Michael Brown's Deceptive Anti-LGBTQ Attacks, Part 6: Hate As Virtue

The WorldNetDaily columnist condones lies to forward his anti-LGBTQ agenda and thinks homophobes like him are the real victims in culture wars.

By Terry Krepel
Posted 1/15/2024

Michael Brown

As stated at the beginning of the book, the authors called for a "campaign of unabashed propaganda, firmly grounded in long-established principles of psychology and advertising."

This "propaganda" even included the spreading of what they knew to be falsehoods, such as the idea that 1 in 10 Americans were gay (they admitted plainly that this number was inflated). But, in their view, spreading such falsehoods was only fair, since all kinds of negative falsehoods had been spread about their community over the years.

As to the success of their strategies, which reflected some of the thinking of other key gay activists and organizations, not even Kirk and Madsen believed that marriage would be redefined. Not a chance. That wasn't even one of their goals.

But even that sacred institution was outrageously redefined in 2015 by the Supreme Court primarily because the thinking of so many Americans had already been changed. Without that massive cultural shift, it is much more unlikely that the Court would have ruled as it did. In the view of many legal pundits, the cultural shift provided sufficient wind in their sails for the justices to make the change (at least, for someone like Anthony Kennedy, who was the swing vote).

To be sure, some of the shifts in American views towards gay and lesbian-identified people have been positive, recognizing the many positive qualities they may have as individuals or couples and embracing our shared humanity. Many of the other shifts have been disastrous, contributing to millions of Americans losing their moral and societal bearings.

Our children and grandchild are paying the price today, with as many as 40% identifying as somewhere on the LGBTQ+ spectrum.

The takeaway from all this is that, while we labor tirelessly to enact pro-life, pro-family legislation – and we should – we must never take our eyes off the greater prize: the conversion of the hearts and minds of Americans, not by the spreading of propaganda but by the propagation of truth, grounded in the love, goodness and justice of God.

We have the ultimate, lasting, winning argument.

In other words, he wants anti-LGBT propaganda to spread in order to restore the homophobic right-wing order.

Brown spent his May 22 column insisting that gays and lesbians were supposedly fighting back against transgender people:

As the resistance to transgender activism continues to rise and millions of Americans push back against the transitioning of children and males competing against females in sports, an increasing number of gays and lesbians are raising their voices as well. They are saying, "This is not who we are, and this is not our agenda. In fact, trans-activism is actually erasing our very existence."

Examples of this phenomenon would be online groups such as, "Gays Against Groomers," described in 2022 as "the newest crusader in the fight against radical LGBTQ activists said to be grooming young children in a sexual, indecent manner." They have joined other conservative voices in speaking up against things like Drag Queen Story Hours for children.

In fact, Gays Against Groomers is little more than a group of right-wing grifters seeking to profit on the anti-gay hate of people like Brown. He went on to cite gay right-winger Andrew Sullivan for his claim that LGBT activists have purportedly overplayed their hand, then got mad at him over the idea that children shouldn't be taught to hate LGBT people:

To be sure, I applaud Sullivan's call to leave the children alone, and I affirm his calling out of the growing wave of what can only be called transanity.

At the same time, I must differ with Sullivan strongly.

First, gay activists have most assuredly targeted children for decades now, in particular in children's education, as I documented at length already in 2011 in "A Queer Thing Happened to America." They may not have targeted children's bodies the way trans activists have, but they have surely targeted their hearts and minds.

Second, the progression from LGB to T and Q is inevitable, a natural part of the deviation from the God-established, biologically essential, heterosexual norm. The long-predicted slippery slope was not a figment of the imagination of the radical, fundamentalist, fear-mongering, bigoted, Christian right. It was a logical, biblically based deduction.

[...]

Sullivan is also quite wrong in thinking that the gay revolution was all about, "Live and let live."

To the contrary, it became clear to me already in 2004 that for many of the key players who had come out of the closet, their ultimate goal (in fact, it was a necessary goal for their success) was to put conservative Christians (and other conservatives, both religious and non-religious) in the closet.

And so I warned that "if cross-dressing and, more radically still, sex-change surgery are fine – after all, we have to be true to ourselves, and, in the end, 'it's my life' – then the day will soon come when the mutilation of other body parts will be considered fine if it makes the person feel happy and whole. Why not?

[...]

The irony of this all is that, in the years to come, it could well be that the very reason the gay revolution ultimately fails is precisely because it succeeded so well. Metaphorically speaking, given enough rope, it hung itself. Andrew Sullivan's dream has become his nightmare.

