“The same thing that was a sin 2,000 years ago is a sin today. The thing that was right 2,000 years ago is right today.”

Brown has made headlines with his fierce opposition to gay rights, righteously citing the Bible as the source of his views. As he wrote on the site of his organization Freedmen Nebraska: “We believe the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments to be the inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings.”

Interesting, since this means Brown supports slavery. The Bible says so, both in the Old and New Testaments. It seems like an odd stance for an African American to have, but Brown says we can’t argue with the Bible. As it says (among numerous passages):

You may purchase male or female slaves from among the foreigners who live among you. You may also purchase the children of such resident foreigners, including those who have been born in your land. You may treat them as your property, passing them on to your children as a permanent inheritance. You may treat your slaves like this, but the people of Israel, your relatives, must never be treated this way. (Leviticus 25:44-46).

Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, in singleness of heart, as you obey Christ. (Ephesians 6:5-9).

Brown has a historic soul mate in Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederate States of America during the Civil War, who was also fond of quoting the Bible to support his worldview:

“[Slavery] was established by decree of Almighty God…it is sanctioned in the Bible, in both Testaments, from Genesis to Revelation…it has existed in all ages, has been found among the people of the highest civilization, and in nations of the highest proficiency in the arts.”

The Bible — including Jesus – never condemns the practice and offers guidance on how slaves should be treated. In addition to slavery, the Old Testament also includes prohibitions on eating shellfish, working on the sabbath or having a tattoo, and supports stoning adulterers and killing children who curse their parents.

Brown must believe all those things, since he supports both the Old and New Testaments. I would not imagine he would ever cherry-pick what parts of the Bible to believe and what parts to discard as irrelevant to modern society. That would not be very Christian of him.

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“Everything inside of me wants to go to the hearing and be part of any type of issue such as this, if work permits me to do it,” Brown told the Journal Star.

Brown has been vocal about his opposition to non-discrimination policies in Omaha and Lincoln. He said during a hearing in Omaha that by protecting gay people from discrimination, the city would be “unprotecting” Christians. Despite his vehement opposition to protections for gay people, Brown wrote a letter to the Lincoln Journal Star claiming he supports the university’s non-discrimination policy:

I wholeheartedly agree with UNL’s Non-Discrimination Policy. As a follower of Jesus Christ, and a UNL employee for twenty-two years, I haven’t, nor will I violate this policy.

In 1979 I realized Christ’s death and resurrection freed me from the many sins I am guilty of. I received Christ’s forgiveness then and the Bible became my source of truth for every phase of life. God offers His grace to all of us. WOW!

Not all of my players have agreed with the Bible’s views. One example, of many, would be those choosing heterosexual sex outside of marriage. Though the Bible teaches this as sin, I haven’t penalized them with playing time or discrimination of any sort. Because I love them, I’ve invested in them even outside of football and gently asked them to consider God’s view on it.

If I coached a gay player, because the Bible says homosexuality is a sin, I would do the same. If he didn’t agree, I wouldn’t penalize him with playing time or any form of discrimination.

I have and will embrace every player I coach, gay or straight … but I won’t embrace a legal policy that supports a lifestyle that God calls sin.

– Ron Brown, private citizen of Nebraska

Unfortunately, Brown and the University of Nebraska still don’t get it. The school’s non-discrimination policy isn’t just about playing time, it’s about the environment fostered:

One aspect of this commitment is to foster a climate of inclusion and mutual support that will enhance our ability to achieve our overall goals…

Brown’s actions and his speech, likening gay people to criminals and advocating for their discrimination, are miles away from upholding that part of the policy. And despite saying over and over that he’s a private citizen (after saying on the record that his residence was Nebraska’s football stadium), he simply cannot separate his public language from his job, as Rick Reilly brilliantly points out:

Brown, 55, speaks out often about Christ and against homosexuality, which is his First Amendment right. But Ron Brown wouldn’t get one-tenth of these offers to speak if he weren’t a Huskers coach. He’s an in-state celebrity. He admits he uses Huskers football as a platform to get his message out. His personal opinions can’t be separated from his job. There are three paragraphs in the Nebraska media guide about his Christian work. At the Omaha public hearing, he gave his address as Nebraska’s Memorial Stadium.

The University, AD Tom Osbourne and head football coach Bo Pellini continue to support Brown in his crusade against the LGBT community. Help voice opposition to his war for discrimination by signing this change.org petition.

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Councilman Carl Eskridge supports the bill and plans to introduce it today, with a hearing on May 7 and a vote on May 14. You can read more from Fox42, Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln JournalStar.

