Anti-Dobson rally

Chicago--Some 500 protesters clogged two sidewalks by the Renaissance Hotel in Chicago on Nov. 8, demonstrating against the induction of James Dobson into the Radio Hall of Fame. Dobson's organization, Focus on the Family, has been a cornerstone of the Christian Right's culture wars.

It is a leading proponent of the fraudulent "ex-gay" movement. Dobson's commentaries have been a bizarre fixture on mainstream radio for decades. Bruce Dumont, head of the Museum of Broadcast Communications, which sponsors the Radio Hall of Fame, washed his hands of responsibility for Dobson's induction, stating that he had been chosen by public vote on the internet.

Some with longer memories among the mostly young demonstrators responded that if popularity was the standard for honoring hate-filled venom, where was Josef Goebbels and his Nazi media machine? If the Radio Hall of Fame were limited to Americans, why not Father Coughlin with his national audience for Jew-baiting broadcasts out of Royal Oak, Mich. in the years leading up to World War II?

The Family Research Council, an offshoot of Focus on the Family, was pivotal along with the Mormon hierarchy in pushing Proposition 8 that rescinded same-sex marriage rights. Protesters at the rally, not just Blacks and people of color, rejected the scapegoating of Blacks for this setback for Gay rights. Instead the determination was to keep the focus on Focus on the Family and the Christian Right.

--Supporter

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