Woman Charged With Assault For Kissing Preacher At Gay Pride Event

[Catmatic Leftist]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/01/joan-parker-assault-kiss-preacher_n_888465.html?ir=Weird+News


RALEIGH, N.C. -- A Bible-waving preacher protesting at a gay pride event in North Carolina turned the other cheek – and got kissed on it by a 74-year-old female gay rights supporter who is now charged with simple assault.


Joan Parker admits she kissed a preacher on the cheek at the event, proclaimed by the Salisbury mayor as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Day.
"He was just waving his arms and has a Bible in one hand, up and down, and screaming at the top of his lungs, `sodomites' and `you're going to hell,'" Parker said in a phone interview. "I thought he needed a hug. So I gave him a hug."
At some point, Parker said, the preacher turned to yell to a man with a camera to take a picture of her. Also at some point, she kissed him. On the cheek, she says, not on the mouth.


"He claims I kissed him on the lips, and he's a damned liar," said Parker, who is from Colfax and said he was at the event with her husband to show support. "I believe I did kiss him on his cheek."


The preacher, James Edward Belcher of Taylorsville, says he never claimed Parker kissed him on the lips, but that's only because he turned his face as she came toward him.


"If I hadn't turned my head, I'd have gotten it right on my mouth," said Belcher, 49, minister at New Light Baptist Church No. 2 in Millers Creek.


He described the encounter this way: "She ran her arms all the way around me and pulled me toward her." As he held his Bible in one hand, he stuck both arms in the air and turned toward a police officer standing nearby who witnessed the exchange, he said.


Belcher contends the kiss "was just one of many attempts to silence the preaching to those in need of salvation who practice a death style that they call a lifestyle."



Police estimate that about 2,000 gay rights activists attended the event Saturday, along with 200 protesters. Belcher was among several people who showed up to preach and protest, even though they didn't have a permit. Police let them stay, with some rules, so officers didn't have to spend all of their time issuing citations.

Rory Collins, police chief in the town located about 45 miles northeast of Charlotte, said Belcher wanted to press charges, which he hadn't expected. Belcher contends police would have charged him if he had touched a 74-year-old woman and that he didn't personally pursue charges.


And it doesn't matter if Parker was aiming for Belcher's mouth or cheek, Collins said.
"She might disagree with this, but it wasn't done as a show of affection," he said. "It was an unwanted touching."


Parker is due back in court Sept. 12. Simple assault is a misdemeanor and could bring a sentence of up to 30 days of community service for a first-time offender.

[Fopeos]

It's pretty sad. I hope the judge goes easy on her.

[Princess Luna]

It really is a deranged world we live in when (non-sexual) kissing/hugging is counted as assault :(

[W1N5T0N]

Omagad iz a woman

[Sasha]

To be fair I'm well known for my habit of punching those unconsensual "free hugs" types, no'one comes iny personal space, let alone touch me, without my consent but I wouldn't file assault charges.

[W1N5T0N]

Dude, those guys are all over the place in A'dam...you must be giving a lot of free face-punches ;)

no but seriously, as long as they aren't totally fucked up crack whores/junks (i have my standards!), it's all fun and games. Just watch yer wallet people...

[Revy]

"He claims I kissed him on the lips, and he's a damned liar," said Parker, who is from Colfax and said he was at the event with her husband to show support. "I believe I did kiss him on his cheek."


The preacher, James Edward Belcher of Taylorsville, says he never claimed Parker kissed him on the lips, but that's only because he turned his face as she came toward him.


"If I hadn't turned my head, I'd have gotten it right on my mouth," said Belcher, 49, minister at New Light Baptist Church No. 2 in Millers Creek.

Brings a new meaning to "Turn the other cheek" doesn't it?:)

Would Jesus have tried to send someone to prison for kissing him? You'd think Jesus would be begging for hugs and kisses from everyone in town.

Oh wait according to preacher fundamentalist assholes, Jeezus hates them homersexuals and unbelievers.

[Catmatic Leftist]

The preacher wasn't even welcome. It even stated in the article that he didn't have a permit... He was there to provoke violence, spew verbally abusive hate speech, and elicit a reaction from the crowd. She was just acting in defense.

[W1N5T0N]

seriously, some of these preacher dudes gave got to lighten up...
but i dont think that these bigots shud be held as reps for the whole crowd.

[Blackburn]

A grown man, needs to get over it.

American culture is too reactionary at times. I complain, because as American culture goes, Australian knuckle drags along in lock-step eager to copy.

[agnixie]

I lolled at

Belcher contends the kiss "was just one of many attempts to silence the preaching to those in need of salvation who practice a death style that they call a lifestyle."

Funny, considering they're the ones who insist on calling it a lifestyle too.

[Fulanito de Tal]

This is a true story like all of my true stories.