Outlinc, which is pushing the ordinance, has gotten ahead of Ron Brown’s hate-filled preaching by lining up faith leaders from the area who actually follow the non-judgmental words of Jesus Christ. The Lincoln clergy said in a statement:

As people of faith, we affirm inclusion of all people, and we celebrate the diversity with which God created our world and all living things. LGBT people are children of God and are entitled to equal protection in the eyes of the law. In the workplace people should be judged by their performance, not their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Imagine that: Men and women of the clergy in Lincoln are more interested in protecting gay people from discrimination than the Chancellor and athletic director of the university. Tells you a lot about both groups.

You can sign a petition asking the University of Nebraska to remove Ron Brown as a football coach for violating the school’s non-discrimination policy.

Hat tip to Towleroad.

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Brown said in an interview with The Associated Press that “to be fired for my faith would be a greater honor than to be fired because we didn’t win enough games. I haven’t lost any sleep over it. I realize at some point, we live in a politically correct enough culture where that very well could happen.”

Coach Bo Pelini and athletic director Tom Osborne say Brown is a good coach and he is within his rights to express his personal views.

I could not find a longer version of his AP interview, but he is doubling down on his views rather than backing down, clearly seeing himself as some sort of martyr and framing this as a religious freedom issue. Cyd wrote a powerful column advocating why Brown should be fired for his strident and public opposition to gays; Athlete Ally also started a Change.org petition asking for his removal. But it appears as if there is no chance of that happening with his coach and athletic director firmly in his corner.

Sign the Athlete Ally Change.org petition.

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The three freshman were walking on a sidewalk Friday night when three men in an SUV allegedly pulled up next to them and yelled profane slurs at them. When one of the freshman yelled back, the football players allegedly go out of their vehicle and beat the crap out of them. One student had a boot mark imprinted on his back from the attack.

From the Coloradoan:

“It wasn’t really much of a fight. It was basically just a beating,” said freshman John ‘JD’ Haley, 19, who suffered a black eye, cuts and bruises while trying to protect his friend during the attack. “I’ve never seen anyone so mad, so violent. The kid was on a rampage.”

CSU spokesperson Mike Hooker said if the allegations are true, they football players could be expelled from the university.

Football player Trey Cassidy, who is not accused, isn’t waiting for an investigation to point fingers. He took to Facebook to apologize to the attacked students:

Well first off, I want to apologize for what my teammates have done to three students last night. I just talked to the students who were assaulted. I hang out in their hall regularly, and do not believe that there is any hostility between us.

Watch the 9News report on the incident:

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Despite all of that, the University of Nebraska has given Ron Brown license to continue building a hostile environment for LGBT athletes on the school’s football team. University Chancellor Harvey Perlman refuses to take any action other than wagging his finger at Brown, simply saying:

I am personally offended by the comments of Coach Brown with regard to gays and lesbians. Whether intended to do so or not, they reflect poorly on the university, on our athletic programs, and I am certain they cause pain and discomfort among a valued and productive segment of our community.

Think about that. The Chancellor of the school admits that this state employee causes pain to gay students and athletes, yet won’t act. Maybe Perlman needs a refresher of his school’s own non-discrimination policy:

One aspect of this commitment is to foster a climate of inclusion and mutual support that will enhance our ability to achieve our overall goals….

How can the chancellor of the school possibly claim to administer the university’s non-discrimination policy while at the same time doing nothing to curtail a high-profile coach of the school’s highest-profile program causing “pain and discomfort” for gay students? How on earth does causing pain “foster a climate of inclusion and mutual support”?

It doesn’t.

Unfortunately, the University doesn’t care.

Barbara Baier, an openly gay member of the Lincoln Board of Education, tried to open eyes to the power of the university’s inaction in a well-articulated letter to the university:

I am not one for strong words, but in the case of the University of Nebraska, hypocrisy is an institutionalized value as regards LGBT students and their fair and legal right to access a tax subsidized postsecondary education.  This hypocrisy is exemplified by the longstanding and persistent anti-LGBT behavior and bullying tactics of Coach Ron Brown.

I hope that you seriously consider your responsibility in allowing and, by your inaction, endorsement of his behavior toward LGBT students and the entire LGBT community.  If I felt threatened by Coach Brown by simply attending a function at UNL’s Champion’s Club, then what do LGBT student athletes feel in your athletics program?  How do they feel attending your many campuses and classrooms?  How do LGBT faculty and staff feel?  Does maintaining a climate of hate further your academic mission or diminish it?

