Thank you for ALL of the people regardless of orientation, race, religion, ability etc. around the country who stood up yesterday for EQUALITY. I hope and expect that very soon we will be afforded our civil liberties as same gender couples and be allowed to marry. Even more so, I hope that this community will join us as true allies and embrace diversity across the board; religion, race, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic status, ability etc. I have lived and worked in Fresno County for many years and I have watched the money drive the mission. Talk is cheap. Why give Jim Franklin airtime when his message is one of oppression and hate wrapped up in the pretty package called, "religion." Channel 47, you asked for our book,From Privilege to PRIDE: Love is the Road. You really should have bought it on Amazon if your were not going to show people that there is a book written by local authors that illustrates some of the poignant points of what it is like to live in the CA Bible Belt with unearned privilege and then give it up for authentic love. The beauty of the United States of America is that we all have a Civil Right to Free Speech. I don't care if Jim Franklin (Cornerstone Church) or Fred Phelps (Westboro Baptist Church) are opposed to same gender marriage. I am opposed to their religious freedom infringing on my civil right to marry my partner, Candi Hood. Jim Franklin, I would love to debate this topic with you. In my world, you may have the civil right to use "God" as a scare tactic in order manipulate your followers, to oppress others and to embrace hate. However, you do not have the right to interfere with my Civil Liberties just because we view the world differently. I, too, am an American Citizen and won't accept second class status because you want more than your fair share of freedom.

The issue of marriage, in general, is personal, and as long as it is between two consenting adults capable of signing and understanding a contract (which is HISTORICALLY what marriage is), then it really is no one else business. Pastor Franklin's opinion does not reflect the whole of Christianity, nor does it reflect an accurate account of world history, but rather an interpretation of Christian history. Whether he or anyone else likes it or not, not everyone in this country or on the planet for that matter is Christian. I'd also like to ask, why is it, that every time this issue comes up, the media flocks to Jim Franklin's front door? Is it for ratings? Is it because he's controversial? I can understand the need to cover both sides, and that maybe asking some who isn't LGBT is necessary for that balance, but there are heterosexual pastors who support same-sex marriage AND oversee open and affirming churches. Why aren't you asking for their opinions? I challenge you to ask one of those pastors if they agree with pastor Franklin's interpretation and why. Let's be fair, and represent the whole side of everything. I'm dissappointed in the lack of fairness from the media, not only in the Central Valley, but across the state and country as well. It has become more about ratings and stirring the stink, than about reporting the news, the facts, and stories people can relate to and want to hear about it. Journalism isn't only about tragedy, angry protesters, and people looking for their 15 minutes of fame. Why could we not have seen CBS47 show casing LGBT couples in loving situations with their partners, husbands, wives, families? Why does it always have to be the worst things on TV? Don't you think there's enough darkness in the world without you spreading it around? Just curious.

What I don't understand is, why was Jim Franklin asked about gay marriage? He is not gay, nor is he actually affected by it should gay people get married. He is just a person standing in the way of others obtaining their civil rights. Homophobia wrapped in a flag and carrying a cross is still homophobia. In fact, it might be a bit worse, as the obstruction of civil liberties in the name of freedom and a man who preached love is about as cognitively dissonant as it gets. You know what? When you do a story on the effects of cognitive dissonance and homophobia, THEN you can interview this guy. Otherwise, you are pretending that this story has two valid and equal sides, and it does NOT.

"One man and one woman" has not been the definition of marriage throughout history. Until fairly recently, it was "one man and as many women as he could afford to buy". I am getting a bit tired of Fresno media running to Franklin for comments about gay related issues. Aren't there any other ministers there willing to go on the air to discuss this? Certainly there are religious leaders who support LGBTQ rights, and marriage equality. Why do we never hear from them? The Supreme Court will eventually uphold the lower court's rulings that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional, and marriage equality will return to California. Once it does, the sky will not fall, the world will not end, and the floodgates will not open. About the only bad thing that will happen is that Franklin and his ilk won't be called to talk on TV about gay marriage anymore. (bad from their point of view, not everyone else's)