Archive for February, 2009
Words Mean Things: Bashing
Posted by Matt in Christianity, Hate Crimes, Marriage, News, Politics, Saddleback on February 27th, 2009
Youtube contributor (and sometimes blogger) robtish made this video last month and it’s starting to make the rounds again. It’s 6:38 long, but seriously, you need to watch the whole thing. It’s that important.
Second Suspect Arrested for José Sucuzhañay Murder
Posted by Matt in Hate Crimes, News on February 27th, 2009
New York’s WCBS is reporting that the second suspect in December beating death of José Sucuzhañay has been arrested. The first suspect, Hakeem Scott, was arrested on Wednesday and made a full confession, though he pleaded not guilty to second degree murder on Thursday.
José Sucuzhañay was murdered in December by two men who shouted anti-gay and anti-Hispanic slurs at them while beating him with a beer bottle and an aluminum baseball bat. It is believed that the newly arrested Keith Phoenix was the one wielding the bat.
28-year-old Keith Phoenix was wanted in the Dec. 7 beating of Ecuadorian immigrant José Sucuzhañay on a Brooklyn street.
Phoenix’s alleged accomplice, 25-year-old Hakeem Scott, also of The Bronx, had been charged with second-degree murder as a hate crime and held without bail since his arrest earlier in the week.
The NYPD on Thursday released a shocking surveillance video taken shortly after the bias attack in Brooklyn.
Phoenix and Scott were seen smiling as they headed home to the Bronx moments after the beating.
Investigators said the footage shows the two riding in their SUV just 19 minutes after the attack that ultimately ended the life of Sucuzhañay back in December.
“We know that these arrests will not bring our brother back,” Diego Sucuzhañay said. “But at least we have hope that justice is on its way.”
Police said Phoenix lives in the same South Bronx neighborhood as Scott, who was picked up Tuesday near where they live on 161st Street. Scott was arrested and charged with murder as a hate crime. On Thursday the Sucuzhañay family expressed gratitude for the police work.
Go to WCBS’s story to see the surveillance video released this week as well as comments from brother Diego Sucuzhañay.
CO Senator Dave Schultheis Hopes Babies Are Born With AIDS
Posted by Matt in Christianity, HIV/AIDS, Hate Crimes, News, Politics on February 26th, 2009
When did the Square States become the New South? Last week we had State Senator Buttars (“They’re mean… It’s just like the Moslems!”) and State Senate President Michael Waddoups (“We agree with many of the things that he said.”) going all bigoted in Utah. This week it’s Colorado’s turn.
On Wednesday, State Senator Dave Schultheis (R) rose to speak before a vote on SB 09-179, a bill that in part would “require health care providers providing care to a pregnant woman during gestation, or hospitals where a pregnant woman presents for delivery, to test the woman for HIV if she has not previously been tested and allows the pregnant woman to decline to be tested”.
Seems pretty reasonable, yes? The goal is to have an HIV test early so that if the mother is HIV+ steps can be taken to protect the fetus before birth. Note that the mother may decline to be tested.
It seemed like an easy vote until Sen. Schultheis requested to speak. The Colorado Senate ended up passing the bill 32-1, but here’s the transcript and a link to audio of what Sen. Schultheis had to say, both courtesy of the Colorado Independent:
Sexual promiscuity, we know, causes a lot of problems in our state, one of which, obviously, is the contraction of HIV. And we have other programs that deal with the negative consequences — we put up part of our high schools where we allow students maybe 13 years old who put their child in a small daycare center there.
We do things continually to remove the negative consequences that take place from poor behavior and unacceptable behavior, quite frankly, and I don’t think that’s the role of this body.
As a result of that I finally came to the conclusion I would have to be a no vote on this because this stems from sexual promiscuity for the most part, and I just can’t vote on this bill and I wanted to explain to this body why I was going to be a no vote on this.
The Face of Evil: Profile
To restate it more succinctly, Sen. Schultheis thinks that unborn babies should not be protected from HIV/AIDS because their mothers are whores anyway. That’s outrageous, but it’s not just me getting hyperbolic. Sen. Schultheis clarified his statement to the Rocky Mountain News later the same day.
“What I’m hoping is that yes, that person may have AIDS, have it seriously as a baby and when they grow up, but the mother will begin to feel guilt as a result of that. The family will see the negative consequences of that promiscuity and it may make a number of people over the coming years … begin to realize that there are negative consequences and maybe they should adjust their behavior. We can’t keep people from being raped. We can’t keep people from shooting each other. We can’t keep people from jumping off bridges. People drink and drive, and they crash and kill people. Poor behavior has its consequences.”
To clarify again, Sen. Schultheis says directly that he’s “hoping” that a baby is born with AIDS so that the mother (who is apparently a whore) will feel bad.
My question to the people of Colorado’s ninth district, (including northern Colorado Springs, the Air Force Academy, parts of the Black Forest, and the town of Monument) is a simple one: WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK?
Sen. Schultheis, oddly enough, is on Twitter! His current status, posted at around 5:00 yesterday (well after the story broke in Colorado), is “Should government be used to ameliorate the negative consequences of immoral behavior. I say NO.” I am SOOOO following Dave!