The message from the University of Nebraska is clear: The inclusion of sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policy is a sham, carries no weight, and is simply there on paper to appease a powerless minority at the school.

One aspect of Brown’s particular brand of anti-gay discrimination pulls the wool over people’s eyes. It’s the smile he offers while advocating for discrimination against gay people. Baier called it out brilliantly in her letter:

When some people seek to camouflage their hatred under the cloak of their faith, their professed religious beliefs should not shield them from the consequences of their actions.

Brown’s response to Baier last week was a glaring example of his hatred cloaked under the love of faith:

I’m not meaning to harm anybody. I’m quoting the scriptures. I’ll be praying for her, for her to see the reality of what the Lord is saying in the Bible.

He doesn’t want to harm her, he just wants to convert her away from who she is at her core. That ought to help build the university’s “climate of inclusion and mutual support,” right?

This double-speak is what makes Brown so dangerous for LGBT athletes. In an interview with Lincoln-based radio station KILN (hat tip to Aksarbent), Brown responded to my previous column. He painted himself as someone who opposes what he called “evil” discrimination against gay people:

Discrimination against them in the evil sense? Should they be harassed? Should they be fired on the spot if they’re doing good work because they’re gay? Absolutely not. I don’t believe in that at all. Should they be beat up? Should they be talked about? Should they be teased and ridiculed? Absolutely not.

Sounds inclusive, right? Not so fast. While opposing “evil” discrimination, he endorsed discrimination in general, as though some discrimination is good and some is bad:

Now, in terms of the use of the word discrimination in the sense of being able to have discretion and wisdom, acknowledging a belief system that one holds to, particularly due to my relationship with Jesus Christ, absolutely. There’s no question. … So in Omaha, for example, when I spoke at the ordinance, in opposing the ordinance to have homosexuals as a protected class, I absolutely stand by that. … As a protected class, in terms of receiving certain rights and benefits as African Americans were and other groups, women for example, who were clearly oppressed throughout history? No, not at all. And I stand on that.

I take Brown at his word: He would never condone assaulting or killing someone because they are gay. He also says he doesn’t think someone should be fired because they are gay…even though he fought against an ordinance that said exactly that. Still, I’ll take him at his word.

But there are lots of things you can do to someone short of beating them or firing them. He could give them less playing time. He could undermine their chances on the team. He could harm their mental well-being by continually telling them they are wrong, sinful and an abomination.

And there is no reason to believe Brown does not do these things. In fact, Brown says he approves of lesser kinds of discrimination against gay people that is driven by “discretion and wisdom, acknowledging a belief system” like his that equates gay people to thieves and drug-abusers. He has also made it clear is he in football at Nebraska to “bring honor and glory to god.”

The University of Nebraska’s non-discrimination policy does not differentiate between various forms of discrimination. It focuses on fostering “a climate of inclusion and mutual support.” None of Brown’s support for discrimination accomplishes that.

In his KLIN interview, Brown concluded with this little gem:

If you don’t believe in the bible, if you don’t believe what the scriptures say that it is truly accurately the word of god, then of course you may not buy into that. But if you do, Like I and many others who follow Jesus Christ, you would have to stand on the word of God.

You would have to ignore pesky non-discrimination policies. You would have to put your own personal belief in the word of God above all else. You would have to limit the power of the “homosexual agenda.” You don’t have an option here. It’s not as though you can weigh the consequences and then decide. In Brown’s words,  “You would have to stand on the word of God.”

The university continues to turn a blind eye.

Brown has said he will not stop. He will not change course. He will continue to advocate for anti-gay discrimination and preach his bigotry-based brand of Christianity. He motivates his followers with the calls for him to stop advocating for discrimination.  He has given the proverbial middle finger to the school and to the gay community, and he will not stop because his actions are ordained by God.

So far, the University of Nebraska has said they will do nothing to stop or curtail him. For the sake of the under-served LGBT students and athletes at the University of Nebraska, that must change.

Nebraska athletic department spokesperson Keith Mann offered no further comment for this story.

You can sign Athlete Ally’s change.org petition to fire coach Ron Brown. Also, visit Aksarbent for more on Ron Brown.

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This letter was written by openly gay Lincoln Board of Education member Barbara Baier. She copied Outsports on the letter. She paints a sad, dire state of affairs for LGBT athletes at the University of Nebraska, which corroborates what I have heard from others there. You can support Ron Brown’s removal by signing this change.org petition.

