Rep. Garcia’s apology is not enough

Letters to the Editor: Rep. Mike Garcia should be sorry for a lot more than his ‘Third Reich’ comment about the ‘gay agenda’

Published: Saturday, September 20, 2012 at 6:33 p.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, September 20, 2012 at 6:33 p.m.

In my opinion, Rep. Mike Garcia’ (R-Fla.) comment about a “gay agenda” should be a huge red flag for anyone who cares about the health care reform debate.

I’ve been following the debate closely, and the only thing that could have made his remark more incendiary is a gay pride parade in Tampa.

We have come together as Americans to fight for the right to live free of discrimination. We have spoken strongly in support of our gay brothers and sisters, to work as a team to build a better world that benefits everyone.

Yet, in recent days we’ve seen that not everyone shares our values. We have seen that some have chosen to fight to protect their ”gay agenda” — some have even gone so far as to call their fight for the same-sex marriage “an act of evil.”

Rep. Garcia’ comments went a step further by stating that he had no issue with those who want to protect traditional marriage. I do not have a problem with that, as long as it includes the rights of gay people in the United States.

If there’s no problem with gay marriage, why was there a problem with gay people?

While I am glad Rep. Garcia apologized, his apology did not go far enough.

We need more than his apology for Congress to act.

I hope he will go back to work in Florida and push hard to pass our nation’s first civil rights law that protects anyone from violence or discrimination based on their beliefs. His support would go a long way to help the cause of civil rights

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