SPECIAL REPORT!
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47 YEARS IN PRISON FOR PREACHING? IN AMERICA?
by Arthur March
January 14, 2005
In Philadelphia, once known as the City of Brotherly Love, eleven Christian protesters were arrested on October 10, 2004, when they paid a homosexual 'block party' a little visit, wielding bullhorns and Bibles, and singing Christian hymns. Leader of 'the Philadelphia Four', as the press is calling it, is Michael Marcavage, who spent a night in jail, along with 10 other protesters. Marcavage is actually leader of a group called Repent America. He is a Christian who may get as many as 47 years in prison for daring to preach to homosexuals, as reported by the Washington Times, Newsmax, WorldNetDaily, local papers in the Philadelphia area, and in several other places.
Here, in South Boston, VA, people are shocked and incredulous that Christians may be thrown in jail for 47 years due to exercising their religion, the South Boston Phoenix has learned [it wasn't hard to find that out, I can tell you]. Repent America is a group of Christians who are no strangers to getting in trouble with the law for preaching, but this time, they got our attention.
The most 'in depth' reporting on this can be found at WorldNetDaily.
True to form, WorldNetDaily made a report just yesterday, "Motion filed for Philadelphia protesters"
"One of the attorneys for the Christian protesters who are criminally charged for evangelizing at an outdoor homosexual event in Philadelphia has renewed an appeal in federal court, citing the Supreme Court statement "Speech cannot be ... punished or banned simply because it might offend a hostile mob." [forced self to snip]
In an earlier report, WorldNetDaily interviewed Mike Shaw, a cameraman who was there.
Mr. Shaw was not a member of Repent America, but the police thought he was "one of them", so they took 'appropriate steps' against that 'nasty Christian'.
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[WorldNetDaily]
..."I had one foot in the paddy wagon," he said. "They were making me take my camera and headphones off" before finally being given a reprieve. The filmmaker said he was surprised the protesters were charged with so many criminal counts. "I've seen a lot of people from where we're from do a lot worse things and get in a lot less trouble," he said. "Everyone thought they'd just get a slap on the wrist."...[forced self to snip]
Link to the WorldNetDaily Report
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What saved Mike Shaw from arrest was when he convinced them he lived in San Fransisco. That's OK then, they decided. Now his film of the sinister Christian preaching outrage can be linked to at that web site.
Also in their report, WorldNetDaily wrote,
'Shaw says he sees the arrest as a "Christian Rodney King."'
Here is a quote from the Washington Times regarding the Philadelphia Four:
Christians face hearing in felonies at gay rights event
By Joyce Howard Price
"Four Christian activists face arraignment ... in Philadelphia on felony charges in what they describe as their "peaceful protest" of a homosexual rights event last fall. The defendants, all members of an evangelical Christian group called Repent America, "exercised their First Amendment rights by preaching the Gospel, and they did it peacefully," said Brian Fahling, an attorney for the American Family Association, who is representing them... [snip]
Link to Washington Times Report
[The Washington Times also reports that the Philadelphia Four may possibly serve as long as 47 years in prison on felony counts.]
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The key word in this entire fiasco is "ethnic intimidation". It is a hate crime law, reports the Washington Times, which quoted Mr. Fahling, who said it was "the most profound abuse of power I've ever seen."
Robert Knight had strong words on this subject. He's director of the Culture and Family Institute. "Even if Repent America infringed on the law, they don't deserve three felony counts totaling 47 years in jail," and said it was "frightening to see religious persecution on American soil, especially in the birthplace of the Declaration of Independence." [Washington Times quote]
Philadelphia was so delighted with Outfest, it's been reported that they contributed $22,000 of city funds, tax payer money, to help the sodomites along with their 'get together' on an allegedly "public" street. Oh, and they also had 'extremely large signs' that I suppose intimidated the girly men.
The police ordered the Christians to move where they would not disrupt this 'illustrious, gay-la' event. The Christians stood up to 500 angry sodomites and the shouted warnings of police officers. Now, some of these Christians face up to 47 years in prison! IN AMERICA! FOR PREACHING!
The South Boston Phoenix has also learned that there are conflicting opinions about whether the Repent America protesters even defied police orders, based on peoples' conclusions after seeing the video. If true, then the number of legitimate laws broken would be little more than being party crashers. However, the debate over whether they defied police orders is very hot on both sides.
One of the charges was "possessing an instrument of crime - presumably the bullhorn," wrote the Washington Times. I wonder if the real instrument of crime was the Bible?
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I took snips to use as a sounding board, found at Delcotimes.com [a local Philly paper], copyrighted by the Daily Times. [My remarks in brackets] Saint or sinner?Court to rule on religious activist, by JASON McKEE, [email protected], 1/12/2005:
"Michael Marcavage, 25, of Lansdowne, will be in court today to answer to felony charges of riot, ethnic intimidation (the ethnicity being homosexuality, per state law) and conspiracy..."[CONSPIRED TO READ THE BIBLE!], in addition to several misdemeanor charges. Police have had numerous 'run ins' with the man [HE IS INDEED A MAN!] and, according to one arrest report, found him to be more troublemaker than activist. [THE BIBLE IS TROUBLING, ALL RIGHT.]
