5 months ago
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Speaker of the House Mike Johnson spent an earlier part of his career working with a conversion therapy-backing “ex-gay” group to bully LGBTQ+ kids. Every day, more information comes out about just how extreme and hateful Johnson is. This one, from CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski, is a doozy.
During his time with the Alliance Defense Fund (now Alliance Defending Freedom), Johnson gave legal advice to the notorious Exodus International, working with the group on an annual “Day of Truth,” an event at which hateful kids could push back on the anti-bullying “Day of Silence.” The thinking behind the “Day of Truth” appears to have been, “Oh, kids are going to oppose anti-LGBTQ+ bullying? Well, let’s organize a day to make clear that bullying is not going anywhere.”
“Day of Truth was really established to counter the promotion of the homosexual agenda in public schools,” Johnson said in a 2008 radio interview. And by “counter the promotion,” he meant “make sure LGBTQ+ kids knew they were loathed.” Johnson was a loud champion for a teen who went to school in a T-shirt reading, “Be ashamed. Our school has embraced what God has condemned,” and, “Homosexuality is shameful” after the Day of Silence. ADF represented the student in court after he was suspended.
