothing, I just slung it and . . .

JM: Which side of the boat ramp you on?

SM: Uh, the right side. As you, where you launch your boat, its right off at an angle.

JM: Where did you pull the car at? Towards that boat ramp?

SM: Uh, I didn’t, Billy Jack was driving and he circled around and pulled it up as you’re facing towards the boat ramp on the right side, on the edge of some woods, this big open area right there.

JM: Was there anybody else out there?

SM: No.

JM: Did you meet any other cars coming in or out of the roads you took?

SM: No, I didn’t.

JM: When you, when you left there, you said earlier that Billy Jack was in the trunk, is that correct?

SM: Right.

JM: You leave there and where do you go?

SM: Back to the 165 Cedar Creek Circle.

JM: Okay, and tell me again what you do there?

SM: I got the two tires that were around back, two of the tires that were around back, um, an ax handle, a box of matches, and a gallon of kerosene.

JM: Where do you put ‘em?

SM: I put it all in a, well, I put the two tires in the trunk and put the rest in the back seat.

JM: Describe the box of matches that you . . .

SM: It’s a large box of matches. I guess the biggest ones you can buy in a store.

JM: Do you remember the name?

SM: Huh-uh.

JM: Where were they at inside the house?

SM: Uh, on top of the, above the cabinets. Couple other boxes there now.

JM: Did you go back, um, did you go back to the scene or have you been back to the
scene since it happened?

SM: No, I haven’t.

JM: Either, have you been to either place?

SM: No.

JM: Since it happened?

SM: No, I haven’t.

JM: When you get down to Peckerwood Creek Road, is what you’re calling it. Is that correct? Is that the only name of the road you know?

SM: Yeah.

JM: Alright, you call the road that you come in on as “One Minute Road.?

SM: Yeah. You take One Minute Road to Talladega Springs, go down and it will cross a, a fairly new bridge and it’s the first dirt road to your left.

JM: If um, if I’m coming down Fayetteville Road from Sylacauga, I come through Fayetteville and I come to the forks right?

SM: Uh- huh.

JM: I take the left fork. That’s the One Minute Road you’re talking about right?

SM: Uh, yeah, you go down that away. That One Minute Road comes out right there and where the some kind of monument or something is in Talladega Springs.

JM: Which, do you turn left or do you turn right off the Talladega Springs Road?

SM: Left.

JM: Turn left?

SM: Right. Then at the bridge, you turn left.

JM: You go to the end of the pavement to the bridge and then you turn left.

SM: Right.

JM: When you’re down on, at Peckerwood Creek, you say Charlsey was starting the
fire. .

SM: Yes.

JM: And he puts some kerosene on the tires and starts it?

SM: Yes.

JM: And you’ve gotten Billy Jack Gaither out of the trunk already?

SM: Yes.

JM: Okay. And then next thing you know, you go falling down the, the hill?

SM: Yes.

JM: Did you go into the water?

SM: Yes, I did.

JM: What were you wearing at that time?

SM: Pair of blue jeans uh, a white sweatshirt, and a pair of socks and a pair of tennis shoes, underwear.

JM: Okay. So you basically got pretty wet then?

SM: Yeah. From head to toe.

JM: Alright and then what happened?

SM: I climbed back up to the top and Charlsey is not around and Billy Jack is trying to get. in the car, got the ax handle in his hand um, I tell him he can’t go anywhere because I’ve got the keys and I drag him back out to the back of the car and beat him.

JM: What happens to the your clothes?

SM: Um, my T-shirt or my sweatshirt? I took it off and Charlsey used it to clean up the blood in the car and then he threw it on the fire and the blue jeans were taken off in the trash.

JM: Who put the kerosene on the body?

SM: Uh, I put, well, we both did.

JM: Both of you did?

SM: Both did.

JM: How much kerosene did you have?

SM: It was a gallon.

JM: Full gallon?

SM: Uh- huh.

JM: What did you have the kerosene in?

SM: A red gallon jug, gasoline jug.

JM: You leave there after uh, you’ve already put Billy Jack on the fire? Is that correct?

SM: Yes.

JM: You’re driving the car?

SM: Yes.

JM: Was there any damage to the car then?

SM: No.

JM: No damage to the car?

SM: Just blood. That’s it.

JM: Okay. You leave there and you go where?

SM: Back to the trailer where I lived at and um, that’s where I took a shower and
changed clothes.

JM: That when you- you change clothes? What happens then?

SM: 1, wake up Randall Jones and ask him to borrow his car to go out to the bar for a
riffle while and take a friend of mine home.

JM: What were you wearing then?

SM: Uh, a pair of dress or khaki pants and a sweat jacket.

JM: What did you do with the clothes when you took them off?

SM: The clothes from, the wet clothes, I laid them in the bedroom floor.

JM: Okay, when did you get rid of them?

SM: Uh, last week um, Tuesday maybe Tuesday.

JM: What did you do with them?

SM: I threw them in the garbage.

JM: What did you throw in the garbage?

SM: The pair of pants, the the rest of it was washed in the laundry.

JM: And your tennis shoes?

SM: They were also washed.

