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Day of Dialogue

Summary

In the United States, the Day of Dialogue (formerly Day of Truth)[1] is the Christian fundamentalist group Focus on the Family's annual event to oppose LGBTQ rights.[2] It was founded by the Alliance Defense Fund in 2005 to oppose the Day of Silence, an annual day of protest against the harassment and bullying of LGBTQ students that was organized by Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network.[1] Since 2018 the Day of Dialogue is not marked on a single date or organized nationally.[3]

History edit

ADF's Day of Truth edit

The "Day of Truth" event was first organized in 2005, primarily through the efforts of the Alliance Defense Fund, with the endorsement of several major conservative and anti-LGBT organizations, including the Christian ministry group Focus on the Family and the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.[4]

ADF claims that students who have attempted to speak against same-sex relationships and behavior have been censored or, in some cases, punished for their actions under campus hate-speech rules, such as Tyler Chase Harper, a high school student whose suspension led to the first Day of Truth. Harper was suspended for wearing a T-shirt that read "Be Ashamed" and "Our School Embraced What God Has Condemned," and on the back read, "Homosexuality is Shameful" and "Romans 1:27." The Alliance Defense Fund filed an unsuccessful federal lawsuit against school officials on behalf of Harper, claiming his religious freedoms were violated. The case was appealed to the Supreme Court.[5][6] The Supreme Court ruled that the case was moot because Harper had already graduated, declined to further consider it, and ordered the lower court to vacate their decision against Harper, leaving future matters open for litigation as though the previous trial had never occurred.[7][better source needed]

According to ADF, over 1,100 students in 350 schools participated in the first Day of Truth, in 2005.[8]

The second Day of Truth was held on April 27, 2006, with nearly 3,000 students from more than 800 schools participating, according to ADF statistics. In February, ADF alleged that various unnamed bloggers opposed to the Day of Truth had attempted to undermine the event by swamping the Day of Truth web site with requests for brochures.[9]

According to ADF, more than 7,000 students participated in the third Day of Truth, which was held on April 19, 2007.[10]

In one of several Day of Truth-related legal actions, ADF filed a federal lawsuit in 2006 on behalf of a student who they claim was prevented by his school from participating in the event, despite allowing the Day of Silence.[6][11] ADF reached a settlement with the student's North Carolina high school in 2007, allowing the student to participate in Day of Truth.[12]

Kevin Jennings of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) has described the event as "a publicity stunt cooked up by a conservative organization with a political agenda; it’s an effort by adults to manipulate some kids."[4] In response, Mike Johnson of ADF contends that “We wouldn’t have come up with the Day of Truth if Christian kids hadn’t been silenced in the first place. . . . The public school is part of the free market of ideas — if the other side is going to advance their point of view, it’s only fair for the Christian perspective to present their view, too."[4]

After ADF edit

ADF announced that beginning in 2009, it passed on its leadership role in the Day of Truth to an ex-gay organization, Exodus International,[13] which had already participated in running the event.[14] In October 2010, Exodus announced they would no longer support the event. President Alan Chambers stated they realised they needed to "equip kids to live out biblical tolerance and grace while treating their neighbors as they'd like to be treated, whether they agree with them or not", adding that the Day of Truth was becoming too divisive. Chambers said that Exodus had not changed its position on homosexuality, rather they were reevaluating how to best communicate their message.[15][16]

On November 6, 2010, Focus on the Family announced it had acquired the Day of Truth event and was renaming it to the Day of Dialogue.[17] Focus on the Family said it would maintain the event's goal of "encouraging honest and respectful conversation among students about God's design for sexuality."[18]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b Janofsky, Michael (June 9, 2005). "Gay Rights Battlefields Spread to Public Schools Archived 2017-12-22 at the Wayback Machine". New York Times. nytimes.com. Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  2. ^ Gilgoff, Dan (November 11, 2010). "New Christian sponsor takes over event challenging homosexuality" (blog post). CNN. Archived from the original on 2016-10-03. Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  3. ^ "Focus on the Family Has Quietly Ended Its Anti-LGBTQ "Day of Dialogue"". Patheos. April 10, 2018. Archived from the original on July 22, 2019. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c "Group Makes Noise Over Day of Silence: Day of Truth Designed to Counter Gay-Supportive Observance Archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine". Associated Press. April 12, 2005. Via MSNBC. Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  5. ^ Foust, Michael (March 29, 2005). "'Day of Truth' Provides Response to Homosexual-Themed Day". Baptist Press. Archived from the original on 2013-09-27. Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  6. ^ a b "ADF attorneys seek justice for high school student silenced on Day of Truth Archived 2018-05-06 at the Wayback Machine" (press release). Alliance Defense Fund. adflegal.org. Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  7. ^ "Supreme Court Summary Disposition". Archived from the original on 2018-11-28. Retrieved 2017-06-27.
  8. ^ Day of Truth participation statistics Archived 2008-06-26 at the Wayback Machine , Day of Truth website
  9. ^ Breaking the silence: Day of Truth message undeterred by activist's intolerance Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, Alliance Defense Fund
  10. ^ "Settlement allows NJ high school students to acknowledge Day of Truth Archived 2016-06-17 at the Wayback Machine". OneNewsNow.com. American Family Association. January 18, 2008. Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  11. ^ ADF report on Arthurs v. Sampson County Board of Education Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, Alliance Defense Fund
  12. ^ Victory for student First Amendment rights and religious speech at N.C. school, Alliance Defense Fund
  13. ^ "Hostile Questions : Day of Truth". Archived from the original on 2010-01-30. Retrieved 2010-11-12.
  14. ^ Homosexuality FAQ Sheet , Day of Truth website
  15. ^ Gilgoff, Dan (October 6, 2010). "Christian Group Pull Support for Event Challenging Homosexuality". CNN. Archived from the original on November 23, 2018.
  16. ^ Roberts, David (October 6, 2010). "Exodus International Shuts Down Day of Truth". Archived from the original on November 20, 2018.
  17. ^ "New Focus on Day of Truth: Now "Day of Dialogue"". Focus on the Family. November 11, 2010. Archived from the original on September 21, 2017.
  18. ^ "New Focus on Day of Truth: Now "Day of Dialogue" (Press release). Focus on the Family. November 11, 2010. Archived from the original on 2017-03-23. Retrieved 2017-06-16.

External links edit

  • Official website

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