Gays Prevented From Adopting a Highway

Re “Gays Seek Adopt-a-Highway Sign and Get Cold Shoulder,” Aug. 15: I can understand why the Boy Scouts of America doesn’t allow openly homosexual men into its leadership positions, and I can understand why most churches don’t want gay marriages. But the South Dakota Department of Transportation is not a religious organization and therefore has no justification in denying the Sioux Empire Gay and Lesbian Coalition a roadside sign for its Adopt-a-Highway program.

The department’s reasoning is shallow and inconsistent, exposing its bigotry against--and ignorance of--homosexuals. Although my personal belief is that homosexuality is a sin against God and nature, I accept homosexuality as a fact of life and embrace with love my friends and family who choose this lifestyle. I am guilty of my own sins and have no right to throw stones at anyone else.

Lionel De Leon

Garden Grove