Former Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum is incredulous that students at Grosse Point South High School have to turn in a permission slip in order to hear him speak.
Santorum's speech was cancelled, then rescheduled as school officials debated whether his views on gay marriage were appropriate for school. The speech is set for later this month, but students will not be permitted to attend unless parents have given written permission.
In a statement to Fox News, Santorum expressed his disappointment in the school's indictment of a politician who temporarily rose to the top of 2012's rancid pool of GOP presidential candidates:
"That’s disappointing. That someone who served two terms in the Senate, two terms in the House, ran for president and by all admissions came in second place in the Republican primary, almost won the state of Michigan, actually tied in the number of delegates, campaigned extensively in that state — to have someone like that come and speak at your school, that you’d need a permission slip from you parent as if there is something that person could do to harm your child."
Could there be something Santorum might do to harm a child in an environment where school officials have a responsibility to provide an atmosphere of mutual tolerance and respect? Take a look at these Rick Santorum quotes and decide for yourself:
"Every society in the history of man has upheld the institution of marriage as a bond between a man and a woman. Why? Because society is based on one thing: that society is based on the future of the society. And that’s what? Children. Monogamous relationships. In every society, the definition of marriage has not ever to my knowledge included homosexuality. That’s not to pick on homosexuality. It’s not, you know, man on child, man on dog, or whatever the case may be. It is one thing. And when you destroy that you have a dramatic impact on the quality."
"If the Supreme Court says that you have the right to consensual sex within your home, then you have the right to bigamy, you have the right to polygamy, you have the right to incest, you have the right to adultery. You have the right to anything. Does that undermine the fabric of our society? I would argue yes, it does."
"Is anyone saying same-sex couples can’t love each other? I love my children. I love my friends, my brother. Heck, I even love my mother-in-law. Should we call these relationships marriage, too?"
"I have no problem with homosexuality. I have a problem with homosexual acts. As I would with acts of other, what I would consider to be, acts outside of traditional heterosexual relationships. And that includes a variety of different acts, not just homosexual. I have nothing, absolutely nothing against anyone who’s homosexual. If that’s their orientation, then I accept that. And I have no problem with someone who has other orientations. The question is, do you act upon those orientations? So it’s not the person, it’s the person’s actions. And you have to separate the person from their actions."
School officials originally decided to cancel the event after Santorum denied a district request for an advance copy of his speech. A school spokesperson said "school-day activities should remain neutral given the district is public and such a speaker is not neutral."
After the cancellation, Santorum rebuked the district, saying
"It's a sad day when liberal educators are allowed to influence young minds - extending free speech rights only to those who share their liberal views. I support traditional marriage; I believe marriage should be between one man and one woman. I'm not sure what the administrators in the Grosse Pointe Public School System are afraid of, but these students deserve the respect to form their own opinion on this important issue."Furthermore, anyone who has ever seen me speak knows I rarely use prepared text. In the case of Grosse Pointe High School - I was never asked for a copy of a speech, nor did I send one. This has nothing to do with the content of a speech, but rather the context of my convictions."