Prejudice

Bit of background on this.

Recently, a guest on a show on RTE referred to members of the Iona Institute as homophobic. You can find details on the story here:

http://www.thejournal.ie/rte-no-comment-damages-saturday-night-show-1287287-Jan2014/

Here's the thing. Homophobia is defined as aversion and prejudice towards gay people. To believe that non-cissexual people are inherently less capable of being good parents, or don't deserve to have their unions recognised under law, is prejudice.

Some people claim that a child needs a mother and a father to grow up in a healthy, loving environment.

Some people claim that the only definition of marriage, often citing the Bible or another religious source, is between a man and a woman, and back this claim up by stating that marriage is to allow for the creation of children, in the "ideal" family arrangement as described above.

I find it funny, and not in the good way, that these arguments only come out when someone wants to argue against marriage and adoption rights for gay people. These groups never argue that a single parent shouldn't be left to care for a child. They never insist that married couples should be forced to have children, or that people who can't have children, or simply don't want to, should be prevented from marrying.

These arguments are all readily produced when it comes to denying rights to gay people, but quickly tucked away before they can be followed to their logical conclusion. To say nothing of the fact that there is no evidence that children raised by same-sex parents have any disadvantages to those raised by a man and a woman. And without even going near the fact that the definition of marriage in the Bible, so vehemently defended, has changed over time based on the demands of society.

There is no other way to regard the views of the Iona Institute as anything but prejudice against homosexuals. Therefore, by definition, the organisation's views and goals are homophobic.

Did we really need our state broadcaster to shatter any concept of being an unbiased source of information, and hand over taxpayers' money to an organisation dedicated to ideals that run counter to those of a significant portion of the populace?