What destroys society is religious extremism
Devastated by a tormented marginalization, on January 13, 1998, at the age of 39, the writer Alfredo Ormando from Nissa burned himself alive in St. Peter's Square in Rome.
Alfredo Ormando was a devout Catholic who could no longer tolerate the personal and collective discrimination perpetrated by the Catholic Church. The Vatican never spoke about this dramatic event. The attitude demonstrated is typical of an organization that, in stark contradiction to the message it should be carrying to the world, shows no signs of remorse.
As every year Arcigay organizes at 1pm on the day of Alfredo's martyrdom a Sit-in to remember all LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) victims who died due to marginalization and discrimination caused by religious fanaticism and fundamentalism..
In Islamic countries, homosexuals are killed or imprisoned, and for almost all religions, being gay, lesbian, or transgender is the result of either the forces of evil or a pathology requiring treatment. The Catholic hierarchy's continued stances fit into this trend. In particular, over the past week, Ratzinger has insisted that there are those (gay people and their associations) who undermine civil coexistence and peace by destroying the natural model of the family founded on marriage between a man and a woman.
The devastation, destruction and wars caused by religious extremism They are there for all to see and have unfortunately continued, in various forms, for many centuries. The current Pope has led a global crusade against freedom, pluralism, secularism, and the self-determination of individuals, especially women.
It is no coincidence that for some time now, the fight against LGBT rights has been joined by the fight against abortion, which is even associated with a moratorium on the death penalty.
The Catholic Church wants to return to the themes of the Pope King and the glories of the past when it dominated the lives, sexuality, and personal choices of millions of subjects. But even in Italy, this project won't have an easy ride, because democracy and secularism are values that cannot be undermined, not even by those who dream of the unlikely return of the tiara. On this point, however, the LGBT movement, along with other movements and associations, will demonstrate that time has not passed in vain.
Aurelio Mancuso
national president of Arcigay
***
World Day for Dialogue between Religions and Homosexuality
Sunday, January 13, 2008
2.00 pm
SIT IN
in Piazza Pio XII
4:00 PM
CONFERENCE ""Deliver us from Evil: Quis Custodiet Custodes?""
at the Olivetti Foundation hall (via Zanardelli 34, near Piazza Navona) where, among others, the following will speak:
coordinates:
Stefano Campagna, Tg1
introduces:
Carlo Guarino: National Director of Arcigay January 13
speakers:
Alessandro Merluzzi, psychiatrist
Chiara Lalli, philosopher
Khalid Chaouki, director of Minareti.it and member of the Consulta per l'Islam italiano
Luca Ghiretti, member of the national council of the FGEI (Italian Evangelical Youth Federation)
Davide Varì, Liberation
Haim Cipriani, Rabbi Lev Chadash
Renato Sabbadini, Ilga
Francesca Grossi, ArciLesbian
concludes:
Aurelio Mancuso, national president of Arcigay
INFO
www.january13.org