Brown's May 25 column was devoted to a mandated right-wing complaint that the Los Angeles Dodgers were honoring the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence during a pride celebration, even as he complained he really didn't want to write another anti-LGBT column (though that's his thing):

I can't wait to go a week or a month or – who could imagine? – a year without writing a single article on LGBTQ+ activism. I imagine you can't wait to go a week or month or year without reading another article on the subject either. But here we are in 2023 in the midst of a cultural implosion, and common sense, decency, the fear of God and a deep love for people cause me to cry out. Again.

In the aftermath of the Los Angeles Dodgers reinviting the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence drag team to their June Pride Night celebration, CatholicVote opined on Twitter, "The @Dodgers have instantly become the @budlight of baseball."

But this is a gross understatement. The Dodgers have gone far beyond Bud Light, which has reportedly lost billions of dollars after making Dylan Mulvaney (a male) into an online poster girl.

Brown went on to repeat misinformation and falsehoods about right-wing anti-LGBT attacks on Target from chief homophobe Matt Walsh, taking the out that what Target was doing was "offensive" even if Walsh is lying about it, and it's all good because anti-LGBT hate is spreading:

As for Target, after years of declaring war on gender distinctions and fostering radical transgender activism, they have upped the ante now by allegedly targeting children with their obscene "tuck" bathing suit line.

Yes, these are female bathing suits that allow males who think they are females to "tuck" in their privates. And although both Politfact and Snopes have stated that the swimsuits are only available in adult sizes, contrary to Matt Walsh's claims, even if this were true, it is still grossly offensive. (According to Walsh, "What @Target is doing is far worse than anything Bud Light did. They are selling chest binders & 'tuck-friendly' bathing suits for children." For Megyn Kelly's pointed response, see here.)

Target also came under fire for featuring the products of an overtly Satanic, radical LGBTQ+ supplier. (Snopes branded this charge to be True.) The giant retail company suffered immediate financial losses and, under alleged threats against its employees, decided to remove a limited amount of LGBTQ+ Pride Month items.

[...]

As for the millions of offended customers, the vast majority of whom are presumably fair-minded, non-fanatical, decent people, there is no mention of them. But of course!

No wonder Americans in droves are saying enough is enough. Good for them. The pushback continues!

So it's OK for Walsh to lie as long as it furthers anti-LGBT hate? That doesn't seem very biblical.

Brown concluded with more misinformation, repeating his usual claim that he doesn't hate LGBT people, only LGBT "activism":

As for the millions of people who identify as gay or lesbian or trans or queer and are just seeking to live their lives without conflict, I say to each of you: You are not my enemy, I do not despise you, I do not look down on you, and I offer you the same divine love that transformed me more than 50 years ago. It is the radical activism that I will wholeheartedly confront.

Of course, he's lying here too. In Brown's world it is inherently "radical" for LGBT people to want (or even be allowed) to "live their lives without conflict" -- which means as long as he attacks "activism," he is also attacking people. Contrary to these words, he really does despise them, is looking down on them, and he considers them his enemy.

In his June 2 column, Brown again cheered right-wing anti-LGBT hate and again complained that the Los Angeles Dodgers honored the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence for their community service:

For many years I have been saying that LGBTQ+ activists will overplay their hand, resulting in a moral and cultural revolution in the opposite direction. The May 31 headline story on DrudgeReport, "War on Pride," with a "No" graphic to two men, says it all. The accompanying headlines read, "Anti-Target Rap Tops iTunes"; "Revolt on Chick-Fil-A"; "Bud Light Sales Down 30%"; "Gays Leaving Florida."

Drudge also could have added some of the backlash to the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrating the Catholic-mocking Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence to the list. This was yet another step too far.

The pushback is accelerating, and for good reason.

Of course, to those (or to you) who identify as LGBTQ+ (and to LGBTQ+ allies), all this is the latest manifestation of hatred and bigotry, and people like me are leading the homophobic, biphobic, transphobic charge. We are haters and bigots in your eyes, narrow-minded, uncaring, religious fundamentalists, moral hypocrites who are obsessed with people who do not conform to our norm.

Brown once again claimed against all evidence that his anti-LGBT hate isn't hate and is somehow noble because he is right and LGBT people are evil:

Yes, I get it. And yes, it grieves me that millions of Americans who get up in the morning and go to work and school and take care of their families – everyday people living normal lives – will feel hurt and personally attacked by the very pushback I celebrate. That gives me no joy or sense of triumph.

But that's the whole point.

It is not bigotry or hatred that drives me (and others of like mind). It is the incessant, unavoidable, ever-increasing attack on our most basic human values that drives us.