JM: When um, when you approach uh, uh, Charlsey in the bar you tell me you tell him something.

SM: Yeah. . . ,

JM: What did you tell him?

SM: Told him that we, you know, he wasn’t comfortable with leaving with Billy Jack because he knew he was queer and you know, I mentioned to him about getting rid of him.

JM: What were your words?

SM: That was basically it. You know.

JM: So, then you planned to what you call, “get rid of Billy Jack” is that correct? .

SM: Um, yeah somewhat.

JM: Did you and Charlsey talk prior to this about getting rid of B. J.?

SM: Yes.

JM: How long?

SM: How long did we talk or how long had it been since we talked?

JM: How long had it been?

SM: Probably a week. Two weeks.

JM: Why?

SM: Just cause he was queer.

JM: How? You said you knew- how did you know Billy Jack before then?

SM: From the Tavern and just acquaintance. Just knew him.

JM: That’s all how you knew him?

SM: You know, a ride home. You know, a ride to the grocery store here and there. Just, you know, just knew him.

JM: And that’s only- only way you knew him?

SM: I didn’t know his last name or anything till this.

JM: You told me that um, that Billy Jack uh, ‘propositioned you earlier. Is that correct? Tell me what he said.

SM: He told me he wanted to suck my click.

JM: And?

SM: 1, I didn’t say anything.

JM: Okay. When did he tell you this?

SM: Uh, he told me a couple of times, but it you know it was probably a week or two before that that he told me and I didn’t say anything and then he told me that night also.

JM: Where did he tell you?

SM: Just riding.

JM: Riding? How much do you think you had to drink that night?

SM: Six pack.

JM: How much did he have to drink?

SM: Billy Jack? Uh, two that I saw of. He bought those separately.

JM: Kelley, you got any more questions?

KJ: No.

JM: Sgt. Nail? This will end the statement. Steve you got anything else to say?

SM: No.

JM: This’ll end the statement. It’s 6:30 p. m. Day is Wednesday, March the 3rd 1999.


Butler’s interview in prison after being found guilty:

Before the night of the crime, had you ever heard of Billy Jack Gaither?

No, sir. . . Let’s talk about what happened. Can you do that?

I reckon it started when me and Daddy had gotten off work. We had entered in this pool tournament. I’d played maybe two games, and Steve, he’d come in, and he asked me if I wanted to go to The Tavern with him. I told him that I was engaged in this pool tournament. He said, “I’ll be back in a while.” So he went on. I reckon they went to The Tavern, and I went on playing my games. They came back, and he come in and asked me if I was ready to go, and I said, “Sure.” So, we’re going out, and apparently a fight had broken out right there at The Tavern. Steve had some old warrants on him from Sylacauga, and so he didn’t want to go there. So instead, we go out to the Watersheds—this little public place where everybody goes out to have a good time. But it wound up different. Billy Jack started talking about some gay issues. . . . wanting to have a threesome, or whatever. Tempers flared up. Steve jumped on him, and cut his throat there . .

You’re saying Billy Jack basically hit on you, right?

Yes.

And you kicked him. Why?

I don’t know. I’d been drinking a lot whiskey, and just didn’t have no understanding . . . I didn’t even know the man, for him to be hitting on me. . . . Tempers just flared. It’s like he didn’t have no respect.

He was disrespecting you?

Yes.

How?

Well, sir, I don’t know. It’s not like I’m some gay tramp out there, waiting to be corn-holed by some prick.

So if a woman had done that to you, that wouldn’t be disrespect?

No, sir, I don’t reckon so.

Why is it disrespect if a man does it?

Well, sir, why would he want to just assume that I was gay, just like himself, and throw himself on me like he did?

Did he start grabbing you?

No sir, he didn’t start grabbing at me. Nothing like that.

He just asked you? It was just words, right? If a woman did that, you’d think, “That’s pretty cool”?

Yes sir, I reckon so. But he’s a man, and he did it, so it’s disrespect.

Why?

Would you like for a gay man to hit on you? Would you like for him to engage you into a threesome? How would you feel?

I don’t think I would kick him, Charles. What did kicking him did what for you?

Didn’t do a whole lot of nothing. Didn’t do no good, that’s for sure.

But you were clearly angry. What about it made you angry? What had he done?

Well, sir. . . I don’t think I needed to kick him. I don’t reckon he deserved that.

I want you to know, I’m not judging anything. I’m just trying to understand it. One thing that might help is to understand what that feeling is. When he came on to you, that was bad? That crossed a line?

Yes.

What was the line that he crossed? What had he done?

. . . I couldn’t remember what his exact words was. I don’t know. Hell, I don’t know.

You were pissed, flat-out pissed. Right?

I reckon.

At what?

At him coming on to me. It’s just stupidity, I guess. No, no, no. It’s just a feeling, like any other feeling.

He had made you—

Uncomfortable, I reckon.

And not a man—he was trying to make you not a man?

No. I don’t think anybody could ever do that. . .

When you were growing up, were there gay people around?

Yes, sir. I had one friend in particular. He’s lived with us several times, such as Steve himself. Steve even lived around him, and knew him as long as I have, if not longer. I’ve been to gay clubs with him, and all that. But we had an understanding from this guy we met that we was friends, and we was only to be friends.

So you’ve had gay friends. It’s not that you mind gay people.

No, sir. It’s not at all.

Did you think less of gays?

No. No, sir. I don’t they’re think any less than I am or . . . I don’t know.

They’re just the same old people. But I really never give it much thought.

But you went to gay clubs?

Yes.

Now Charles, if you go to a gay club, other men are going to look at you and say, “Well, he’s here. I’m here. He must be gay.”

No, sir. No such thing, especially when a fellow like me walks into a bar. My appearance alone sets me off.

You mean, you don’t look gay?

That’s right.

So if you went to a gay bar, nobody would know that . . .

I reckon. The numerous times I’ve been to a gay club, nobody’s ever hit on me. I’ve had people come to our table and sit down and want to talk to me and such, but they never did lead off to a confrontation, or what have you. They just want to know who I am—just being friendly. . .

So your reaction to Billy Jack then seems extreme. It seems you would be a little sympathetic to him. . . . So something had to snap in you that night, right?

Yes.

Have you thought about what that was?

No, sir. I ain’t never really thought about it. Never.

You thought that he disrespected you.

Yes.

I’m trying to get what that means, for a man to disrespect another man in that way.

I don’t know, man. It’s hard to explain it, I guess. I don’t know.

Are you a Christian?

I wouldn’t call myself a Christian. But I am a believer of God, and I never have forsaken him. And I’ve tried to follow in the right steps. I know I’ve not always been faithful for him. None of us has.

But were you raised in the church, or a Christian?

I went to church regular when I was young. Yes, sir. But I generally grew apart from it, I’ve went off and on ever since then—never was firmly grounded in a church.

So you didn’t study the Bible or that sort of thing, like some people did?

No, sir. No, sir. There are at least some folks who say that homosexuality is wrong, and that they can show you that in the Bible.

Have you talked to folks like that?

Yes.

What do you think of that?

Well, sir, it’s a sin. I never really give it much thought. I don’t know whether it’s . . . just because it’s a sin to be gay, don’t mean a gay person is like Satan himself. . . . They’re just as good-hearted as anybody else. You wouldn’t think of them as being sinners.

But their lifestyle is a sin?

Yes. . .

How come you’d go to gay clubs?

On account of my friend, Steve Edwards. First time I went, it was me, my brother, my sister-in-law, and Steve Edwards. We’d all go and, hell, I had a pretty good time, just getting out there. So Steve offered to go with me again, or invited me to go up there again with him. And I say, “Sure, why not?” I’d sit there, play pool, or sit up there and cut up with the bartender. . . .

What was the club like? Where was it?

It was right there in the midst of Birmingham. . . . They had the loud music going. It’s more like a saloon music type of group in there. They had a little dance floor separate from the bar area. It was a nice place. Outside, they had a privacy fence around, with little tables and chairs and little canopies over the table, for a little private talk, whatever. It was an all-right club.

Was it just men? Or men and women?

There’s women there, too. Men and women.

You say it was a gay club. Were the people who were there almost exclusively gay, or were there a mix of them?

No, there’s straight people there. Anybody could come in there.

So if it was straight people and gay people, why is it a gay club?

Well, sir, I don’t know. It’s just what everybody called it.

Could you look at the men and tell which one was gay?

Some of them, yes, sir. It really was hard to tell which ones were the women.

Why was that hard to tell?

You had your drag queens. They looked just about like a woman.

That could make it dangerous for you?

Oh, yeah.

Did you ever hit on women at the club?

No, on account of I didn’t know which ones were which. . .

Why do you think Steve Mullins jumped Billy Jack Gaither?

I don’t know. I have no idea. I don’t reckon he wanted his sex life to get out to anybody, on account of he’s hiding—he’s kept a secret from me for so long, so I don’t reckon he wanted anybody else to know.

Was something going on between him and Billy Jack?

I reckon. There were rumors. One of Billy Jack’s brothers stated in a newspaper that he knew that Billy and Steve was together. My attorney found another gay man that Steve was involved with. So I don’t know. . . . My attorneys discovered that Steve is flat broke, and wanted some money in exchange for sex. He lured the both of us out there—promised him sex with the both of us. Instead, it just blew up in his face, and he just didn’t know how to handle it. I don’t know.

So the killing was a coverup?

I guess so. I don’t know what to think. . . .

I’m curious about how you feel. It was Steve who attacked him, who beat him with the stick and killed him. What role do you feel you played?

I feel cheated. But I don’t hold no hate for nobody, nor no grudge against nobody. I just feel cheated. . . .I’m torn away from my family on account of something someone else has done. I don’t know.

Do you feel responsible at all?

I don’t reckon I could have stopped him, or stopped what had happened. Should I feel responsible? . . .

I bet you’ve lived through what happened a thousand times. Do you have regrets?

Yes. I have dreams—nightmares—from time to time. But it’s not like it was before. When it was first happening, things played back in my dreams. I’d have nightmares of Steve [Mullins] and us together again. . . I remember when we was at the trailer. Steve opened the trunk of that car, and Billy was laying there on his side. Blood was just covering half of his face . . . . It just sent something all up and down my back. And then, seeing Steve standing over him, beating him like he was. . . . I could feel every thump that went across his body. . . .It’s like a never-ending story. It’s like walking across a bed of glass. It’s painful, every step.

In the Words of a Homophobe

Warning: reading not for the faint of heart.

In Feb 1999, Billy Jack Gaither, 39, was led to the woods where two good ol’ Alabama boys Steven Eric Mullins, 25, and Charles Monroe Butler, 21 killed him.

Mullins is the one who charged with the murder. His “sidekick”, Butler, claimed he didn’t know Mullin’s intentions that fateful night. His side of the story was that the three went to the woods and when Gaither started talking “queer stuff”, anger seized the both of them and they killed him.

In a plea bargain, though, Mullins testified Butler knew he intended to “do away with” Gaither before they even asked Gaither to join them in the woods, a place known by the local young people as a “party place.”

The killing hardly reflects a spontaneous act of anger. Mullins sliced Gaither’s throat, beat him, stabbed him, and threw him in the car. Gaither tried to escape so Mullins beat him with an axe handle that was conveniently leaning against the car. As Mullins dragged the bloody Gaither to a clearing, Butler had set two tires on fire with kerosene. They threw Gaither’s body on top of the burning tires.

Here’s the clincher: as the investigation unfolded, Mullins, the local skinhead with SS tattoes on his hand, apparently was gay himself and may have had an affair with Gaither. No one, including Butler, knew this until after the fact.

Both were sentenced to life in prison with no parole.

Below is the chilling details in Mullins’ and Butler’s own words, compliment’s of PBS’ Frontline Special, Assault on Gay America, yes, the PBS - the one the republicans want to shut down for their liberal bias. The link, by the way, has much useful information on homophobia including the characteristics shared by homophobes, e.g. Republican, conservative, Christian, little or no gay acquaintances etc. No wonder the republicans want the station shut down.


Mullins confession, in his words:

JEFF MOBBS, SYLACAUGA POLICE DEPT: Today is March the 3rd, Wednesday, 1999. It’s 6:03 p. Steve, we’re here on the death of Billy Jack Gaither. Can you tell us what happened back on, February 19, 1999?

STEVE MULLINS: Yes, I can. Uh, I called, I called Billy Jack about four o’clock and asked him to come pick me up so we could go out to the bar. Um, he came and picked me up about seven (7:00). From there, uh, he had already bought a six pack of beer and we rode around and I drank it, some of it. Rode around and, uh, then about 8:30, 8:45 he was gonna go in the Tavern and try to collect $20.00 from this guy. Um, I stayed in the car because I didn’t have any money to get in and didn’t really want to go in. Um, He came back out about an hour later which was about 9:15 or 9:30. We, uh, went to the 11th Frame, told Charles Butler that I was there with Billy Jack and he knew Billy Jack was . . .

JM: What do you call, what do you call Charles Butler?

SM: Charlsey.

JM: Charlsey?

SM: Charlsey.

JM: What is his real name?

SM: Charles Butler.

JM: Is it Sr. or Jr.?

SM: Jr.

JM: Charles Butler, Jr.

SM: Yeah.

JM: Okay.

SM: Um, told him who I was with, told him what I was thinking about doing.

JM: And that was?

SM: Um, killing Billy Jack. Um, it was after a few minutes and I went back outside and was waiting, we were waiting on Charlsey; waiting on him and then we went, went back or I went back inside to see if he was coming on or about ready to go and he finished up his game of pool and he come out and he got him some beer out of the back of his daddy’s truck, six pack took him a shot of moonshine, asked me if I wanted some, I didn’t, we left, uh . . .

JM: You, you told him that you were with Billy Jack Gaither? Is that correct?

SM: Right.

JM: Okay. And you told him what you were planning on doing?

SM: Right.

JM: And that was?

SM: Killing Billy Jack.

JM: And why were you planning on doing that? Why, why did you tell him that too?

SM: Because, I thought I could trust him and I knew he didn’t like queers either.

JM: So, what are you saying? Are you saying that he, he?

SM: So we left, uh, went back to his daddy’s house, Charles Butler, Sr. and he started getting ready and we discussed what, you know, what we were going to do, we talked about it. Um, we got Billy Jack to go out to the boat launch on Millerville Highway and Charles, Charlsey was taking a, relieving hisself at the front of the car. Me and Billy Jack was standing at the back and Billy Jack was watching him when he was taking a leak and I grabbed Billy Jack and threw him on the ground, cut his throat, and uh, he was just sitting, he was knelt on his hands and knees. I told Charlsey to open the, to pop the trunk and he went around and popped the trunk and Billy Jack tried to get up. I stabbed him twice in the rib cage and told him to stay where he was. Charlsey popped the trunk I told Billy Jack to get in the car. He did. We shut the trunk. I drove us to 165 Cedar Creek Circle and uh, got two tires, and a gallon of kerosene, box of matches and an ax handle.

JM: What did you use to, uh, cut his throat?

