The old adage "Once Said, It Can Never Be Taken Back" certainly applies to the anti Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender comments made by the Vallejo, CA Mayor, Osby Davis.
Although Davis' slur was targeted at Gay people, it was an insult to the entire community. Elected officials should use more common sense but that is an oxymoron - common sense and politicians.
Shame on him for making such a homophobic remark!
By Jessica A. York/Times-Herald staff writer
Posted: 12/28/2009 01:00:20 AM PST
Updated: 12/28/2009 01:00:20 AM PST
Vallejo Mayor Osby Davis' recent "gay sin" comments may have exacerbated local and national issues facing the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, a local psychologist said.
Davis described his Christian beliefs in a November interview for a New York Times column on the perceived evangelical influence on politics in Vallejo.
Vallejo psychologist Cathy Parker, who works with some members of the LGBT community in her practice, said Davis "really put his foot in it" when he said he believed gay people were sinners who would not go to heaven.
"Even though being gay doesn't seem to be such a big issue anymore, it still is. And it still is in a number of ways," Parker said. "I think one of the things it does is it just really shakes a sense of security ... And that puts you at a point of discomfort and ... increased anxiety, increased depression."
Davis has since apologized if he offended anyone and issued a statement asking for the community to celebrate its diversity.
His apology, however, was met with an angry outcry from gays and their supporters.
"When a comment like that makes it to national news, there's some significance to it -- it cannot be brushed away," said Ric Duran, head of the Vallejo Gay Network.
Duran said he believes that too often, political leaders don't take into account all of their constituency.
"In an elected capacity, they represent all of the people, not just those that elected them," Duran said. "At thesame time, they are a role model. When you start making comments in regards to your personal beliefs in a public scenario, you have to think about the repercussions of that."
Davis has said he will no longer publicly discuss his religious views.
Last year in Vallejo the city lost its last venue advertising itself as a gay bar, the R Bar on Virginia Street, and a student filed a sexual discrimination complaint against the Vallejo City Unified School District last year.
A subsequent investigation involving student Rochelle Hamilton, a self-identified lesbian, resulted in a $25,000 settlement between the district and the American Civil Liberties Union in May. Though the district admitted no culpability in the alleged harassment, it agreed to revamp its anti-harassment policies, school officials said at the time.
Those local issues paired with the recent closure of the Solano Pride Center building in Fairfield and Solano County's distinction as the only Bay Area county where a majority of voters last year supported the gay marriage ban, Parker said.....
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