Dear Board of Regents, Chancellor Perlman, Athletic Director Tom Osborne, and Coach ‘Bo’ Pelini:

I am writing to express my concern regarding the continued employment of Coach Ron Brown.  Earlier in March at an Omaha City Council meeting, Mr. Brown communicated his opposition to fair and equal laws regarding Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered (LGBT) individuals, their employment and access to public accommodations.  He cited the University of Nebraska – Lincoln (UNL) and Memorial Stadium as his home address, and as such indicated his representation of these institutions.  He claimed his opposition to fair and equal treatment of LGBT individuals is part of his religious ethos and, thus, above the reach of any consequences that could result from his opinions and actions.

I have seen Mr. Brown speak.  The speech I witnessed occurred at an annual nonprofit event in the fall of 2011 at UNL’s Champions Club.  Mr. Brown made clear his ties to the University of Nebraska and its athletics program.  The majority of his speech was spent attacking people of a minority status – LGBT individuals and a mysterious, but undefined ‘homosexual agenda.’  Again, he used words of faith as a cover to attack a minority community.  At the conclusion of the speech, I was deeply troubled and, as a person of the attacked minority group, I felt psychologically and socially threatened so I left the event.

Herein is my concern.  I am an elected member of the Lincoln Board of Education. (Of course, I am writing this letter as an individual citizen and not as a member of the board.)  I have been blessed with an excellent professional career.  I have the support of my committed partner of 24 years, our 12-year-old son, both our families, many work and personal friends, and several communities of faith.  I am very lucky, but I am worried about LGBT students and particularly LGBT student athletes attending the University of Nebraska and participating in your nationally recognized athletics program.

I know from my school board service that LGBT youth are especially vulnerable to psychological and social attacks.  Over my seven years of public service, I have received complaints and concerns from numerous LGBT students and their parents.  They reported being negatively singled out by faculty and other authority figures, and by other students in the classroom and in other school settings for their difference.   Some of those students were attending Lincoln Public Schools (LPS) and some were attending UNL.

I have advocated for LPS students with our Administration, which has consistently followed Board policy and corrected the problem.  It is a value at LPS to nurture and maintain a safe, welcoming school environment for all.  I wish I could say the same for the University of Nebraska.  I have referred students to UNL’s LGBTQA Student Center, which is wonderfully supportive.   But other than an annual appearance at the LGBTQA student banquet, I have not witnessed any meaningful support from the University of Nebraska Regents or the Administration to change the negative campus environment that impacts all LGBT students, faculty and staff.

I am not one for strong words, but in the case of the University of Nebraska, hypocrisy is an institutionalized value as regards LGBT students and their fair and legal right to access a tax subsidized postsecondary education.  This hypocrisy is exemplified by the longstanding and persistent anti-LGBT behavior and bullying tactics of Coach Ron Brown.

I hope that you seriously consider your responsibility in allowing and, by your inaction, endorsement of his behavior toward LGBT students and the entire LGBT community.  If I felt threatened by Coach Brown by simply attending a function at UNL’s Champion’s Club, then what do LGBT student athletes feel in your athletics program?  How do they feel attending your many campuses and classrooms?  How do LGBT faculty and staff feel?  Does maintaining a climate of hate further your academic mission or diminish it?

I also remind you that it was just about 18 months ago that Secretary of Education Arne Duncan sent advisory letters to all educational institutions across the country, including postsecondary, indicating that harassment of LGBT students or those perceived to be is actionable under federal Civil Rights laws on the basis of sex and gender discrimination.

In conclusion, I encourage you to reflect upon these concerns and, through that reflection, remember that we live in a pluralistic society where hatred of any minorities should be questioned and, ultimately, eliminated.  When some people seek to camouflage their hatred under the cloak of their faith, their professed religious beliefs should not shield them from the consequences of their actions.

Sincerely,

Barbara A. Baier

CC: Big Ten Council of Presidents & Chancellors University of Nebraska Board of Regents Lincoln Journal Star UNL LGBTQA Center Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs

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Cameron Kenney, Oklahoma

The NFL Draft will be held April 26-28 and in the past month, colleges everywhere held their pro days. These events give a chance for sure-fire draft picks and those hoping to be selected to show NFL scouts and coaches what they’ve got.

This year, there is little doubt that the top two picks will be quarterbacks — Stanford’s Andrew Luck to the Colts and Baylor’s Robert Griffin III to the Redskins. After that, it’s wide open.