CO Senator Scott Renfroe: Gay = Murder
Posted by Matt in Christianity, Hate Crimes, News, Politics on February 26th, 2009
State Senator Dave Schultheis (R) isn’t the only one stinking up the Colorado Senate floor this week. Joining his brothers-in-hate from the Square States is Colorado State Senator Scott Renfroe.
In Monday’s debate on SB 09-088 (pdf), which would offer health benefits to domestic partners of gay state employees, Sen. Renfroe had this to say, transcript courtesy FreeColorado.com:
Homosexuality is seen as a violation of this natural, created order. And it is in a sense to God, the creator, who created men and women, male and female, for procreation.
Leviticus 18:22 says, “You shall not lie with a man as one lies with a female. It is an abomination.”
Leviticus 20:13 says, “If there is a man who lies with a male as though to lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act, and they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltness is upon them.”
Then Romans 1:18: “For the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteous men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.”
And that’s what we’re doing here. We’re suppressing the truth. The truth is what the family was created for in the beginning. That is the a husband, a wife, and children. And that is why we are here, and this goes against that. And this is just a continuation of the traction of the family.
I left out a bunch of preliminaries that you can see on the video. Basically, Sen. Renfroe is arguing that state law should be decided based on [his understanding of] the Bible, which is pretty far into the territory of the government establishing a religion and abridging the rights of those who don’t follow that religion.
He also, in case you missed it, suggested that the government of Colorado should follow Leviticus 20:13, which [according to his understanding] explicitly sets the penalty for homosexuality as death. One wonders where Sen. Renfroe would place the firing squad, inside his district so he could get the revenue, or outside his district so he wouldn’t get complaints about the noise of the gunfire.
But wait! There’s more!
And I’m not saying that this is the only sin that’s out there. Obviously we have sin, we have murder, we have all sorts of sin. We have adultery, and we don’t making those legal, and we would never think to make murder legal.
Here we have an official elected to serve his government suggesting that my having sex with another man is the same as murder. It’s far from the first time I’ve heard it, but one would hope our elected officials would be above that. Oh, and as far as I know, adultery is legal in Colorado, so -100 points on that one too.
Sen. Jennifer Veiga (D), who is the bill’s sponsor, responded to Sen. Renfroe’s speech:
“You say, up here at this microphone, that God created us in a certain structure,” Veiga said.
“I will stand here today and tell you that God also created me. And the last time I checked, I am who I am, people.”
Veiga called Renfroe’s comments “somewhat sad,” and said afterward that “(his statements) are hurtful, but what am I supposed to say?”
Scott Renfroe is the Senator for the 13th district, including Greeley, Evans, Eaton, and most of Weld County. Citizens of the 13th district, does he speak for you? For serious?
P.S. Sen. Renfroe is on Twitter! Shockingly, he hasn’t updated his status since last Tuesday. Must be busy with something else!
NYPD Arrest Suspect in José Sucuzhañay Murder
Posted by Matt in Hate Crimes, News on February 26th, 2009
Multiple news sources are reporting the arrest of Hakeem Scott in the December murder of José Sucuzhañay. The Brooklyn real estate agent had been walking home with his brother Romel on December 10, 2008 when Scott and Keith Phoenix stopped their SUV. The New York Times reports:
Mr. Scott approached José Sucuzhañay and smashed a beer bottle over the back of his head, the police said, and then chased Romel Sucuzhañay.
Mr. Phoenix then took an aluminum baseball bat from the rear of the vehicle and struck José repeatedly on his shoulder, ribs and back until he fell, the police said.
“At that point Phoenix struck José several more times, full force, with crushing blows to his head,” said Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly, who announced the arrest at a news conference at Police Headquarters on Wednesday evening with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Charles J. Hynes, the Brooklyn district attorney. Once in custody, Mr. Scott “made a full confession,” Mr. Kelly said.
“He said words to the effect that he had seen the news accounts,” Mr. Kelly said. “It had troubled him and, as a result, he wanted to get it off his chest.”
Romel Sucuzhañay, who had been staying with his brother and was visiting on a two-month visa from Ecuador, was not seriously injured.
New York’s CBS affiliate details the investigation:
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said his detectives were able to make the bust thanks to good old fashioned police work. They tracked a Ford Explorer witnesses at the scene described.
Not long after the attack surveillance video from the Triboro Bridge toll plaza showed Phoenix and Scott in an Explorer driving to their homes in the Bronx.
Witnesses helped police track down the SUV, and through a prior accident report Phoenix was identified as a suspect and then linked to Scott, Kelly said. The investigation eventually led them to Scott, who has a lengthy rap sheet, including arrests for assault, robbery and weapons possession. Scott was apprehended without incident near his residence on East 161st Street in the Bronx on Tuesday.
“[Scott] said he had seen the news reports and that they had troubled him,” Kelly said. “He said he wanted to get it off his chest.”
Scott will be arraigned Thursday on second-degree murder charges.
Police continue to search for Keith Phoenix (below), who is currently on parole for armed robbery. Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Phoenix should contact Crime stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
Keith Phoenix, still at large
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