Democratic
National Committee chair Howard Dean came under attack for
speaking out against conservative gays and lesbians as well
as Republicans of color.
"They can't
become more diverse," Dean said at a speech at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison on Tuesday. "Who in their
right mind, if they were African-American or Hispanic
or Asian-American, if they were gay or lesbian, would
join the Republican Party?"
LGBT conservative
group, Log Cabin Republicans issued a statement
Wednesday against Dean's comments. The group's president,
Patrick Sammon, said in the statement that Dean's
assertions are insulting to African-Americans,
Hispanics, Asian-Americans, or gays and lesbians who
support the Republican Party. Sammon also called for
Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton's
and Barack Obama's stances on Dean's words.
"Governor Dean
needs to explain his callous assertion," said Sammon.
"It's unfortunate that the chairman of the Democratic
Party would rather divide people than engage in a
thoughtful debate about policy ideas or a vision for
our country's future."
Dean is currently
involved in a lawsuit by the party's former LGBT
outreach director Donald Hitchcock. The suit claims that
party officials discriminated against him and his
partner Democratic activist Paul Yandura, who
criticized the DNC for not being proactive on LGBT issues.
(The Advocate)