Click on image for larger view and on that image for full-size view:

Photo credits: Alshon Jeffery, Antonio Allen and Kyle Nunn (Jeff Blake-US PRESSWIRE); Jarrett Lee, Jordan Jefferson and Mo Claiborne (Crystal Logiudice-US PRESSWIRE); Robert Griffin III (Jerome Miron-US PRESSWIRE); Cameron Kenney, Trent Ratterree and Travis Lewis (Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE); Nick Toon (Mary Langenfeld-US PRESSWIRE); Brad Smelley and DeQuan Menzie (Spruce Derden-US PRESSWIRE).

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You can read more about Brian at his campaign Web site and his Facebook page. We also have the story in which he came out publicly, and I’ve included a couple videos of him below. 

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Ron Brown

For over 20 years, University of Nebraska assistant football coach Ron Brown has used his position in the university to preach his discriminatory anti-gay brand of Christianity. His latest crusade to fight for discrimination against the LGBT community finally warrants his termination from the school’s football program.

The University has a clear, inclusive non-discrimination policy that contradicts the words and actions of Brown on various levels:

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is a public university committed to providing a quality education to a diverse student body. One aspect of this commitment is to foster a climate of inclusion and mutual support that will enhance our ability to achieve our overall goals … while allowing all of us to focus our energies and talents on our important missions of education, research and service. To this end, it is the policy of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln not to discriminate based upon age, race, ethnicity, color, national origin, gender, sex, pregnancy, disability, sexual orientation, genetic information, veteran’s status marital status, religion and political affiliation.

This policy protects Brown’s religion as much as it protects my sexual orientation. But this isn’t about a man’s religion or his politics. This is about using that religion to discriminate against others and build an environment on the Cornhusker football team that prohibits gay athletes and allies from achieving their goals. Both of these contradict the university’s non-discrimination policy.

There are lots of things Brown could say that wouldn’t necessitate his firing. Isolated, general statements about homosexuality as a sin or opposing same-sex marriage would be hard to fire someone for.

The problem is, Brown has gone much further.

On March 6, he traveled to Omaha to argue against a bill that would protect gay people from discrimination. In his arguments, Brown suggested it is God’s will to discriminate against gay people, even saying those who voted to protect gay people bill would be held to “great accountability” by God.

Most importantly, he has linked these discriminatory views to his coaching job. When testifying before the Omaha City Council, some of the first words out of his mouth conveyed that he is a football coach at the University of Nebraska. Chancellor Harvey Perlman has publicly wagged his finger at Brown for making that connection, but that “reprimand” doesn’t undo the truth beneath the words: Brown brings his discrimination into his work at the university, and he uses his job to spread his anti-gay beliefs.

Brown has said his purpose in coaching football at Nebraska is to “bring honor and glory to God.” Notice he doesn’t say it’s to prepare young men for adulthood or win football games; Those are secondary to his religious goals.

From a 1997 interview:

I realize football enables me to do the two, in my opinion, most important things in my life, and that is one, to know Christ more intimately and number two, is to make him known. And that’s why I’m here in Nebraska, that’s why I’m a part of football.

Notice again he did not include any of the three stated missions from Nebraska’s non-discrimination policy: Education, research and service. He puts the University’s stated missions behind his own religious dogma.

Over the last week I’ve watched over two hours of Ron Brown speaking via YouTube videos. In many of them, Brown is seen on the field just after a Nebraska football game. He looks into the camera and uses his position as a coach to preach the gospel and promote FreedMen Nebraska, his organization dedicated to “making the God connection in every realm.” In almost all of his videos he connects his religious doctrine to his job in football at the University of Nebraska.

Last autumn he shot a video in a Nebraska sweatshirt at a Cornhusker indoor facility for FreedMen. He says in that video that God chose to expose the Penn State pedophilia scandal because Nebraska was Penn State’s next opponent, and Brown could lead a joint pre-game prayer with both teams “before America.”

“I believe that God wants the men of Nebraska, us, to stand before the world and to show the world the reality of Jesus Christ, to expose the evil deeds.”

Helen Carroll, who heads up the sports project at the National Center for Lesbian Rights, agrees that it’s time for Nebraska to part ways with Brown.

“It’s evident that this coach does not fit the philosophy that Nebraska says they want to stand for,” Carroll said. “I think it’s detrimental to the athletic department and the football team to keep this man as a leader of their young men. If they do, it’s going to send a message that certainly gay athletes are not welcome on that campus.”

