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Philadelphia Police Arrest 11 Christians for ‘Hate Crimes’ at Homosexual ‘Outfest’ 10/13/2004 Group is jailed for “ethnic intimidation,” “criminal conspiracy,” several other charges.
Ten adults and a teen-ager who showed up to sing hymns and carry signs peacefully at Philadelphia’s latest homosexual celebration were arrested on Sunday and spent 21 hours in jail.
According to Michael Marcavage, founder of Repent America, which organized the protest, the 11 defendants were charged with three felonies and five misdemeanors, including a “hate crime.” If convicted on all counts, the defendants could face 47 years in prison, he said.
The counts read to them by the bail commissioner included:
The “ethnic intimidation” charge was made under Pennsylvania’s Ethnic Intimidation and Institutional Vandalism Act, the state’s “hate crimes” law, to which “sexual orientation” was added recently as a victim category.
Some of the charges may have been dropped since the defendants were released. Philadelphia Police spokeswoman Officer Maria Ibrahim said the current charges were: “criminal conspiracy,” “failure to disperse,” “disorderly conduct” and “obstructing a highway.” The District Attorney’s office had not returned a call to Concerned Women for America’s (CWA’s) Culture & Family Institute as of press time.
“We’re going to do whatever it takes to ensure that the Philadelphia Police Department and the city are held accountable for this,” Brian Fahling of the American Family Association (AFA) Center for Law and Policy, who is representing the Christians, told CWA’s Culture & Family Institute. “As far as we can tell, this was utterly uncalled for and has no legal justification.”
The group had arrived at about 1 p.m. at the Outfest National Coming Out Day street fair, a music and arts festival celebrating homosexuality that the city helps sponsor with a $22,500 grant.
The defendants, who range in age from 17 to 72, were confronted almost immediately by the “Pink Angels,” a group that blocked them by interlocking their arms, shouting obscenities, and shoving large, pink Styrofoam cutouts of angels in front of them. But the only ones arrested were the Christians, the police confirmed.
“We were on a corner across the street from a stage where a transvestite was performing, and we were singing ‘Blessed Be the Name of the Lord,’” Marcavage said.
Marcavage, 25, said a documentary filmmaker captured the entire episode, using two different camera angles. “I was miked, so all my discussions with the police are recorded,” he said. “We did what they asked, and walked down the street. A few minutes later, the police stopped us and put us in paddy wagons.”
Police released the Christians on their own signature after they spent the night in jail, except for one 67-year-old woman who was still being held today based on a charge lodged years ago at a pro-life demonstration at an abortion clinic, Marcavage said. The woman had been paroled, and the AFA Law Center was faxing a letter to the District Attorney today seeking her release, he said.
Marcavage, who is no stranger to protests, was arrested earlier this year along with Urban Family Council board member William Devlin and others in West Chester, Pennsylvania, for blocking the removal of a Ten Commandments plaque on city property. The plaque was temporarily covered until a court ruling uncovered it, Marcavage said.
Philadelphia was also in the news during the summer when the Phillies baseball team hosted “Gay Day” at Citizens Bank Park, featuring the first pitch thrown out by a player from a lesbian softball team. When Christians led by Marcavage unfurled a banner that read: “Homosexuality Is Sin; Christ Can Set You Free,” two homosexual couples stood and began kissing. Then some people tried to tear down the banner, and security forces came and ejected the Christians from the ballpark. No one else was evicted.
Philadelphia has increased its visibility recently in homosexual circles by buying ads touting the city as “gay-friendly” in various homosexual-themed magazines and travel guides. One of them depicts Betsy Ross sewing a rainbow flag instead of the first American flag.
Marcavage says he is undeterred by the arrest, but says he found it odd that they were released merely on their own signatures after being charged with “three felonies and five misdemeanors.”
“They’re criminalizing Christianity through this homosexual agenda,” Marcavage said. “It’s happening right here, in the birthplace of American freedom.”
Incidentally, the last four digits of Philadelphia’s main police phone number are: 1776.
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Concerned Women for America 1015 Fifteenth St. N.W., Suite 1100 Washington, D.C. 20005 Phone: (202) 488-7000 Fax: (202) 488-0806 |
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