SM: A pocket knife. A plain old pocket knife.

JM: What did you do with it?

SM: I threw it in the river.

JM: Okay.

SM: Uh, got the two tires, the ax handle, the gallon of kerosene, the box of matches and went to Peckerwood Creek Road, um, uh, got the tires out of the trunk, the ax handle, propped it up against the car. Charlsey was lighting the, lighting the tires. Uh, I drug Billy Jack out onto the ground and uh, had my back fumed to him, he out of the blue knocked me down the hill into the creek um, and when I finally got back up to the, to the top he was trying to leave in the car. He was laying across the seats. Charlsey was gone. I found out later he had hit him and he took off running, um, I told Billy Jack that he couldn’t go nowhere or anywhere cause I didn’t have, I had the keys and I grabbed him by his pant’s legs and drug him away from the car and got the ax handle which was leaned up against the door of the car and started beating him with it and Charles, Charlsey showed back up and I took my shirt off and told him to get the blood out of the car and we talked and I was still beating him and when 1, I gave; out of energy and couldn’t do it anymore, um, the fire got to going and the tires started burning real well and I drug him into the flame and uh, we stood there for a few minutes and then we left. Went to the Exxon, no, went to the trailer at 165 Cedar Creek Circle, went there, I went inside and uh we both, me and Charles Butler both went inside and uh, he sat in the kitchen and I went back to my bedroom and got some things to take a bath with and took a, took a shower, got cleaned up, changed clothes and l asked Randall Jones if I could use his car to take this guy home and go out to the bar for a little while and um, we left, I uh, I drove Randall’s car and Charlsey drove Billy Jack’s car. We went . . .

JM: What happened to the clothes?

SM: Um, my pants and shoes and socks were left in my bedroom and the shirt was
burned.

JM: Where did, where did it get burned?

SM: On the fire.

JM: Okay.

SM: Along with the ax handle. Um, we left and went to the Exxon in Sylacauga on 280. Um, Charles parked the car on the left end of the building and sat there and waited and gave me the $20.00 to go in and get a gallons, a gallon or a dollars worth of gas, um, I did that, went in and got the gas, paid for it, got my jug, went back and got in the car, met him around on the end of the building, discussed where we were gonna go with the car and we left and we went to, out Millerville Highway to the trash dump and he took, drove the car back off into the mud and um, got, you know, I he, I gave him the gas and he started pouring gas all over the car and I was back in the car waiting on him and he set it on fire and we left and went to the Southern Station for about a hour and uh, took him home and I got back home about 3:30 a.m.

JM: Where are the pants at now?

SM: There in the trash. Superior Garbage picks the trash up and they carried them
off.

JM: What day do they pick up?

SM: 1, I don’t know, we, our trash they hadn’t paid the trash bill down there and so you know, the trash can got gone with it and it was probably last week, last Tuesday, I don’t, I don’t know what days they run 1, you know, Randall worked with them for a little while and we were supposedly getting free garbage pick up and he quit and they disposed of the garbage can, I guess last Tuesday.

JM: Say you called B. J.?

SM: Yes, yes I did.

JM: What was the conversation?

SM: Just, we were talking about going out to the bar.
JM: And when he got to pick you up, did he already have some beer? Do you know what kind it was?

SM: Bud Lite in bottles, six pack.

JM: You know where that watersheds place is? Boat launch, I think you called it.

SM: 1, I don’t know how to get to it I mean 1, you know, I know, well, I know, you know the road that carries you out that away, but I don’t know how to get exactly to it.

JM: What’s the name of that road?

SM: Alls I know is you go out Millerville Highway and you’ll see a little brown sign that’s got a boat ramp on, a boat being launched and that’s where you turn at. You go down to where it T’s and take a right.

JM: Left or right?

SM: Left. Uh, go down and you’ll come to that road will dead end to where a road T’s off and you take a right down to I don’t, you know, 1, I don’t, I know it’s out that away, I don’t know exactly where. I’ve been out there swimming but not to the boat ramp. That was .

JM: Whose idea was that to go out there?

SM: Charles’s. It was his idea to go to the boat ramp cause that was, that was his idea to go out there, I didn’t know where to go.

JM: And what happened to the, the uh, knife that you had?

SM: Threw it in the river.

JM: And you don’t know what kind it was?

SM: Uh, black handle, uh, stainless steel blade. That’s all I know, regular, regular size, you know, probably three inch blade, I guess. Three or four inch blade on it.

JM: How far out did you throw the knife?

SM: Uh, not being able to see, guessing by hearing the splash, probably twenty, thirty feet.

JM: So it’s pretty close to the bank?

SM: I guess, you know, its pitch black dark and I just chunked, you know it could be fifty feet. I just threw it and you know, I didn’t close it up or nothing, I just slung it and . . .

JM: Which side of the boat ramp you on?

SM: Uh, the right side. As you, where you launch your boat, its right off at an angle.

JM: Where did you pull the car at? Towards that boat ramp?

SM: Uh, I didn’t, Billy Jack was driving and he circled around and pulled it up as you’re facing towards the boat ramp on the right side, on the edge of some woods, this big open area right there.

