News
Agema responds to criticism over anti-gay remarks
RNC member ‘reflects badly on Republicans and on Michigan’
Dave Agema responds to anti-gay criticism against him on Facebook. (Screenshot provided by anonymous source).
Dave Agema continues in his response to criticism over his anti-gay remarks (Screenshot courtesy anonymous source).
A member of the Republican National Committee who has been criticized for making a series of anti-gay comments has apparently responded ahead of an upcoming national party meeting in D.C.
Dave Agema, who formerly served in the Michigan State House, issued the response via Facebook posting Sunday night, according to an individual with access to his news feed and an apparent screenshot of the message.
Saying he’s been on vacation for the past eight days, Agema said his intent with his previous messages — which have riled both gay Republicans and GOP leadership — was to “encourage discourse.”
“While I was gone it seems the same people are feeding half truths to the news within the GOP, stirring up divisiveness,” Agema apparently said. “I stand on the same issues I always have — God, family and country.”
Agema, who recently called Russia’s controversial anti-gay propaganda law “common sense” via Facebook, asserts he doesn’t necessarily align himself with the views expressed in items he posted.
“There are times I have posted or linked an article to encourage discourse,” Agema apparently said. “This does not constitute endorsement of that position, but some capture a controversial snippet and allege those are my words. It is an unfortunate and uncivil tactic meant to ruin a person’s reputation.”
Further, Agema apparently takes on the mantle of the victim, saying he’s faced retaliation for his remarks, including threats and vulgar messages.
“The Party platform is clear and the State Constitution is clear,” Agema looks to have said. “I have tried to uphold them but have been threatened, sent vulgar T-shirts, called nasty names at all times of night and day. I have never used name calling. Political correctness is taking the place of free speech via fear and intimidation.”
Agema concludes his posting by calling for “supporters and friends to turn the other cheek and not show the intolerance some of the opposition have shown.”
As seen in the screenshot, Agema made the posting visible to only his friends on Facebook, so the Blade is unable to independently view it to confirm its accuracy. Agema didn’t immediately respond to the Washington Blade’s request for comment to verify the posting.
Gregory Angelo, executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans, dismissed the notion that his postings merely fostered discourse, saying the RNC member “needs to look in the mirror.”
“His statements go far beyond polite debate about civil marriage equality; they’re outright bigotry,” Angelo said. “When GOP leadership across your state make a point of distancing themselves or explicitly denouncing you, it’s time to rethink your role in the party.”
Further, Angelo, who previously called for Agema’s ouster from the RNC, said it’s time for the Michigan Republican to relinquish his post.
“If Mr. Agema was truly as serious about getting conservatives elected as he professes, he would do the right thing and vacate his seat at the RNC,” Angelo said.
Dennis Lennox, a Republican precinct delegate in Grand Traverse County in Michigan, expressed his continued displeasure with Agema in an email on Monday sent to all 168 members of the Republican National Committee and obtained by the Washington Blade.
“Our party should be focused on defeating Democrats, not defending Republican candidates and incumbents from a toxic committeeman who has proved himself unfit for the duties and responsibilities entrusted to him as a member of the RNC,” Lennox said.
Controversy continues to brew over Agema just before the RNC is scheduled meet in D.C. between Thursday and Saturday. Lennox said the party should take the opportunity to act against Agema.
“I know many of you will be cautious to take action for a variety of reasons,” Lennox told RNC members. “However, the time is now for the RNC to repudiate and defrock Dave Agema by word or action. Staying silent will do nothing but help Democrats.”
Asked if he shares the view that the RNC should address Agema in some capacity at the upcoming meeting, Angelo said, “We called for Agema to resign; that demand still stands.”
Over the past year, Agema has reportedly made a series of anti-gay comments and postings on Facebook. In addition to calling Russia’s propaganda law “common sense,” he reportedly made a similar anti-gay posting when oral arguments were taking place on marriage equality before the U.S. Supreme Court.
It was titled, “Everyone Should Know These Statistics on Homosexuals” and appeared under the byline Frank Joseph, M.D. According to the Detroit Free Press, it reportedly depicted gays as sexually promiscuous, rife with sexually transmitted diseases and responsible for “half the murders in large cities.”
