Signed By 58 Prominent People, The Plea For ‘Tolerable Discourse’ No One Is Talking About

58 prominent people supposedly from across varying ideologies have chosen to become the founding signatories of a letter written by an unnamed person that chastises those who actively supported the resignation of Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich.

Asking, “Is opposition to same-sex marriage by itself, expressed in a political campaign, beyond the pale of tolerable discourse in a free society?,” the letter claims that the “test of our commitment to liberal principles is not our eagerness to hear ideas we share, but our willingness to consider seriously those we oppose.”

While the list is not necessarily comprised strictly of Republicans or Libertarians, that seems to be the common thread. There are names like former GOP Chairman Ken Mehlman, accused white nationalist and author of The Bell Curve, Charles Murray, bloggers Andrew Sullivan, Eugene Volokh, and Will Saletan, PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, Republican author Margaret Hoover, and dozens more.

All affirm their “unwavering commitment to civic and legal equality, including marriage equality.”

And all are “concerned that recent events, including the resignation of the CEO of Mozilla under pressure because of an anti-same-sex- marriage donation he made in 2008, signal an eagerness by some supporters of same-sex marriage to punish rather than to criticize or to persuade those who disagree. We reject that deeply illiberal impulse, which is both wrong in principle and poor as politics.”

The signatories add:

Sustaining a liberal society demands a culture that welcomes robust debate, vigorous political advocacy, and a decent respect for differing opinions. People must be allowed to be wrong in order to continually test what is right. We should criticize opposing views, not punish or suppress them.

The freedom—not just legal but social—to express even very unpopular views is the engine that propelled the gay-rights movement from its birth against almost hopeless odds two generations ago. A culture of free speech created the social space for us to criticize and demolish the arguments against gay marriage and LGBT equality. For us and our advocates to turn against that culture now would be a betrayal of the movement’s deepest and most humane values.

Warning of a danger that the “liberal” equality movement could lose ground if it is perceived as being vindictive, shrill, or propelled by hate, the letter offers this example:

As one advocate recently put it, “It would be enough for me if those people who are so ignorant or intransigent as to still be anti-gay in 2014 would simply shut up.”

Note to the unnamed author: It’s unfair to single out one sentence from one unnamed blogger (readers can Google it to find out who) and hang blame on an entire movement.

It’s also deeply concerning that there’s no mention of who authored the letter, how it came into being, why this particular group was asked to sign it. Are they all on a listserv together? Did this come about at someone’s dinner party? A college forum or lecture?

Conor Friedersdorf at the Atlantic calls the letter, “A Manifesto for the Liberal Wing of the Gay Equality Movement.” That’s false, unless the “liberal wing of the gay equality movement” (a terrible moniker and borderline 1970’s) is to be dictated to by conservatives and libertarians.

While the intent may have been admirable, the execution of this open letter leaves too many questions, and frankly, leaves one feeling a bit quizzical.

 

Editor’s note: An early version of this article incorrectly stated Brendan Eich was fired. He resigned. Our apologies for the error.