It is bombarding toddlers and young children with the idea that they could be a boy one day and a girl the next.

It is female students fearing to use their own school bathrooms because of the presence of boys who identify as girls.

It is males competing against females in athletic competitions and men wearing women's swimsuits in ads.

It is drag queens not only reading books to little children but shaking their hips (and worse) in their presence, even to the point of physical touching.

It is the chemical castration and genital mutilation of minors.

It is educators and school counselors undermining family values and going behind parents' backs.

It is forcing a radical agenda on those who disagree and penalizing them for their failure to comply.

It is celebrating extremist, deeply offensive groups like the anti-Catholic Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.

Brown then bizarrely insisted that homophobes like him are the real victims -- then, even more bizarrely, likened the group to white supremacists:

But this is what you have to remember: They endured years of LGBTQ+ Pride nights without speaking out. They didn't rock the boat, even though they might have been personally offended. It was only when the activists went a step too far. That's when they spoke out.

[...]

Can you imagine the uproar if the Dodgers honored a group of white supremacists wearing blackface and called "The Brothers in the Hood"?

Or a group of Gentile anti-Semites wearing Hasidic Jewish garb and called "The Rabbis of the Foreskin"?

Or a group of gay-hating women dressed as effeminate men and called "The Swishers"?

Or a group of Islamophobes dressed as imams carrying AK-47s and called "Allah's Holy Messengers"?

These scenarios are so absurd as to be completely unimaginable. Yet, as the inevitable result of decades of LGBTQ+ activism, the Dodgers are celebrating and honoring nun-mocking, Catholic-despising drag queens.

For his June 5 column, Brown once again tried (and failed) to explain that he attacks only "activism" and not people:

For almost 20 years now, I have been guided by this principle when it comes to LGBTQ people and issues: Reach out to the people with compassion; resist the agenda with courage. But how, exactly, is this done? And how does it play out in terms of the people we are called to reach and the agenda we are called to resist?

There are Christians who avoid the culture wars because they are too toxic, fearing that any involvement will only turn LGBTQ-identified people away from the faith. "Let's just love them like we love everyone else," they reason, "building relationships with them, not being offensive in our speech or conduct, and leading them to Jesus."

[...]

How can we love people in such a way that they recognize our love for them while we reject their personal perceptions and most fundamental values? And how can we love people in a genuine, Christlike way while openly opposing the things they fight for?

Many Christians still use the old adage of, "Love the sinner but hate the sin," thinking this is a good way of describing our attitude towards LGBTQ-identified people.

But, as many an ex-gay, ex-trans person has told me, they heard those words as, "You hate me." That's because, for them, being gay (or trans) was not something they did but who they were. (In the same way, I do not do heterosexual; I am heterosexual.)

On the other hand, in many cases, no matter how much we love people as people, unconditionally and with a genuine heart, if we do not affirm their expressed sexual orientation or gender identity, we will be considered hateful.

As I have often said, we need hearts of compassion and backbones of steel.

So, on the one hand, if you cut us, we should bleed love. On the other hand, we will not be moved.

This is the holy tension with which we live. May God give us the grace to reflect His heart and mind.

Brown's June 7 column weighed in on the tiny meltdown over a crew member for the Christian TV show "The Chosen" displaying a small pride flag, in which he insisted that anti-LGBT hate be treated as some kind of virtue. He stated, "My goal here is not to fuel the fires of Christian gossip, nor is it to deepen the controversy. To the contrary, I want to respond in the most constructive and helpful way possible." Brown's idea of "constructive," of course, was to criticize show creator Dallas Jenkins for pointing out that, while "The Chosen" is not a religion or a ministry, there were homophobes among his critics:

But it is at this point that I take issue with Jenkins and encourage him to offer a public apology.

That’s because some of the show’s prominent actors had some ugly words for those who took issue with the pride flag. As reported on the Not the Bee website, "Multiple ‘Chosen’ actors who portray Jesus' disciples decry ‘homophobia and ignorance’ of fans after show defends LGBT flag on set."

So, some of the very people who were part of the crowdfunding of "The Chosen" and some of the people who represent the core viewers of the program were trashed by some of the show's prominent actors. Surely, this is not the kind of thing where you say, "Hey, everyone is allowed their viewpoint, and I do not police what they post."Rather, at this point, it's important to show some solidarity with your viewers and not just with your employees.

The fact is, without the viewers, there would be no employees. Shouldn't this be a real concern, not out of a desire for fame or fortune but out of Christian love and ethics?

