Aurelio Mancuso
ROME – Arcigay, the largest association of Italian gays, was not in Siena to boo Cardinal Ruini and ask, shouting We are all homosexual, the PACS. Some insinuate that the association is too moderate. We'll talk about it with Aurelio Mancuso, secretary of Arcigay and Catholic.
Mancuso Arcigay wasn't in Siena to boo Cardinal Ruini. One gets the impression that many activists would have liked to be there...
Of course yes and I would have liked to be among them too.. The real scandal is that those boos shocked someone. As an association, we wouldn't have organized the protest, especially since this is a very sensitive moment and the debate over the civil union rages daily. Booing a cardinal would draw more public criticism than sympathy. However, Ruini was accepting an award at some sort of party celebration and wasn't saying Mass. Demonstrating dissent is codified in modern democracy.
But did that action have the movement's collective support?
I received dozens of phone calls and emails from homosexuals enthusiastic about the boos. Even the Left, reformist and otherwise, viewed the protest with sympathy. I compare the boos directed at Ruini to a question about civil unions that a woman from Turin, at a rally, asked Fassino. The DS leader spoke at length about civil unions, receiving loud applause. "There is discontent and weariness among the Left, reformist and otherwise, over an excessively moderate political stance. And then, as a Catholic, I am disgusted by the attitude of the Vatican hierarchy, which lacks respect for both the State and homosexuals. The truth is that within the Church, there is a much broader and more nuanced debate about civil unions than the Italian newspapers make it appear.".
Which other cardinals deserve boos?
A lot… Sodano and Tonini For example. And I say this as a Catholic. The separation of Church and State benefits the Catholic Church, teaching it to be more democratic. However, I also remember the Cardinals who engage in dialogue, like Pompedda. I've criticized him several times, but he's always been very respectful regarding civil unions, and he's President of the Pontifical Commission on the Family.
We can expect an ongoing debate on the "gay question" in the coming months. Do you think radical positions will prevail within the gay movement? Are there any public protests planned?
I advise the movement not to promote a mobilization against Ruini, which would lead nowhere. The movement must be secular, liberal, and libertarian, and we must defend the secular nature of the state. I agree with the reaction to Ruini's stance, and I hope it continues, but the movement's policies must reflect the desires of a large segment of public opinion. We must not fall into this trap.
But it's not just the cardinals who seem to deserve jeers. What about politicians like Mastella and his balancing act in the Union against civil unions?
Homophobic politicians deserve even better….
…moreover?
They deserve the "no vote," which is a democratic instrument of dissent. We should expose all the hypocrites who oppose our rights. We shouldn't vote for them, and we even boo them...
In a few hours you will meet Rutelli who, these days, seems distant from the PACS.
First, we'll listen to what he has to say. The fact that he wants to meet with us is a positive sign. We'll tell him that the Civil Partnership is the highest compromise we can accept. We're also waiting for a clear signal from the Union in its program.
Let's get back to the boos. Countless prelates have spoken out about civil unions. The latest to do so is Tettamanzi. Boos?
I'm withholding judgment. In his diocese, he has always been moderate and attentive to homosexual issues. It's clear that Ruini called for a crackdown, but dialogue is possible with Tettamanzi.
No boos for Tettamanzi, who said that civil unions shift "political and institutional attention and intervention to marginal cases." So Arcigay is a moderate association...
Absolutely not. It's a common-sense association that actively defends gay rights.