It was popular frontism!

Submitted by Anon on 7 April, 2007 - 11:23

I was disappointed that Solidarity chose to publish Maria Exall’s article “Faith, Homophobia and Human Rights” (Solidarity 3/107). The article reports in a positive light a conference that seems to have been the initiative of the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement and was a lash up between the Gay Police Association, various religious organisations and some TUC bureaucrats.

The article describes the strategy of the conference as “writing to a large number of faith and public bodies, including the newly formed Commission for Equality and Human Rights, to draw their attention to the wishes of the conference and inviting them to act on key recommendations.”

I do not think that we should support an organisation that, I think, can reasonably be characterised as a popular front. I think that the labour movement, and in the first place the rank and file of the labour movement, is the only force than can effectively fight for human rights and against homophobia.

I don’t believe that faith organisations or police organisations are any sort of reliable allies in the fight for liberation. I don’t think we should support a strategy of writing to public bodies, as a way of fighting for liberation or of defending existing liberties. I think the article would entirely mis-educate the reader about our strategy to fight for liberated sexuality. Finally, I don’t think that Solidarity should have published without further comment the link to the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement’s website.

Duncan Morrison, Deptford

Editor’s note:

To be clear, I asked Maria to write a report of this conference. Does that mean I think the AWL should support the statement of the conference or the politics of its organisers? No of course not! The usual disclaimers of our editorial policy apply here: “articles do not necessarily reflect the view of the organisation which publishes this paper”.

Duncan thinks the character of this conference makes any article reporting what it did in need of, at least, a serious “health warning”. I’m not so sure. The initiative is a sort of popular front and it does have reformist goals, (which agreed, one might have chosen to make some comment about). But three riders to that...

This conference had the support of very many LGBT organisations, way beyond the specifically religious ones and the Gay Police Association.

Granted you have to be pretty self-oppressed to be a gay police officer, but the fact that there is a Gay Police Association and it is taking a (very) hard line against religious fundamentalism is both interesting and significant.

The Iraqi LGBT activist received a standing ovation which shows the delegates have a better (more “liberal” or “democratic”) conscience than much of the left? And good for them!

Why commission the report?

It is interesting that such a conference is taking place.

While I’m as committed to the smashing of belief in God as a way to liberation as much as the next militant atheist, I’m also interested — and yes, supportive — of the attempts of religious people to fight for sexual equality. Which is what is going on here. Socialists and secularists should pay attention to serious social reform movements within religion.

Lastly the immediate background to the conference is important, taking place as it did when the Catholic church was trying to get exemption for itself from placing children from its adoption agencies with gay adopters.

So I thought a little report on the conference would be interesting. Should the report have made more comment on the conference? Perhaps. But it’s not my job to heavy-handedly insert detailed political commentary, into a factual report when I have no first hand experience.

Cathy Nugent

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