New York, Tuesday, April 21, 2009 – Neil G. Giuliano, president of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), today responded to media coverage of the controversy surrounding the current Miss California, Carrie Prejean, and her response to a question during the Miss USA Competition on Sunday, April 19.
During the competition, Prejean said: "I think it's great that Americans are able to choose one or the other. We live in a land that you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage and, you know what, in my country and in my family I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman – no offense to anyone out there – but that's how I was raised and that's how I think it should be, between a man and a woman."
GLAAD's Giuliano today said:
"Much of the media's coverage of this story seems to be missing the main point, which is that what Prejean said is simply inaccurate. Contrary to Prejean's claim that people can choose who they want to marry, loving, committed gay and lesbian couples are in fact denied that choice in all but a few states, and all such couples are also denied the federal security and protections that come with marriage.
"America should in fact be a place where all people – gay and straight – can choose to marry the person they love, but that choice continues to be denied to loving, committed gay couples. GLAAD urges media covering the controversy to focus attention on real gay and lesbian couples who, because they continue to be excluded from marriage, are prevented from being able to take care of and be responsible for each other."
One would hope that Mr. Giuliano might also note that - no matter how incorrect Ms. Prejean is - that it's not appropriate for Perez Hilton (the judge who asked the question in the first place) to refer to her as "a dumb b****" or a "c***" in response. That kind of rhetoric on our side is unproductive, and actually feeds the misogyny that is at the heart of anti-gay bias.
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