JM: Was there anybody else out there?

SM: No.

JM: Did you meet any other cars coming in or out of the roads you took?

SM: No, I didn’t.

JM: When you, when you left there, you said earlier that Billy Jack was in the trunk, is that correct?

SM: Right.

JM: You leave there and where do you go?

SM: Back to the 165 Cedar Creek Circle.

JM: Okay, and tell me again what you do there?

SM: I got the two tires that were around back, two of the tires that were around back, um, an ax handle, a box of matches, and a gallon of kerosene.

JM: Where do you put ‘em?

SM: I put it all in a, well, I put the two tires in the trunk and put the rest in the back seat.

JM: Describe the box of matches that you . . .

SM: It’s a large box of matches. I guess the biggest ones you can buy in a store.

JM: Do you remember the name?

SM: Huh-uh.

JM: Where were they at inside the house?

SM: Uh, on top of the, above the cabinets. Couple other boxes there now.

JM: Did you go back, um, did you go back to the scene or have you been back to the
scene since it happened?

SM: No, I haven’t.

JM: Either, have you been to either place?

SM: No.

JM: Since it happened?

SM: No, I haven’t.

JM: When you get down to Peckerwood Creek Road, is what you’re calling it. Is that correct? Is that the only name of the road you know?

SM: Yeah.

JM: Alright, you call the road that you come in on as “One Minute Road.?

SM: Yeah. You take One Minute Road to Talladega Springs, go down and it will cross a, a fairly new bridge and it’s the first dirt road to your left.

JM: If um, if I’m coming down Fayetteville Road from Sylacauga, I come through Fayetteville and I come to the forks right?

SM: Uh- huh.

JM: I take the left fork. That’s the One Minute Road you’re talking about right?

SM: Uh, yeah, you go down that away. That One Minute Road comes out right there and where the some kind of monument or something is in Talladega Springs.

JM: Which, do you turn left or do you turn right off the Talladega Springs Road?

SM: Left.

JM: Turn left?

SM: Right. Then at the bridge, you turn left.

JM: You go to the end of the pavement to the bridge and then you turn left.

SM: Right.

JM: When you’re down on, at Peckerwood Creek, you say Charlsey was starting the
fire. .

SM: Yes.

JM: And he puts some kerosene on the tires and starts it?

SM: Yes.

JM: And you’ve gotten Billy Jack Gaither out of the trunk already?

SM: Yes.

JM: Okay. And then next thing you know, you go falling down the, the hill?

SM: Yes.

JM: Did you go into the water?

SM: Yes, I did.

JM: What were you wearing at that time?

SM: Pair of blue jeans uh, a white sweatshirt, and a pair of socks and a pair of tennis shoes, underwear.

JM: Okay. So you basically got pretty wet then?

SM: Yeah. From head to toe.

JM: Alright and then what happened?

SM: I climbed back up to the top and Charlsey is not around and Billy Jack is trying to get. in the car, got the ax handle in his hand um, I tell him he can’t go anywhere because I’ve got the keys and I drag him back out to the back of the car and beat him.

JM: What happens to the your clothes?

SM: Um, my T-shirt or my sweatshirt? I took it off and Charlsey used it to clean up the blood in the car and then he threw it on the fire and the blue jeans were taken off in the trash.

JM: Who put the kerosene on the body?

SM: Uh, I put, well, we both did.

JM: Both of you did?

SM: Both did.

JM: How much kerosene did you have?

SM: It was a gallon.

JM: Full gallon?

SM: Uh- huh.

JM: What did you have the kerosene in?

SM: A red gallon jug, gasoline jug.

JM: You leave there after uh, you’ve already put Billy Jack on the fire? Is that correct?

SM: Yes.

JM: You’re driving the car?

SM: Yes.

JM: Was there any damage to the car then?

SM: No.

JM: No damage to the car?

SM: Just blood. That’s it.

JM: Okay. You leave there and you go where?

SM: Back to the trailer where I lived at and um, that’s where I took a shower and
changed clothes.

JM: That when you- you change clothes? What happens then?

SM: 1, wake up Randall Jones and ask him to borrow his car to go out to the bar for a
riffle while and take a friend of mine home.

JM: What were you wearing then?

SM: Uh, a pair of dress or khaki pants and a sweat jacket.

JM: What did you do with the clothes when you took them off?

SM: The clothes from, the wet clothes, I laid them in the bedroom floor.

JM: Okay, when did you get rid of them?

SM: Uh, last week um, Tuesday maybe Tuesday.

JM: What did you do with them?

SM: I threw them in the garbage.

JM: What did you throw in the garbage?

SM: The pair of pants, the the rest of it was washed in the laundry.

JM: And your tennis shoes?

SM: They were also washed.

JM: When um, when you approach uh, uh, Charlsey in the bar you tell me you tell him something.

SM: Yeah. . . ,

JM: What did you tell him?

SM: Told him that we, you know, he wasn’t comfortable with leaving with Billy Jack because he knew he was queer and you know, I mentioned to him about getting rid of him.

JM: What were your words?

SM: That was basically it. You know.

