When the Southern Poverty Law Center unveiled its update list of anti-gay hate groups, it made clear that “viewing homosexuality as unbiblical does not qualify organizations for listing as hate groups.” Rather, the designation was “based on [the] propagation of known falsehoods — claims about LGBT people that have been thoroughly discredited by scientific authorities — and repeated, groundless name-calling.”
As I noted at the time, how Liberty Counsel managed to stay of the list of anti-gay hate groups was a mystery – a point that I just want to reiterate in light of the video we just posted of Matt Barber and Mat Staver claiming gays need to be kept out of the military on the grounds that they are “moral perverts.”
And, as it turns out, tomorrow’s edition of LC’s “Faith and Freedom Radio” is dedicated entirely to attacking the SPLC’s update list, with Matt Barber predicting that LC will eventually be designated as a hate group but that the SPLC is currently too intimidated by him to do so now:
Staver: And I really think that it points out that this organization has marginalized itself because it has lost all credibility. I mean, Family Research Council is not a hate group. They may disagree with Family Research Council on the issue of same-sex marriage or homosexuality, but it’s not a hate group. And the American Family Association is the same way.
Now they also list Liberty Counsel in there as well – they don’t classify Liberty Counsel as a hate group, they’ve actually included 18 different organizations of which they’ve put a star by 13 that are considered hate groups. And Liberty Counsel is in there, not as a hate organization but is added in there and, who knows, before long it’s going to get an asterisk.
Barber: I’ll make a prediction right now, Matt: I’ve written several articles, I’ve underscored and pointed out and exposed the Southern Poverty Law Center on a number of occasions. They personally attack me in this report that they put out, but they do not classify us as a hate group yet. I think they’re a little leery of doing that because I have been one person at the forefront of exposing their activities here.
But I am going to make a prediction here: they are eventually going to do that in retaliation for us pointing out what they’re doing, their fraudulent activities. They will do that and at that point the mainstream media is going to be held accountable. They will try to marginalize Liberty Counsel eventually as a hate group and we’re going to hold their feet to the fire when they do that.
I am actually inclined to back Barber’s prediction that the SPLC will eventually designate Liberty Counsel as a hate group, but not out of “retaliation” for Barber’s attacks on them, but rather because Barber is an unapologetic anti–gay bigot.
