Hit 'em with the truth.

Do the antigay forces of the far right have any pride? How could they? Is there pride in lying to your children, scaring your neighbors, and vilifying people you've never met? Sure, they scoff at our gay pride, but while our parades are about love and equality, their rallies like the Seattle stadium prayerfest in May--are about demonization and exclusion. Do the WWJD crowd ever actually read the Bible they use to thump gay people over the head--other than memorizing those seven peculiar verses that seem to frown on homosexual acts? Maybe, like Mel Gibson, they prefer to dwell on the bloody, violent, vengeful parts, completely ignoring the calls to love and charity and looking tot the mote in your own eye before punching your neighbor's lights out.

What would Jesus do? Well, for one thing, I don't think he'd be comparing loving couples to mass murderers. Yet here are the words of the "Reverend" Lou Sheldon of the Traditional Values Coalition: "Islamic terrorists are seeking to destroy Western civilization, and militants here in the U.S. are determined to destroy traditional marriage." That's right, a supposedly Christian minister is telling his millions of followers that gay people seeking equality--taxpayers, parents, the pillars of their communities--are in fact "militants" determined to "destroy."

Now there's a lie to be proud of.

How about this one: "Attempts to redefine marriage in a single state or city could have serious consequences throughout the country." That's President Bush speaking lust February in support of an amendment to insert antigay discrimination into the U.S. Constitution.

There's another lie to be proud of. When my partner, Christopher, and I traveled to San Francisco to affirm our 17-year commitment in front of the first government entity in California willing to call us spouses, we were in fact risking "serious consequences" for all our fellow Americans. What consequences, exactly? How about equality, security for hundreds of thousands of children with lesbian and gay parents, fair hospital visitation and inheritance rules, and reaffirmation of what the president called "the most fundamental institution of civilization"? Serious consequences indeed, Mr. Bush.

Enough already. If gay pride means anything, it means not sitting idly by while bullies call you names. Whatever else you do this month of pride, make a promise to speak up for yourself and to call the hatemongers by their true names: liars and coconspirators in every bashing or murder targeting someone gay, lesbian, or transgendered.

You know the drill. Write your congressional representatives. Attend a city council meeting. Write a check. Volunteer. And most important, come out. Speak up. Tell the truth about your life. You've heard this all before. This lime, make it real.

The forces against us have the White House on their side. They have countless talk-show hosts spreading their lies. They raise millions through their own cable TV networks. They speak with one loud, angry voice, threatening the end of the world if my marriage is allowed to stand.

What do we have? Three or four out of 535 congresspeople. Half a dozen overextended national civil rights organizations. A few newspeople who give us a fair shake. Oh, and one critically important ally: We have the truth.

For years the power of antigay hatred has dwarfed the power of our pride. But that's changing, and not because we will ever match the liars' financial resources. It's changing because we're on the side of good, we're on the side of family, we're on the side of love, and Americans are beginning to see that. They see the thousands of same-sex couples who braved bad weather in San Francisco, uncertainty in Oregon, and Mitt Romney in Mussachusetts for the chance to get married. They talk to neighbors and coworkers and relatives who come out to them and remain just good people. And then they hear Lou Sheldon saying things like "GLSEN targets children for recruitment into the homosexual lifestyle as well as cross-dressing/sex-change operations." And they see who the liars are.

In an era when lying begins at the top, the truth can still emerge from everyday people. Be prideful. Keep talking. People will listen.