Eventually, Marcavage was arrested and hauled away from the party. [A SODOMITE PARTY IN A PUBLIC STREET. THEY SURE KNOW HOW TO HAVE A GOOD TIME IN PHILADELPHIA. A WHOLE NEW MEANING TO 'BROTHERLY LOVE'.]
"This has to do with the content of our message," Marcavage said. "We�re being maliciously prosecuted by an anti-Christian, Lynne Abraham."
[I like that term, "anti-Christian". ] Cathie Abookire, spokeswoman for the district attorney, said the office had no comment other than to say everyone�s rights must be protected. [EVERYONE BUT CHRISTIANS!]
One condition of Marcavage�s bail is that he stay at least 100 feet from homosexual events. [He's now officially a sub-citizen. But in truth, all Christians are already sub-citizens whether we realize it or not.]
"I don�t even know what it means," he said. "It�s ambiguous. Does it mean I�m not allowed to be near gay people?" [He uses the word 'gay'. He's liberal compared to me. Perhaps he should bow with his eyes toward the ground when a sodomite walks past him. I suppose two men, reeking of feces, walking hand-in-hand, would be considered a homosexual event. He better be careful then, when shopping. People notice such 'events' all the time.]
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There is a quote in that report worth remembering:
"When someone is speaking, if the crowd does not like it and there is a threat of violence, you don�t suppress the speech -- you control the crowd," Fahling, an AFA lawyer, said. "The First Amendment serves its highest purpose when people are stirred to anger." [WELL SAID!]
C. Scott Shields, who is representing him in multiple cases, said, "This case is unprecedented. This is the first time the Bible has formed the evidentiary basis for a hate crime. The authorities consider the Bible hate speech."
There is some buzz that the Christian Post reported that part of the charges were dropped [the key, hate crime part], but the South Boston Phoenix is so far unable to confirm that. In fact, best as I can tell, there are signs that it may have been made and later retracted. , or even to find the actual report in the Christian Post. Whether true or not, the fact that laws are aimed unfairly at Christians should be cause for alarm. What matters most is what could happen in the future. This could be a glimpse, if people do nothing.
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I posted an intermediate draft on the Free Republic Forum for discussion. Well over a thousand visits were made, and over a hundred posts. We had a lively debate.
Intermediary Draft of this report, followed by posts on the Free Republic Forum
The opposition to all the focus on this report [in the Free Republic] was concerned about noise pollution, riot control, and respect for the law: understandably so. One mentioned the example of how he was part of a crowd that may have been baited by a protestor, perhaps in an effort to set up a violent reaction and catch it on a hidden camera.
Such fears are understandable. But that is the fundamental difference: Do we respect people who might turn violent more than people who might speak 'out of place'? I do not. It is important to curb any laws that elevate those who can't control themselves above those who have something to say. Repent America has something to say. They are threatened with harsh sentences largely because they potentially tempted people to lose self control.
To be personal about it, what they said needs to be said more often than it is. I am with them in spirit. People must repent for their sins, myself included. What they did in Philadelphia was actually a gift in my mind. And what happened to Freedom of Religion when large felony threats loom over our heads? Was their noise any more loud or riot-inciting than the disgusting rap music punks blare every hour of the night? I don't think so. How many Christians are tempted to violence by all the foul words blaring at them in every parking lot? If we can control ourselves, why can't they? Are we so superior in their eyes that they cannot expect as much from themselves as they expect from us?
Another debate was over what news source is reliable. After the C-BS fiasco, who can say? People criticized every news source I quoted, although they could not come up with any news source that they trust.
One poster even replied in Post 126, "Trust? I do not trust any of them to be completely correct or honest. Every media outlet has an agenda and a slant. No human is without an agenda, therefore no media outlet will be run without one."
That's why the South Boston Phoenix prefers multiple sourcing, if possible.
Here are remarks [pro and con] from the greatest think-tank in the world, the trail blazing forum, freerepublic.com:
"Philadelphia is fascist." [post 10]
"I saw the video the guy shot leading up to his arrest.. He and his party crashed a permitted protest and refused to go to a counter protest area that he was instructed to move to. Anyone would be arrested for that regardless of religion. The guy was begging to be arrested. Only one of the three charges, ethnic something or other, could be said to have anything to do with religion. The other two had to do with public safety." [post 11]
"I will try again to get on the Rush Limbaugh show with this. I tried early in the week but the call screener would not let me on saying, he and/or Rush didn't think it was important. I can't believe the MSM is not picking this up. Then again I can believe it." [post 13]
[I want it known that I, Arthur March, am a loyal Rush listener. Perhaps Rush is suspicious of this report. He's very cautious. Nor does Rush have time to cover everything. Talk radio is swamped with outrages. And Rush doesn't want to 'be negative' all the time. This is no criticism of his show. But it's also good for the public to know that people are trying to be heard about this.]
