WESTMINSTER – Local Vietnamese religious groups
are lashing out against Vietnamese gay and lesbian groups that will march
down Bolsa Avenue during Saturday's Tet parade for the first time.
Several gay groups from San Jose and Los Angeles registered to participate
in this year's parade in Little Saigon, organized by the city of Westminster.
Group members said they are marching in the Tet parade to gain acceptance
from their own community and educate the Orange County Vietnamese community
about gay rights issues.
However, several Vietnamese religious organizations, including the Vietnamese
Interfaith Council of America that comprises Christian and Buddhist religious
leaders, have expressed their opposition to the gay groups' participation
in the parade.
On Wednesday, the Knights of Columbus and all 50 members of the Vietnamese
Martyrs Council, both Catholic organizations, withdrew their participation
from the parade.
Local religious groups do not want to see homosexuals marching on the streets
of Little Saigon, said Van Tran, president of the Vietnamese Interfaith Council
of America.
"Gays and lesbians are not accepted by The Holy Bible," said Tran, also a
pastor at the Reformation Lutheran Church in Westminster. "Homosexuality
is also not accepted in 1,000 years of Vietnamese culture."
Greg Johnson, director of the city's Community Services, said so far the
Catholic groups have been the only ones to pull out of the parade.
"We have at least 90 other groups marching, and about 1,600 people participating,"
he said.
The city cannot and should not discriminate against any one group based on
race, gender or sexual orientation, Johnson said.
"If the parade were run by a nonprofit, they have more latitude in these
cases," he said. "We're a city and we just don't fall under that category."
This is not the first time the participating groups – the Vietnamese Gay
Alliance, Song That Radio and O-Moi – have participated in a Lunar New Year
Parade. Gina Masequesmay, a member of O-Moi said the groups have been marching
in San Jose's Tet Parade since 2004. But this is the first time they have
ventured into the more conservative Orange County, which is also the "capital
of the Vietnamese in America," she said.
Thanh Do, co-chair of the Vietnamese Gay Alliance, said he was disappointed
by news of the boycott. It's the first time the groups have been boycotted
at a Tet Parade.
"Religious groups are supposed to focus on healing and building relationships,"
he said. "The message they are sending out with this boycott is negative.''
Do said he and other homosexuals want to foster a dialogue and communication
with religious groups, but cannot do so if they shut the door.
"Many of us are Catholics, Buddhists and Christians," he said. "Tet symbolizes
happiness, luck and prosperity. I don't think there's anything wrong with
us wanting to be a part of that."
The Rev. Sy Nguyen, director of the Vietnamese Catholic Center, also sent
a letter of protest to Johnson.
In his letter, Nguyen said he appreciates the freedom of individuals to express
themselves.
"However, Tet is a cultural event for Vietnamese whether in Vietnam or anywhere
in the world," he said. "Parading members of Vietnamese gays, lesbians and
transgender groups as part of Tet celebration is not only irrelevant to the
meaning of Tet, but is perceived at best as a complete lack to sensitivity
to the Vietnamese traditions, and at worst a cultural attack on the Vietnamese
community here in Orange County."
Nguyen acknowledges that although there is a need in the Vietnamese community
to openly discuss the issue of homosexuality, the Tet Parade "is a totally
inappropriate place and time for such agenda."
Tran says the religious groups' protest does not mean they are rejecting
the people who call themselves homosexuals.
"We want to send a message to them that we love them and want to protect
them," he said. "But homosexuality – that's no good."
Westminster City Councilman Andy Quach said he agrees with the Catholic and
religious groups on this matter. Quach, who is chairman of the Tet Parade
Committee, however, said the city needs to obey the law and not discriminate
against any group.
"But if they display any extreme or outrageous material not suited for children,
then we as the city may have some discretion there," he said. "But as far
as their participation is concerned, they went through the process, they
paid their fees...they should be allowed to participate."
Contact the writer: 714-796-7909 or dbharath@ocregister.com
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Members
of various gay groups march in the San Jose Tet Parade in 2009.
PHOTO COURTESY OF O MOI
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