Luke 2:16
And Jesus said onto the disciple, "Thou shalt press charges of sexual assault if thou shalt receive kisses from a 74 y/o female at a same-sex laying pride gathering throughout village paths."

What really astounds me is that Luke actually wrote "y/o" 2000 years ago, way before modern English and medicine charts were developed. He was a visionary!

[Bardo]

How could such an old woman show such brutality??

Seriously, I wonder how hard the judge is going to laugh in this guy's face.

[Catmatic Leftist]

How could such an old woman show such brutality??

Seriously, I wonder how hard the judge is going to laugh in this guy's face.

Eh, I would expect the court to actually side with the bigot instead of the woman. You know how corrupt the U.S. court system is.

[-marx-]

Theists, fucking hypocrites! I cant help but hate them but at least I'm not preaching a "turn the other cheek" message then doing the opposite. Like Lenin said "religion is a private affair" and it's only when it is pushed in society that there are problems. It should stay in the individuals head, house and place of worship, not in the streets trying to bring down us LGBT people.

Of course the bigot will likely win because he's an "upstanding member of the church and community" or so he portrays.

[Blackburn]

Theists, fucking hypocrites! I cant help but hate them but at least I'm not preaching a "turn the other cheek" message then doing the opposite. Like Lenin said "religion is a private affair" and it's only when it is pushed in society that there are problems. It should stay in the individuals head, house and place of worship, not in the streets trying to bring down us LGBT people.

Of course the bigot will likely win because he's an "upstanding member of the church and community" or so he portrays.

There are a lot of Liberal/leftist Theists, just unfortunately they wouldn't be more than 15% of them.

I understand how you feel, but I've learnt long ago, that some people aren't worth hating.

Now, if I can't only take my own advice and stop the hatred of the Republican party I might be a happier man. But when they are starting wars all the time...meh

[-marx-]

Yeah I know there's some communist theists and so long as they follow the Lenin line on religion I will call them a comrade. If not, they are reactionaries, if they are trying to push religion into any communist party etc.

But I can't help but think "how communist are you really?, if you're still believing bourgeois lies and living your life by a book of fairy tales" "surely you don't call yourself a Marxist?"

I'm anti-religion. I wont bring people down for it but I will give them a good talking to given the chance as I would like to think people would want to help me if they observed me believing fairy tales, it's part of what comradeship is about.:)

[Sasha]

whoah, missed that the lady in question was 74, i stand corrected, 74 year old ladies can hug and kiss who ever they damn well please, bigotted preachers especially.

[Robocommie]

I'm anti-religion. I wont bring people down for it but I will give them a good talking to given the chance as I would like to think people would want to help me if they observed me believing fairy tales, it's part of what comradeship is about.:)

My beliefs are not an illness I'm suffering from. They mean a great deal to me and have brought a great deal of positive things to my life.

[Metacomet]

He deserved a punch in the nose. But that's just my feelings.

[Dumb]

My gut feeling is to laugh at this, too. I have to admit, though, that if the genders were reversed, I would have no problem with charges being filed against a man for kissing a woman under the circumstances. So, for consistency's sake...I'm all for the charges.

[-marx-]

My beliefs are not an illness I'm suffering from. They mean a great deal to me and have brought a great deal of positive things to my life.
I never said it was an illness. And I certainly wont be debating religion with anyone online.period!
:)

[Sasha]

My gut feeling is to laugh at this, too. I have to admit, though, that if the genders were reversed, I would have no problem with charges being filed against a man for kissing a woman under the circumstances. So, for consistency's sake...I'll all for the charges.


euh no, if an 74 year old gay grandpa had hugged and kissed in an completely non-sexual way an bigot female preacher screaming about "death lifestyle" i would have found that maybe silly but i wouldn't support charges either

[Fulanito de Tal]

euh no, if an 74 year old gay grandpa had hugged and kissed in an completely non-sexual way an bigot female preacher screaming about "death lifestyle" i would have found that maybe silly but i would support charges either

Would or Wouldn't ?


I'm not trying to correct your writing. In this case, it is a little confusing to me.

[Blackburn]

My gut feeling is to laugh at this, too. I have to admit, though, that if the genders were reversed, I would have no problem with charges being filed against a man for kissing a woman under the circumstances. So, for consistency's sake...I'll all for the charges.

I doubt we'd be discussing this if genders were reversed. Men get more threatened by this than women do sadly.

[Princess Luna]

My gut feeling is to laugh at this, too. I have to admit, though, that if the genders were reversed, I would have no problem with charges being filed against a man for kissing a woman under the circumstances. So, for consistency's sake...I'm all for the charges.
Regardless of gender, assault means to cause pshyical harm to someone, quickly hugging or non-sexually kissing someone does no harm it's at most slightly annoying, so its not assault.

[Hebrew Hammer]

Only in America would this be considered assault.

[Fulanito de Tal]

Only in America.

eJvXYE7V0aw

Seems like this lady could end up going to prison.