NBCNews.com Post Wonders: Is Gun Control the New Frontier for Gay Community?

August 11th, 2016 9:50 PM

In a piece that was pointed out on Thursday afternoon by The Blaze’s Dana Loesch on Twitter, NBCNews.com and it’s NBC Out section promoting the gay community published an article that actually tried to argue that passing strict, liberal gun control would mean that they could be “even more relevant to national politics and to win over allies outside the community.” 

Dr. Julie Moreau wrote of how members of the “LGBTQ movement” across the country have founded pro-gay, pro-gun control groups seeking to fight back against the National Rifle Association (NRA) because “gun violence is an intersectional issue, meaning that those most affected are likely to experience racism, sexism and transphobia simultaneously.”

Moreau began by wondering if guns were “next queer cause” instead of fighting churches or wedding photographers looking to live out their deeply-held, Christ-centered beliefs:

LGBTQ activists from Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles took to the streets last week to raise awareness about the lack of national gun control legislation. With more events planned for the coming months, is the issue of gun control becoming the next queer cause? And if so, what does this mean in the run-up to the November election?

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After lamenting that “the LGBTQ community has been affected by gun violence for some time,” she interviewed pro-gay, pro-gun control activists from New York and Los Angeles who are looking to raise money to support candidates who tow their line on both issues:

Election or not, reforming gun laws is a daunting task. In June of this year, Jason Lindsay founded Pride Fund, a political action committee aimed at raising money for pro-LGBTQ candidates who support gun reform.

"There are so many policy problems at play here, it's not going to go away in one election cycle, not in two. This is not a campaign that ends with the election," Lindsay said.

The election means politicians may shy away from the issue because so many rely on campaign contributions from the National Rifle Association (NRA). Election season also increases the chances that the issue will become politicized in a way that stigmatizes certain communities. 

Referring again to Lindsay (who’s revealed in a quote to be a transgender man), Moreau touted his belief that “gun control is the logical extension of the LGBTQ movement's recent legal victories, including marriage equality” because, in their minds, their community has been more likely to be involved in gun violence than other groups of people.

The author made some attempt to come across as objective and appeal to those who don’t identify with the movement (but may with the anti-Citizens United crowd) by insisting that “the primary obstacle to achieving gun reform is not the Second Amendment -- but the role of money in American politics.”

Moreau closed the puff piece with another nod to Gays Against Guns (GAG) who are “advocat[ing] for an assault-weapons ban and stricter background checks, but more importantly the group seeks to raise public consciousness about the tit-for-tat relationship between politicians, the NRA and gun manufacturers.”

She then concluded:

Advocacy on this issue has the potential to make the LGBTQ movement even more relevant to national politics and to win over allies outside the community. Achieving gun control legislation would constitute, for Preston, a "contribution to benefit our society as a whole and give us the recognition and respect we deserve."