To give further context to the online interaction in question, Giavani Cairo, who plays the apostle Thaddeus, tweeted, "Another one of the actors on 'The Chosen' here. Anyone who is going to go at one of our family members for something like this, is no fan of ours. They can close the door on the way out. 'Love one another as I have loved you' We stand with our brother ???.”

Talk about being tone deaf. Cairo plays the role of an apostle – yes, he's an actor, but everyone knows him now as Thaddeus. He quotes the words of Jesus in his tweet, calling us to love another as Jesus loved us, then he trashes a concerned viewer. Really?

To paraphrase, "Jesus calls us to love another, so get out of here, you jerk! And be sure not to come back. We stand with LGBT pride, not with you, the concerned Christian viewers."

Of course Brown wants anti-LGBT hate to be treated as a virtue. He continued:

Do these actors and crew members have the right to express themselves freely? Absolutely.

Is it good that they showed solidarity with one of their own? To a certain extent, yes.

But they should have been far more considerate of the people who watch their work and help fund it. And they should ask themselves some deeper questions about Jesus, the Bible, Christian love and LGBTQ pride.

In my view, the right thing to do from here in order to honor the Lord and honor the viewers, is this: First, Jenkins should apologize for these hateful and harsh comments, saying that they absolutely do not speak for him or the team behind "The Chosen" and that he regrets the pain they have caused.

Second, the actors should make clear that while they love and stand with their crew and personally reject hateful attitudes, they owe the viewers an apology for their harsh, judgmental and un-Christlike comments.

I believe most viewers would forgive and move on. Isn’t this the path of wisdom, love, integrity and truth?

Yes, Brown is complaining that it causes "pain" to have one's homophobia called out.

For his June 12 column, he was back to cheering that very anti-LGBT hate:

As I've stated elsewhere, these Americans didn't sign up for the increasingly radical cultural madness, for the assault on children, and for the stripping away of the rights of others. That's why so many are now pushing back against "Pride."

And it's not just the conservative, Bible believers. It's the average drinker of Budweiser beer. It's the average shopper at Target. It's the average parent with a kid in school.

They're not going for the blur-gender, omnigender, pregnant man, menstruating males, castrate-the-kids nonsense.

And they're not going for the constant, in your face exaltation of everything gay and trans and queer related. As Matt Walsh tweeted on May 30, "As you prepare for Pride Month, we must also remember to celebrate:

"Bisexual Health Awareness Month
International Transgender Day of Visibility
National LGBT Health Awareness Week
National Transgender HIV Testing Day
Non-Binary Parents Day
Lesbian Visibility Day
International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, & Biphobia
Harvey Milk Day
Pansexual & Pan Romantic Awareness & Visibility Day
Non-Binary Awareness Week
International Drag Day
LGBTQ History Month (not to be confused w/ Pride Month)
International Lesbian Day
National Coming Out Day
National LGBT Center Awareness Day
Asexual Awareness Week
International Pronouns Day
Transgender Parent Day
Pansexual Pride Day
Gay Uncles Day"

Did he miss any?

[...]

The camel has gotten its nose in the door of the tent, and everything else has followed in its wake. As a result, millions of Americans are saying, "This is too much."

They wanted to embrace common kindness. They ended up with cultural craziness.

The fact that Brown is approvingly quoting a vicious homophobe like Walsh shows where his sympathies lie and where his claimed "compassion" does not. Indeed,he went on to embrace another hater:

As Joe Rogan said to his massive podcast audience, "So we're seeing that now where we never saw that before, where people are going 'Enough! Enough! Stop shoving this down everybody's throat.'"

Precisely so. (For those who do not know Rogan, he is not a born-again, Bible-waving Christian.)

He continued, "When I go to Target I don't want to see like [expletive] tuck pants, like they're designed to help you tuck your [expletive]. Hey, that's not normal, I don't want that right in front of everybody. It's weird."

He's right. It's weird. It's unnatural. It's harmful to suggest this for kids. And, from a business point of view, it's only relevant to a tiny percentage of the society. Why on earth make it front and center in your store unless you are driven by a radical social agenda?

And that's why this Pride Month is different than past Pride Months. Americans are coming to their senses. As I recently tweeted, what began for many as the embrace of common decency ("I treat my gay friends and coworkers with fairness and respect") has become a celebration of deviancy ("Long live the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence!").

The bottom line is that LGBTQ+ activists have basically said, "No matter how much ground you give us and no matter how much you embrace us, it is never enough. We will continue to push the envelope."

Millions of Americans have responded by saying, "Enough is enough."

Brown does not explain why his enthusiastic support for anti-LGBT hate shouldn't be assumed to apply to people and not just "activism."