Brown might claim that he would welcome a gay athlete. But the paradox of his message is revealed when asked how a gay athlete in the locker room should be treated:

“I think Christians should love a homosexual teammate just like they would any other teammate,” Brown said. “Let me tell you what else is in that locker room. There are thieves, liars, people who lust, people addicted to pornography, even some players who are alcoholics. There are all kinds of sinners in that locker room.”

Ah, the age-old tactic of likening gay people to liars and alcoholics. Real welcoming, right?

Then:

“You put your arms around that person struggling with homosexuality and you help walk him or her to the truth of Jesus Christ, just as you would any other player involved in any other sin.”

So while saying he would welcome a gay athlete, he says he would attempt to change that person to fit his Christian vision. The kind of conversion therapy that Brown is advocating here, whether it’s to drive that gay person to a life of celibacy or a heterosexual life, is damaging to the victim and flies in the face of the university’s non-discrimination policy that aims to be a “climate of inclusion and mutual support.”

Pat Tetrault runs the LGBTQA resource center at the University of Nebraska. While speaking for herself and not for the University, she said it’s impossible to believe Brown’s views on anti-gay discrimination don’t affect his job with student-athletes:

“When you have a non-discrimination policy, and you make your views that a certain segment of the population should be singled out for discrimination, it really is hard to not believe it doesn’t impact the students and the staff who may not believe the same way he does.”

Roger Brigham, founder of the Equality Coaching Alliance, agreed with Tetrault, pointing out how Brown’s actions create an environment of intolerance.

“Ron Brown’s statement is a statement not of faith but of ignorance,” Brigham said. “It is contrary to the anti-discrimination policies at Nebraska. Such statements of ignorance create a hostile environment for young athletes, drive many would-be athletes away from sports, and engender an ongoing culture of bigotry and malice.”

Carroll, who has tackled anti-LGBT discriminatory practices at the University of Florida, Penn State, San Diego Mesa College and others, says Brown has put Nebraska on notice that he will discriminate against LGBT athletes. That, she says, leaves them susceptible to legal action:

“They’re leaving themselves wide open to a lawsuit from a gay athlete, or even a straight athlete if they feel it’s harming the atmosphere on the team and they’re not able to become successful because of this. We would look seriously at a case like that.”

One university has already rejected Brown’s discriminatory practices. In 2002 Brown was a candidate for the head coaching position at Stanford University. After Brown’s religious views on gay people came to light, Stanford terminated his candidacy. A Stanford athletic department official said “(His religion) was definitely something that had to be considered. We’re a very diverse community with a diverse alumni.” It defies logic that a public university with a non-discrimination policy like Nebraska would keep him as a coach.

Brown’s FreedMen organization will hold its annual “Conquest” event this weekend, March 24, just one mile from Nebraska’s Memorial Stadium. The aim of the weekend is to inspire and train men in Nebraska to steward the state and its laws toward Christian doctrine. His advocacy against Omaha’s non-discrimination policy was part of his agenda.

Despite being an employee of the state of Nebraska, Brown has such contempt for the separation of church and state that last autumn he likened it to the evils of raping a child:

“If the ACLU in Nebraska seeks to slowly suppress the gospel message right out of where our kids spend most of their day, a school…is that any less of a sin than what may have happened at Penn State?”

It’s hard to believe anyone who would say this can be reasoned with; It’s impossible to believe they would ever put their personal religious beliefs on hold to comply with a pesky non-discrimination policy.

Some will say termination from his job is too severe. And if I thought there was any way to change this man’s perspective on anti-gay discrimination, I would agree. But to Brown, there is no questioning his interpretation of the Bible; No discussion or compromise can be had.

“What god says in his word is dominant,” he told his FreeMen disciples. “There is no question.”

There are lots of steps the University should take to combat the exclusionary, discriminatory practices of coach Brown:

• Invite Athlete Ally’s Hudson Taylor and Changing the Game’s Pat Griffin to speak with the football coaching staff about how to foster a welcoming environment on the team.
• Encourage the Cornhusker football team to take GLSEN’s Team Respect Challenge to demonstrate a commitment to equality.
• Record an “It Gets Better” or “You Can Play” video featuring coaches, athletes and administrators taking a proactive step to make the football team inclusive of all people.

In addition to these steps, the University of Nebraska should fire coach Ron Brown immediately, based on his discriminatory policies and his efforts to make the University of Nebraska a climate of exclusion. Any action by the university short of removing Brown would be approval for him to continue using the university to espouse his discriminatory version of Christianity.

You can support the firing of Ron Brown by signing this Change.org petition.

You can also email Chancellor Perlman at hperlman1@unl.edu.

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