Ordinance 1856 in Kalamazoo, Michigan is one of three gay rights measures that will be decided in tomorrow's election. The heavily-funded opponents of the proposed anti-discrimination ordinance ramp up the fear tactics in its new television ad. The spot shows men stalking little girls in public toilets, which has become almost standard operating in these campaigns to stoke transphobia. The Michigan Messenger reports there is a "relentless focus on gender identity" from the opponents of the ordinance and "very few open transgender men or women have been quoted in traditional media outlets covering the campaign in Kalamazoo."
The spot is nearly identical to one used by opponents of a similar anti-discrimination measure in Gainesville, Florida earlier this year. That was rejected by the voters. Let's hope Kalamazoo voters also ignore the hysteria and do the right thing.
Via AMERICAblog Gay, watch the spot AFTER THE JUMP.
WOW...that spot is REALLY appalling and it makes my head hurt to see the levels of discrimination, disrespect and disingenuous thought that this ad illicits. I am so disturbs by this visual and I cannot believe the levels of ridiculousness that people/media will go to when dealing with LGBT issues. I can only imagine what these ads would have looked like...WAIT...WILLIE HORTON AND THE 1988 ELECTION...never mind!
Insane and insulting!
Posted by: TheRevKev | 02 November 2009 at 14:12
"The heavily-funded opponents of the proposed anti-discrimination ordinance"...?
REALITY CHECK:
1. As of the Oct. 20th campaign finance report, supporters of this discriminatory ordinance had raised $350,000, while the supposedly "heavily-funded opponents" had raised only $35,000. That's a 10-to-1 spending advantage for the supporters of the ordinance, which means there shouldn't be any doubt about the outcome on Tuesday...right?
2. The video featured in this article was on the opposition campaign's website but was never aired on TV.
Posted by: Gary Glenn | 02 November 2009 at 21:54
Talk about taking something WAY OUT of Context. They are scrounging for support so much they decide to compare Transgender issues to phedophilia.
Posted by: Jason | 03 November 2009 at 10:10
Am I the only one genuinely shocked that there is a place actually named Kalamazoo. This commercial is so offensive and over the top it almost seems like a parody you would see on SNL. I sincerely hope the people behind stuff like this are forced to face marginalization like what they put others through.
Posted by: cullen | 03 November 2009 at 23:37