[same poster regarding Rush] "I called on Tuesday or Wednesday. I got through to the screener 3 times, can you believe that? The screener didn't want to put me on. I asked if Rush knew about this story and he said, he probably does, he reads a lot of news. But it wasn't national so he doesn't think the audiance would be interested.(?) I really don't know what I'll say other than let his listeners aware of it and hopefully he will take the ball from there. Can we arrange a huge protest for the next rally?" [post 29]
"Given that they were demanding prison, why should they complain about how much they get?" [pst 18]
"I hope those bible thumping christians get prison for something so ridiculous. Will people start to wake up then? Doubt it. We are heading for captivity on a biblical scale, the lion's den won't be an option."[post 25]
[responding to an earlier post] 'I've yet to see any of them shown wearing a "please send me to prison" tee shirt. Lacking that, your comment is as incoherent and offensive as blaming a rape victim because she "was asking for it."' [post 42]
"Whats new with Rush, Hannity and the GOP. After Christians came out in droves to elect the GOP they ignore us like the plague. The conservative party is starting to look better all the time. Eletists in DC are as bad as the tyrants in England in 1776." [post 47]
"I have been to many conservative protests where liberals do the same thing but worse and the police do nothing to the rabblerousers on the left. Give me a break this was nothing more than homos and their leftest paid off govt. officials wanting to send a message to America and Christians. The message is clear Philadelphia hates God, Christians and free speech. Please dont be so naive." [post 48]
"This used to be a free country, with sidewalks open to anyone." [post 49]
"Lets see. They were (1) speaking in public, (2) walking on a sidewalk, (3) refusing illegal police orders. Golly, send 'em to ole sparky already and be done with it! Such vicious dangerous thugs! (/sarcasm)" [post 50]
"The maximum punishment is stressed because it is real, not because it is likely. The real but unlikely has a chilling effect on free expression that is every bit as effective as the real but likely. These people are being targeted for the political and faith-based content of their message, for publicly expressing disagreement with a powerful special interest group. That is abhorrent." [part of post 52-- very deep, I would say.]
"If any of these people receive even a one day sentence, its time for that court to evaporate." [post 61]
"Can you explain the "ethnic intimidation" charge? They lost me with that one." [responding to someone who didn't seem as concerned, post 77]
"Yeah right, do you also have some beach front property you are selling? Apparantly you havent seen the video in question. What part of free speech do you not understand? One can peacably protest in the public area and they were directed to the area where they could peacably protest - while walking there they were arrested. Im sure your all for having our rights delegated to us by unelected judges or homosexual activists or the ACLU. Just so I know who Im dealing with, what part of the constitution specifically states the seperation of church and state?" [post 86]
"Ok, maybe I don't agree with what the Christian group did, but Prison time? For preaching? If this is a trend, it may be time for another revolutionary war." [post 87]
"This is insane. They certainly didn't break the law by speaking out. They may have broken the law by not following police orders. EVEN IF that's true though, the punishment certainly doesn't fit the crime. That's just incredible." [post 94]
[Post 103 is a whole new can of worms the South Boston Phoenix might try to make time to look into.]
"My goodness, this is happening in a place where Homosexuals are not enlisted in the hate crimes, how much worse can it be for countries which do have homosexuals included in the hate crime?" [post 107]
[Responding to my curiosity about hate crime laws in Canada] "That's because the hate crime laws like every law in Canada has loopholes. Some person might take advantage of it and use it against law-abiding citizens. I think many people are afraid to say exactly what because their emails might get snooped into. People are concerned that if you criticize homosexuals/give a Bible verse that condemns homosexuality that you are commiting hate crimes against the homosexuals. Of course many would point to Sweden about a pastor facing jail. If the government is lurking, I challenge them to pry the Bible out of my cold dead hands." [post 112]
[regarding the video]'... one of their sympathizers showed me on a similar thread here last week. At 6:08 what looks like the head cop on the scene says, �Look, You were told to go to Walnut Street. Put their gear in the wagon. You�re all under arrest.�' [post 115]
"I watched the video and fail to see ANY law they broke. So unless there is some real crime they committed there should be no punishment. They were preaching during daylight hours in a commerical district [downtown?] during a sodomite perversion gathering. There is a lot distorted facts, wild assumptions being thrown around here by a few that seem to dislike Christians and preaching....meanwhile sodomites marching and preaching in public are just fine....is this Democrat Underground disguised as the Free Republic Forum?" [post 120, initials interpreted]
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South Boston is not taking this sitting down. Residents of South Boston tell me, if the outcome is not to leave the Christians alone, they will be starting up a petition drive in this area. The petition will include three statements:
1. A threat to boycott Philadelphia products.
2. A demand for the promise to pardon any Christian in legal trouble for reading the Bible or preaching.
3. A demand that the US House of Representatives declare Philadelphia to be no longer the city of Brotherly Love, but rather, "the Armpit of America", at my suggestion.
The South Boston Phoenix will open a post office box ASAP, and encourage any petitioners to mail there.
You can also contact the AFA, a support group of the Philadelphia Four at the following web page:
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