The accuser bears the burden of proof

August 5, 2019
Jim McCrea
Piedmont
 
JR Hermann’s letter of July 8 clearly lays out his unwillingness to consider being actually tolerant of same-sex attraction and transgender youths. His kind of “tolerance” is of the “be thankful we don’t excommunicate you” variety.
 
Lesbian and gay men stand accused as a group by the likes of Hermann of being a corrupting influence in society, a threat to the effectiveness of the military, underminers of family values, dangerous role models for children. There are arguments and anecdotal evidence for such views. I think that the arguments can be refuted and that the evidence to the contrary is a great deal stronger. The point is that in this dispute, as in the case of any defendant charged with any kind of antisocial behavior, the burden lies with the prosecution. In the absence of proof beyond a reasonable doubt, it is unfair (and, may I say unchristian) to continue heaping disabilities and disadvantages (not to speak of contempt and defamation) upon a whole class of people who are asking nothing more than equal treatment for themselves as persons.
 

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