CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
Demonstrators staged a protest after a Catholic religious education coordinator was denied an award from the Archdiocese of Minneapolis-St. Paul because she is a lesbian. Approximately 200 members of St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church demonstrated Wednesday night in support of Kathy Itzin, the church's religious education coordinator. Itzin was to be one of 18 archdiocesan workers honored for their work in teaching young people about the faith. She is in a committed relationship, and she and her partner have four children, ages 10 to 16. Archbishop Harry Flynn withdrew the award for Itzen after Catholic Parents Online, a Minneapolis-St. Paul group that supports orthodox teachings of the church, sent him a letter pointing out that Itzin is a lesbian. An official statement from the archdiocese read, "After receiving the nomination [of Itzin] for the catechetical award, the archdiocese subsequently learned of her public expression of a lifestyle inconsistent with Catholic doctrine." After the awards ceremony, which was held at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Edina, the honorees and their families walked past the demonstrators, singing "Amazing Grace" and "We Are Walking in the Light." The demonstrators held signs that read, "Hate is not a Catholic value." Earlier the Reverend George Wertin, pastor of St. Joan's, said he "disagreed totally" with Flynn's decision. "Kathy is a wonderful, respected member of our parish community and our staff," he said. "The award recognized these outstanding qualities in her. To withdraw it simply because of her sexual orientation is offensive to all gays and lesbians and to all of us in her community."
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Meet all 37 of the queer women in this season's WNBA
April 17 2024 11:24 AM
Here are the 15 gayest travel destinations in the world: report
March 26 2024 9:23 AM
21+ steamy photos of Scotland’s finest gay men in Elska Glasgow
February 01 2024 10:07 PM
More Than 50 of Our Favorite LGBTQ+ Moms
May 12 2024 11:44 AM
Latest Stories
How the 2024 Paris Olympics could become a force to reverse climate change
July 25 2024 6:40 PM
Joe Biden and the lesson of never forgetting where you came from
July 25 2024 4:06 PM
Tom Daley goes down on all fours to test new Olympic beds
July 25 2024 2:58 PM
Kamala Harris make a cameo in RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 9 finale
July 25 2024 1:59 PM