JM: So, then you planned to what you call, “get rid of Billy Jack” is that correct? .

SM: Um, yeah somewhat.

JM: Did you and Charlsey talk prior to this about getting rid of B. J.?

SM: Yes.

JM: How long?

SM: How long did we talk or how long had it been since we talked?

JM: How long had it been?

SM: Probably a week. Two weeks.

JM: Why?

SM: Just cause he was queer.

JM: How? You said you knew- how did you know Billy Jack before then?

SM: From the Tavern and just acquaintance. Just knew him.

JM: That’s all how you knew him?

SM: You know, a ride home. You know, a ride to the grocery store here and there. Just, you know, just knew him.

JM: And that’s only- only way you knew him?

SM: I didn’t know his last name or anything till this.

JM: You told me that um, that Billy Jack uh, ‘propositioned you earlier. Is that correct? Tell me what he said.

SM: He told me he wanted to suck my click.

JM: And?

SM: 1, I didn’t say anything.

JM: Okay. When did he tell you this?

SM: Uh, he told me a couple of times, but it you know it was probably a week or two before that that he told me and I didn’t say anything and then he told me that night also.

JM: Where did he tell you?

SM: Just riding.

JM: Riding? How much do you think you had to drink that night?

SM: Six pack.

JM: How much did he have to drink?

SM: Billy Jack? Uh, two that I saw of. He bought those separately.

JM: Kelley, you got any more questions?

KJ: No.

JM: Sgt. Nail? This will end the statement. Steve you got anything else to say?

SM: No.

JM: This’ll end the statement. It’s 6:30 p. m. Day is Wednesday, March the 3rd 1999.


Butler’s interview in prison after being found guilty:

Before the night of the crime, had you ever heard of Billy Jack Gaither?

No, sir. . . Let’s talk about what happened. Can you do that?

I reckon it started when me and Daddy had gotten off work. We had entered in this pool tournament. I’d played maybe two games, and Steve, he’d come in, and he asked me if I wanted to go to The Tavern with him. I told him that I was engaged in this pool tournament. He said, “I’ll be back in a while.” So he went on. I reckon they went to The Tavern, and I went on playing my games. They came back, and he come in and asked me if I was ready to go, and I said, “Sure.” So, we’re going out, and apparently a fight had broken out right there at The Tavern. Steve had some old warrants on him from Sylacauga, and so he didn’t want to go there. So instead, we go out to the Watersheds—this little public place where everybody goes out to have a good time. But it wound up different. Billy Jack started talking about some gay issues. . . . wanting to have a threesome, or whatever. Tempers flared up. Steve jumped on him, and cut his throat there . .

You’re saying Billy Jack basically hit on you, right?

Yes.

And you kicked him. Why?

I don’t know. I’d been drinking a lot whiskey, and just didn’t have no understanding . . . I didn’t even know the man, for him to be hitting on me. . . . Tempers just flared. It’s like he didn’t have no respect.

He was disrespecting you?

Yes.

How?

Well, sir, I don’t know. It’s not like I’m some gay tramp out there, waiting to be corn-holed by some prick.

So if a woman had done that to you, that wouldn’t be disrespect?

No, sir, I don’t reckon so.

Why is it disrespect if a man does it?

Well, sir, why would he want to just assume that I was gay, just like himself, and throw himself on me like he did?

Did he start grabbing you?

No sir, he didn’t start grabbing at me. Nothing like that.

He just asked you? It was just words, right? If a woman did that, you’d think, “That’s pretty cool”?

Yes sir, I reckon so. But he’s a man, and he did it, so it’s disrespect.

Why?

Would you like for a gay man to hit on you? Would you like for him to engage you into a threesome? How would you feel?

I don’t think I would kick him, Charles. What did kicking him did what for you?

Didn’t do a whole lot of nothing. Didn’t do no good, that’s for sure.

But you were clearly angry. What about it made you angry? What had he done?

Well, sir. . . I don’t think I needed to kick him. I don’t reckon he deserved that.

I want you to know, I’m not judging anything. I’m just trying to understand it. One thing that might help is to understand what that feeling is. When he came on to you, that was bad? That crossed a line?

Yes.

What was the line that he crossed? What had he done?

. . . I couldn’t remember what his exact words was. I don’t know. Hell, I don’t know.

You were pissed, flat-out pissed. Right?

I reckon.

At what?

At him coming on to me. It’s just stupidity, I guess. No, no, no. It’s just a feeling, like any other feeling.

He had made you—

Uncomfortable, I reckon.

And not a man—he was trying to make you not a man?

No. I don’t think anybody could ever do that. . .

When you were growing up, were there gay people around?

Yes, sir. I had one friend in particular. He’s lived with us several times, such as Steve himself. Steve even lived around him, and knew him as long as I have, if not longer. I’ve been to gay clubs with him, and all that. But we had an understanding from this guy we met that we was friends, and we was only to be friends.

So you’ve had gay friends. It’s not that you mind gay people.

No, sir. It’s not at all.

Did you think less of gays?

No. No, sir. I don’t they’re think any less than I am or . . . I don’t know.

