Regular day at Gay Games Proponents of Crystal Lake event happy it was like any other day at the beach
Regular day at Gay Games Proponents of Crystal Lake event happy it was like any other day at the beach
By Stacy St. Clair
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Monday, July 17, 2006
Toni Weaver didn’t know what to expect when she arrived at Crystal Lake Sunday morning for the 2006 Gay Games rowing competition.
In the months leading up to the event, a heated — and often vitriolic — debate had ensued about its appropriateness.
Would, as some opponents predicted, Crystal Lake turn its back on the Games? Or would it welcome the competition as if it were another day at the beach?
Weaver, the president of Parents, Friends and Families of Lesbians and Gays’ McHenry County chapter, saw her answer as soon as she walked into the park. The owners of several lake homes were flying rainbow flags, a symbol of gay rights, from their docks and boats.
“It brought a tear to my eye,” she said. “I had been afraid about how things would go today. It just lifted my spirit.”
Police and fire department officials reported no problems or arrests Sunday. In fact, once inside the park’s gates, it seemed like an ordinary day on Crystal Lake.
Local families picnicked along the shore, as others waded into water to seek refuge from the scalding sun. The 65 athletes registered for the event, meanwhile, practiced in lake and socialized with spectators.
It was, in the end, the peaceful image proponents painted when they lobbied to hold the games here.
“It’s just another day at the beach,” said John Cepek, the incoming president of the national PFLAG organization. “This shows lesbians and gays are like everyone else. They’ve been coming to beaches with their families and blending in for years.”
The Games, a weeklong event that the Chicago area is hosting for the first time, comes at a critical moment in the Gay Rights movement. Bans against same-sex marriage have fueled debate and, in some cases legal action, in Congress and 19 states including Illinois.
The tension surrounding the hot-button issue was apparent in March, when the Crystal Lake park board voted to allow the rowing competition. Opponents booed the decision, calling it a sin against God and suggesting the competition would promote promiscuity.
Though nearly 100 people turned out last spring to denounce the event, only a half-dozen protested at the venue Sunday. The anemic turnout mirrored the opposition’s sparse attendance at the opening ceremonies Saturday.
Four men stood in a cordoned area along the suburb’s Lake Shore Drive holding signs imploring the athletes to repent. The quartet refused to give their names, saying they were representing Jesus Christ and not their own interests.
At the beach entrance, Cary resident Kent Jaeger handed out pamphlets warning participants of eternal damnation. Jaeger, who said he has never done such public evangelizing before, said he came to the Crystal Lake to spare everyone — not just homosexuals — from hell’s fires.
“My hope is that people will look at their actions and cast aside their wicked behavior,” he said. “I want them to go to heaven.”
His message, however, went largely ignored Sunday. By his own account, the majority of people refused to take his literature and some greeted him with hostility.
“That’s OK,” he said. “My goal isn’t to force people to repent. I’m here to give them the information so that they can.”
Inside the park, Weaver seemed to be having a much easier time spreading her message. She moved from picnic area to picnic area asking people if they would like to wear a rainbow ribbon.
Many, including Sleepy Hollow resident Dawn Pociask, accepted the offer.
“I support their (the athletes’) right to be here,” said Pociask, who came to the beach for a family outing. “Everyone is entitled to make their own choices on how they live their life.”
For Weaver, the warm reception inside the park lessened the stinging words from the protesters outside the gate.
“It has been wonderful,” she said. “But I do resent a group of people that think they alone know the will of God.”
Editor's Note: During the raucous and vitriolic hearing for the permit to hold this event at Crystal Lake, a handful of opponents vowed to protest if the city allowed this event. Crystal Lakes attorney informed the board that if they did not allow this event they would be violating the recently passed state gay rights bill. A victory for decency and equality and an example of why the state law forbidding discrimination based on sexual orientation is so important!
By Stacy St. Clair
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Monday, July 17, 2006
Toni Weaver didn’t know what to expect when she arrived at Crystal Lake Sunday morning for the 2006 Gay Games rowing competition.
In the months leading up to the event, a heated — and often vitriolic — debate had ensued about its appropriateness.
Would, as some opponents predicted, Crystal Lake turn its back on the Games? Or would it welcome the competition as if it were another day at the beach?
Weaver, the president of Parents, Friends and Families of Lesbians and Gays’ McHenry County chapter, saw her answer as soon as she walked into the park. The owners of several lake homes were flying rainbow flags, a symbol of gay rights, from their docks and boats.
“It brought a tear to my eye,” she said. “I had been afraid about how things would go today. It just lifted my spirit.”
Police and fire department officials reported no problems or arrests Sunday. In fact, once inside the park’s gates, it seemed like an ordinary day on Crystal Lake.
Local families picnicked along the shore, as others waded into water to seek refuge from the scalding sun. The 65 athletes registered for the event, meanwhile, practiced in lake and socialized with spectators.
It was, in the end, the peaceful image proponents painted when they lobbied to hold the games here.
“It’s just another day at the beach,” said John Cepek, the incoming president of the national PFLAG organization. “This shows lesbians and gays are like everyone else. They’ve been coming to beaches with their families and blending in for years.”
The Games, a weeklong event that the Chicago area is hosting for the first time, comes at a critical moment in the Gay Rights movement. Bans against same-sex marriage have fueled debate and, in some cases legal action, in Congress and 19 states including Illinois.
The tension surrounding the hot-button issue was apparent in March, when the Crystal Lake park board voted to allow the rowing competition. Opponents booed the decision, calling it a sin against God and suggesting the competition would promote promiscuity.
Though nearly 100 people turned out last spring to denounce the event, only a half-dozen protested at the venue Sunday. The anemic turnout mirrored the opposition’s sparse attendance at the opening ceremonies Saturday.
Four men stood in a cordoned area along the suburb’s Lake Shore Drive holding signs imploring the athletes to repent. The quartet refused to give their names, saying they were representing Jesus Christ and not their own interests.
At the beach entrance, Cary resident Kent Jaeger handed out pamphlets warning participants of eternal damnation. Jaeger, who said he has never done such public evangelizing before, said he came to the Crystal Lake to spare everyone — not just homosexuals — from hell’s fires.
“My hope is that people will look at their actions and cast aside their wicked behavior,” he said. “I want them to go to heaven.”
His message, however, went largely ignored Sunday. By his own account, the majority of people refused to take his literature and some greeted him with hostility.
“That’s OK,” he said. “My goal isn’t to force people to repent. I’m here to give them the information so that they can.”
Inside the park, Weaver seemed to be having a much easier time spreading her message. She moved from picnic area to picnic area asking people if they would like to wear a rainbow ribbon.
Many, including Sleepy Hollow resident Dawn Pociask, accepted the offer.
“I support their (the athletes’) right to be here,” said Pociask, who came to the beach for a family outing. “Everyone is entitled to make their own choices on how they live their life.”
For Weaver, the warm reception inside the park lessened the stinging words from the protesters outside the gate.
“It has been wonderful,” she said. “But I do resent a group of people that think they alone know the will of God.”
Editor's Note: During the raucous and vitriolic hearing for the permit to hold this event at Crystal Lake, a handful of opponents vowed to protest if the city allowed this event. Crystal Lakes attorney informed the board that if they did not allow this event they would be violating the recently passed state gay rights bill. A victory for decency and equality and an example of why the state law forbidding discrimination based on sexual orientation is so important!
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