The Actual Worst Thing About Roy Moore Is His Stance On Homosexuality | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Politics

The Actual Worst Thing About Roy Moore Is His Stance On Homosexuality

The dalliances with 16-year-olds were actually the least troubling thing about him.

271
The Actual Worst Thing About Roy Moore Is His Stance On Homosexuality
flickr

Now that we can breathe a sigh of relief that Roy Moore will not be elected as a Senator from Alabama, I would like to register a dissent from the general consensus about what was the very worst thing about him.

Take two things that we know about Roy Moore. One was that he pursued and dated 16-year-olds when he was in his thirties. He disputes some of the worst allegations - that he had sexual contact with a 14-year-old, and that he tried in one case to force himself on a 16-year-old — and even though I'm inclined to believe his accusers, in the interest of fairness I wouldn't say that these are things that we know he did. But as for dating 16-year-olds generally, his behavior has been corroborated by multiple accusers, and he all but admitted it when the issue was first raised.

A second thing we know about Roy Moore was that when he was the Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, he issued a ruling against a lesbian woman in a custody case, in which he wrote these words:

"Homosexual conduct is, and has been, considered abhorrent, immoral, detestable, a crime against nature, and a violation of the laws of nature and of nature’s God... It is an inherent evil against which children must be protected."

Of these two things that we know about Moore, I'd estimate that in the run-up to the election, about 100 times as many articles have been written about the first as about the second. Part of that was due to the ongoing investigation into the allegations, as well as the fact that they were guaranteed more coverage because they were new - but, let's face it, the overwhelming impression you'd get from the headlines is that his pursuit of 16-year-olds was a much bigger scandal than the absolutely horrible things he wrote about gay people.

Well, look. Neither one is something to be proud of. But the age of consent in Alabama was (and still is) 16. Legally, in this case, chasing after 16-year-olds is what people think chasing after 18-year-olds is — not exactly dignified, but it's the minimum age to make the relationship legal.

On the other hand, using the power of the state not just to discriminate against gay people, but to say pretty much the ugliest things about them that he could come up with, should be beyond joking about. It's that kind of environment that drives gay teenagers to suicide, that reinforces people's prejudices, that prevents healing in families where half of the family has disowned a member who came out as gay. It would be bad enough for Moore to write these words as a private citizen — to do it as a representative of the legal system was abominable.

Because Moore was the candidate who did both of these things, it made it easy for anyone with an ounce of common sense to vote against him. But imagine if a candidate who had dated (legal) 16-year-olds in his thirties ran against a candidate who wrote a vicious diatribe against gay people into an official state Supreme Court ruling. I'd vote for the cheerleader-chaser in a second. No, I wouldn't even vote for a write-in candidate in order to feel "morally clean." I'd vote for the candidate most likely to defeat the raging anti-gay bigot because the top priority should be to keep a person like that out of office before they do any more harm.

So I think the media got it wrong. When a candidate for the Senate is capable of authoring a legal opinion with such viciously ugly statements about gay people, we should consistently call that out as the worst thing about them.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Student Life

5 Things To Do That Are Better Than Writing A Paper

Don't waste your time trying to write that paper when there are so many more interesting things you could be doing.

1417
computer keyboard
Unsplash

Writing a paper is never fun and is rarely rewarding. The writer's block, the page requirement, be specific, but don’t summarize, make sure you fixed any grammatical errors, did you even use spellcheck? and analyze, analyze, analyze.

Papers can be a major pain. They take up so much time and effort that by the end of the process you hate yourself and you hate the professor for making life so difficult. Questions of your existence start roaming in your mind. Am I even cut out for college if I can’t write a single paper? Am I even capable of taking care of myself if I lack the energy to open my laptop and start typing?

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

10 Reasons Why Sisters Are The Best

Who could be a better friend than your own sister?

909
sisters
Taylor Hooper

I can barely remember back when I was the only child. Most would say it’s because it is extremely difficult to remember things as a toddler but I would say it's because I was bored until my sister came along. My mother always says how important the "sister bond" is and with every year that passes I realize how right she is. Instead of writing a novel about all of the wonderful things there are about having a sister I decided to list a few of them instead.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

How To Adult

You're gonna make it after all.

2530
how to adult
Twitter

It is the time of our lives that we are beginning to enter the adult world and most of us, if not all of us, have no idea what we are doing. It's like starting a video game, but skipping the tutorial. We're all just running around aimlessly hoping we accidentally do something right that moves us along the right path. Now that graduation has just happened, or is right around the corner for some of us, it's time to start thinking about how we are going to take care of ourselves once we are on our own.

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

7 Signs You're A Starbucks Addict

I'll be the first one to admit I'm addicted to Starbucks.

1250
drinking coffee
Tumblr

If you’re anything like me, you love a good cup of coffee. My coffee always comes from Starbucks; I refuse to drink it from anywhere else. Over the years, it’s become one of my biggest addictions. So, if you are aware that you’re a Starbucks addict as well, or maybe you need to check to see if you’re an addict, here are seven ways to tell.

Keep Reading...Show less
people  in library
Photo by redcharlie on Unsplash

College involves a whirlwind of emotions, whether it’s from the stress of an assignment (or twenty), or from fighting with your roommate. It can be overwhelming at times and it’s important to take a step a back and calmly think things over. Maybe gain some perspective. The following aren’t foolproof tips and may not apply to you, but I was able to find success with them (hope you do too!)

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments