Brian Camenker

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Brian Camenker is a conservative activist in Massachusetts. Currently, he is the leader of MassResistance. He has been involved with other organizations in Massachusetts: Parent's Rights Coalition, Article 8 Alliance and the Interfaith Coalition of Massachusetts.[1]

Camenker is a long-time resident of Newton, Massachusetts, where he participated in local politics and was a critic of the city's liberal government and populace. For two years he was President of the Newton Taxpayers Association.[2]

Contents

[edit] Involvement in MassResistance's activism

[edit] "Fistgate"

In 2000, MassResistance entered unauthorized into a statewide conference, called "Teach-Out," that was sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Education, the Governor’s Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth, and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, held at Tufts University. Included among the conference-goers were preadolescents, some as young as 12, who were (like the rest of Teach-Out's attendees) allowed to ask questions about sex in a safe environment.

One student asked what fisting was, and was answered with an explanation. This led the incident to be dubbed "Fistgate" by Camenker and others. [3] A person working for Camenker's organization, Scott Whiteman, taped some of the students without their knowledge. As a result of the outcry that was generated when parents heard tapes of the event, Margot Abels, a state employee who participated in the discussion, and two other state employees were fired. One of the state employees was later re-instated to her job. [4]

Abels filed suit against Camenker as a result of his distribution of the tape recordings. The case was settled out of court; the results of a second lawsuit is unavailable. [5]

[edit] ToBGLAD taping

In 2004, Camenker accompanied another parent, Kim Cariani, who tried to videotape an event called "ToBGLAD: Transgender, Bisexual, Gay and Lesbian Awareness Day" at their children's school, Newton North High School. At that time, the principal Jennifer Huntington—after repeatedly requesting the videotaping be discontinued—summoned police officers to the school to warn the two parents that they would be charged with trespassing if they didn't leave the campus immediately. They were told they could stay and attend like everyone else, but taping would not be allowed. A local columnist, Tom Mountain of the Newton Tab, was also barred from the assembly "for the safety and security of the children." [6]

[edit] Macy's protest

In June 2006, Camenker and other members of MassResistance protested a Macy's store in Boston, Massachusetts. They argued that the mannequins were transgender. MassResistance stated that they were successful in removing the "transgender mannequins" from the store window[7]. His web site featured photographs of "gay mannequins" and "non-gay mannequins"[8].

"Basically, here you have two apparently homosexual men touching each other, both of them with big breasts that are unlike any mannequin anyone's ever seen," said MassResistance President Brian Camenker. "A number of people are getting a little tired of having homosexuality pushed in their faces," Camenker added. [9]

[edit] Mitt Romney

In January 2007, Mitt Romney's campaign issued a press release attacking Camenker for his group's "Mitt Romney Deception" report.[10] Romney's campaign eventually removed the press release from its site, but MassResistance continued to display it on their own site, and they issued their own press release[11] as well.

[edit] Appearances in media

In November 2005, Carmenker appeared on a Daily Show piece by reporter Ed Helms. It was rebroadcast on the February 7, 2008 episode.[12] In the interview, Camenker was asked if Massachusetts was worse off after the decision to legalize same-sex marriage.

Ed Helms: So the quality of life has decreased?
Brian Camenker: Yeah.
Ed Helms: Homelessness gone up?
Brian Camenker: I could, you know...
Ed Helms: Crime rates?
Brian Camenker: Crime rates?
Ed Helms: Air quality?
Brian Camenker: I mean, let me put it this way, I could, if, I could sit here, and I could probably, you know, find some way of connecting the dots to gay marriage, to all of these, if I had enough time, and I did some research.
Ed Helms (voice-over): Yeah! Why take time to do the research, when saying it is so much faster! [13]

[edit] References

  1. ^ National Association of Research and Therapy of Homosexuality
  2. ^ There Goes the Neighborhood
  3. ^ Fistgate Report
  4. ^ Brian Camenker Discusses Confession of Margot Abels, Fistgate Teacher
  5. ^ OneNewsNow.com - Your News Right Now
  6. ^ Parents kicked out of 'gay day'
  7. ^ MassResistance successes!
  8. ^ Macy's gay pride display in downtown Boston
  9. ^ http://wbztv.com/topstories/Macy.s.Boston.2.579342.html
  10. ^ Activist rains on Romney's parade - The Boston Globe
  11. ^ Mitt Romney Campaign's press release attacking Brian Camenker
  12. ^ The interviews - The Boston Globe
  13. ^ Mass. Hysteria

[edit] External links