Love and Hate at Pride 2006

I just got back from Utah's Pride Festival with my loving boyfriend of nearly seven years, Rob; his brother Shawn and his partner, Shawn; and our friends Andrew and Teri. It was a perfect day to celebrate the diversity of a remarkable community. Pride brings out just about everyone - and it is a healthy reminder to me that the LGBT community is an incredible spectrum of people, all united in fellowship and hope. And what an honor it was to celebrate it with people I love dearly.

The LGBT vote is important to Democrats in Utah, who are hungry to pick up as many votes as they possibly can. Every major democratic officeholder and many candidates for the forthcoming election were there, stumping and showing their colors. In fact, I return shortly to man the campaign booth of Scott McCoy, our openly gay state senator.

As with every year, there were protesters. But despite being Christian jihadis, they were pretty polite, unlike in last years. The interchange between the protesters and the counter-protesters was dignified and low-key. It's nice for a change, because I've never seen anyone change someone's mind by yelling at them. All the same, I was struck by the sign pictured at right: God does not love you just the way you are. We Christians believe that to love someone (your family, your friends, your partner) is to see the eyes of God. Compare the picture of the protester to the picture of my boyfriend (tall guy in baseball cap), my brothers, and our friends. Tell me where the love was this morning and I'll tell you where God was.