They’re just the same old people. But I really never give it much thought.

But you went to gay clubs?

Yes.

Now Charles, if you go to a gay club, other men are going to look at you and say, “Well, he’s here. I’m here. He must be gay.”

No, sir. No such thing, especially when a fellow like me walks into a bar. My appearance alone sets me off.

You mean, you don’t look gay?

That’s right.

So if you went to a gay bar, nobody would know that . . .

I reckon. The numerous times I’ve been to a gay club, nobody’s ever hit on me. I’ve had people come to our table and sit down and want to talk to me and such, but they never did lead off to a confrontation, or what have you. They just want to know who I am—just being friendly. . .

So your reaction to Billy Jack then seems extreme. It seems you would be a little sympathetic to him. . . . So something had to snap in you that night, right?

Yes.

Have you thought about what that was?

No, sir. I ain’t never really thought about it. Never.

You thought that he disrespected you.

Yes.

I’m trying to get what that means, for a man to disrespect another man in that way.

I don’t know, man. It’s hard to explain it, I guess. I don’t know.

Are you a Christian?

I wouldn’t call myself a Christian. But I am a believer of God, and I never have forsaken him. And I’ve tried to follow in the right steps. I know I’ve not always been faithful for him. None of us has.

But were you raised in the church, or a Christian?

I went to church regular when I was young. Yes, sir. But I generally grew apart from it, I’ve went off and on ever since then—never was firmly grounded in a church.

So you didn’t study the Bible or that sort of thing, like some people did?

No, sir. No, sir. There are at least some folks who say that homosexuality is wrong, and that they can show you that in the Bible.

Have you talked to folks like that?

Yes.

What do you think of that?

Well, sir, it’s a sin. I never really give it much thought. I don’t know whether it’s . . . just because it’s a sin to be gay, don’t mean a gay person is like Satan himself. . . . They’re just as good-hearted as anybody else. You wouldn’t think of them as being sinners.

But their lifestyle is a sin?

Yes. . .

How come you’d go to gay clubs?

On account of my friend, Steve Edwards. First time I went, it was me, my brother, my sister-in-law, and Steve Edwards. We’d all go and, hell, I had a pretty good time, just getting out there. So Steve offered to go with me again, or invited me to go up there again with him. And I say, “Sure, why not?” I’d sit there, play pool, or sit up there and cut up with the bartender. . . .

What was the club like? Where was it?

It was right there in the midst of Birmingham. . . . They had the loud music going. It’s more like a saloon music type of group in there. They had a little dance floor separate from the bar area. It was a nice place. Outside, they had a privacy fence around, with little tables and chairs and little canopies over the table, for a little private talk, whatever. It was an all-right club.

Was it just men? Or men and women?

There’s women there, too. Men and women.

You say it was a gay club. Were the people who were there almost exclusively gay, or were there a mix of them?

No, there’s straight people there. Anybody could come in there.

So if it was straight people and gay people, why is it a gay club?

Well, sir, I don’t know. It’s just what everybody called it.

Could you look at the men and tell which one was gay?

Some of them, yes, sir. It really was hard to tell which ones were the women.

Why was that hard to tell?

You had your drag queens. They looked just about like a woman.

That could make it dangerous for you?

Oh, yeah.

Did you ever hit on women at the club?

No, on account of I didn’t know which ones were which. . .

Why do you think Steve Mullins jumped Billy Jack Gaither?

I don’t know. I have no idea. I don’t reckon he wanted his sex life to get out to anybody, on account of he’s hiding—he’s kept a secret from me for so long, so I don’t reckon he wanted anybody else to know.

Was something going on between him and Billy Jack?

I reckon. There were rumors. One of Billy Jack’s brothers stated in a newspaper that he knew that Billy and Steve was together. My attorney found another gay man that Steve was involved with. So I don’t know. . . . My attorneys discovered that Steve is flat broke, and wanted some money in exchange for sex. He lured the both of us out there—promised him sex with the both of us. Instead, it just blew up in his face, and he just didn’t know how to handle it. I don’t know.

So the killing was a coverup?

I guess so. I don’t know what to think. . . .

I’m curious about how you feel. It was Steve who attacked him, who beat him with the stick and killed him. What role do you feel you played?

I feel cheated. But I don’t hold no hate for nobody, nor no grudge against nobody. I just feel cheated. . . .I’m torn away from my family on account of something someone else has done. I don’t know.

Do you feel responsible at all?

I don’t reckon I could have stopped him, or stopped what had happened. Should I feel responsible? . . .

I bet you’ve lived through what happened a thousand times. Do you have regrets?

Yes. I have dreams—nightmares—from time to time. But it’s not like it was before. When it was first happening, things played back in my dreams. I’d have nightmares of Steve [Mullins] and us together again. . . I remember when we was at the trailer. Steve opened the trunk of that car, and Billy was laying there on his side. Blood was just covering half of his face . . . . It just sent something all up and down my back. And then, seeing Steve standing over him, beating him like he was. . . . I could feel every thump that went across his body. . . .It’s like a never-ending story. It’s like walking across a bed of glass. It’s painful, every step.