Comments by Jeff Montgomery at Hate Crimes Statistics Release 12-April 2001

There were Two-Thousand One Hundred and Fifty-One separate, incidents in the nation, and One Hundred and Twenty-One, here in our state. This represents an 8% national increase over 1999, and a 26% increase in for Michigan.

The figures contained in the report illustrate one thing very clearly: In the United States —certainly in Michigan— it is very dangerous to be gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.

We are threatened, beaten, maimed, and killed at an alarming, ever-increasing rate. And a victim of anti-gay violence may not even be gay. People become one of these grim statistics for even being thought to be —presumed to be— gay.

We live in a time when anti-gay rhetoric is loud, demonizing and out-of-control. It is dishonest and disparaging. It is dangerous.

This morning, in a news report previewing the release of this very report, Gary Glenn the anti-gay fanatic responded to our findings by blaming gay people for their own victimization. It's our fault, he says.

"The Triangle Foundation," he says.. Let me read it, ". . . homosexual advocates are themselves to blame for the overwhelming majority of violence experienced because of their affirmation and promotion of the homosexual lifestyle."

So, by the very fact that we exist, that we seek equality and that we come out to those around us and those we love. because we simply ARE, says Glenn and his followers. because we exist, we bring on the horrors of violence reported in this document.

Is their any evidence more clear, any further proof needed, that one of the chief reasons our numbers steadily increase every year is that people are goaded and prompted to attack and brutalize us by the kind of ignorant, dangerous thinking that is turned out by the likes of Mr. Glenn?

The fanatical crusades mounted by extremists, to block equality, to dehumanize us, to carve out a special right to discriminate and do damage. These are the things that fuel a hostile climate and lead people to believe that they have a license to maim and kill us.

Negligent, irresponsible and intentional misrepresentation and lying, amount to reckless disregard and demonstrate culpability in each of these incidents.

And we are only going to see more of this cowardly, ignorant behavior as at least three cities will be experiencing ballot measures where equality based on sexual orientation is a stake. The right wing will ratchet-up their toxic waste dumping of lies and defamation in an effort to preserve their right to impose their bigotry on the rest of us.

In the effort they will further vilify and lie about gay people.

But whether they are successful or not at the ballot box, they will be further fueling the climate that results in reports like this one... Reports of broken lives, broken bodies, and dead bodies. The collateral damage of the right-wing mission is the high cost detailed in this report.

Well, we —Triangle Foundation— and others who are committed to justice, fairness and equality are not about to go away, go back in the closet, or go anywhere else that extremists would like.

And while it may make them feel better about themselves to blame the victim, they know what they're doing and only need to look in a mirror to see one of the most poisonous roots of violence and murder.