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Anti-gay pastorââ¬â¢s role at inauguration causes outrage
Barack Obama
Obama defends decision to invite anti-gay pastor to inauguration
"In the past, Warren has been known to liken gay marriage to incest and paedophilia, and equates abortion akin to the Holocaust."
President-elect Barack Obama has defended his decision to appoint an evangelical pastor who strongly opposes abortion and gay marriage at his inauguration in January.
The pastor, Rick Warren, will be giving the opening prayer at the ceremony. He campaigned heavily for the recently passed Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage in the state of California.
In the past, Warren has been known to liken gay marriage to incest and paedophilia, and equates abortion akin to the Holocaust.
The President-elect’s inauguration invitation list was released on Thursday and Warren’s inclusion caused outrage and disappointment among the LGBT community and social activist groups across the country.
Geoff Kors, executive director of gay rights organisation Equality California described Warren’s presence at the inauguration as a "slap in the face to millions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people who donated for, worked for and helped elect Obama".
However, Barack Obama told journalists that he included the controversial priest in the ceremony because he wanted to reflect the unique diversity of the US, and while he didn’t necessarily agree with his views, he thought it important that they were represented in the event.
"It is no secret that I am a fierce advocate for equality for gay and lesbian Americans. It is something that I have been consistent on and something that I intend to continue to be consistent on during my presidency. What I've also said is that it is important for America to come together, even though we may have disagreements on certain social issues."
While he disagrees with Warren over gay rights and civil liberties, the two are against gay marriage on religious grounds. Obama however, actively supports civil unions between same-sex couples.
Barack Obama’s inauguration takes place on 20th January. Four million people are expected to attend the ceremony with hundreds of millions more watching on television.
Around 11,000 military personnel will be at the event amid fears of a potential terrorist attack or assassination attempt. This is in addition to the US secret service and an extra 4,000 police who will have been deployed from across the United States.