Additionally, while expressing views in opposition to same-sex marriage at a Republican fundraiser, Agema reportedly said he’s seen gay people working for American Airlines falsely claim to have HIV-infected partners to obtain spousal health coverage. He was also the sponsor of a resolution approved in April by the RNC reaffirming the party’s opposition to same-sex marriage.
But Agema’s comments aren’t limited to anti-gay remarks. According to Mlive.com, Agema also posted an old online attack piece that questions whether Muslims have ever contributed positively to American society.
Republicans at both the state and local level have joined in the criticism against Agema, although no action has been taken against him despite repeated calls for him to step down.
In a statement provided to the Washington Blade on Monday, RNC Chair Reince Priebus repudiates Agema’s remarks, taking particular exception to the Michigan Republican’s comments about the Muslim community.
“While I have already commented on this issue before, people should be treated with grace and respect and these comments don’t reflect that principle,” Priebus said. “Additionally, the most recent comments regarding Muslim people living in America are patently wrong, lack merit and are devoid of any meaningful value. These comments don’t represent the Republican Party.”
In an interview with Detroit News, Betsy Devos, a former Republican National Committee member and former head of the Michigan Republican Party, said she’s personally called Agema to ask him to step down, and, when he didn’t respond to her messages, called on Preibus to dump Agema or marginalize him.
“He has a right to express his ideas and opinions, but he also has a responsibility to the party,” DeVos was quoted as saying. “He has damaged his position and his party. He reflects badly on Republicans and on Michigan.”
In his State of the State address last week, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder made a veiled criticism of Agema. Without mentioning the RNC member by name, Snyder said in the state of Michigan, people have made “derogatory” and “negative” comments and called for “a greater degree of civility and respect to others of different backgrounds and different views.”
Ukraine
Kharkiv activists hold annual Pride event
Russian airstrikes regularly target Ukrainian city
Upwards of 60 people participated in a Pride event that activists organized in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on Sunday.
A press release that Kharkiv Pride released notes 13 cars “drove along one of the city’s main avenues to raise awareness about the need to uphold human rights and secure international support for the defense and recovery of Kharkiv.”
Kharkiv, which is Ukraine’s second-largest city, is less than 30 miles from the Russian border in the eastern part of the country.
Russia has repeatedly targeted the city since the Kremlin launched its war against Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
A Russian airstrike on March 1, 2022, killed Elvira Schemur, an LGBTQ rights activist who volunteered for Kharkiv Pride and Kyiv Pride, a group that is in the Ukrainian capital. Sarah Ashton-Cirillo, a transgender American journalist who is now a member of the Ukrainian Defense Forces, arrived in Kharkiv eight days after Schemur’s death.
The Kharkiv Pride press release notes “several “LGBTQ+ soldiers participated in the march.”
“We need to show visibility that there are LGBTQ+ people in the army,” said Vlad, an LGBTQ soldier identified by the call sign “Sapsan,” in the Kharkiv Pride press release. “Those who attend the march represent the voices of those on the front lines and, sadly, those who are no longer with us.”
Kharkiv Pride in its press release expressed support for bills that would legally recognize same-sex couples and add sexual orientation and gender identity to Ukraine’s hate crimes law.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in August 2022 endorsed the civil partnerships bill.
Zelenskyy in 2021 pledged Ukraine would continue to fight discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity after he met with President Joe Biden at the White House. Ukrainian lawmakers in late 2022 unanimously approved a media regulation bill that bans hate speech and incitement based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
“Each group of cars carried specific messages to authorities and international partners,” said Kharkiv Pride in its press release. “Kharkiv Pride is urging the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (Parliament) to pass legislation that strengthens accountability for hate crimes (Bill № 5488) and introduces registered partnerships (Bill № 9103.)”
“Activists are also appealing to European countries to help protect Kharkiv’s skies with modern air defense systems and to international partners to consider the needs of underrepresented and vulnerable groups, involving them in decision-making processes during recovery planning,” it added.
Kharkiv Pride Co-organizer Anna Sharyhina noted this year’s theme was “Together for Equality and Victory.”
“We remember every day how important Ukraine’s victory is,” said Sharyhina. “Just as important to us is the fight for equal rights and the protection of the LGBTQ+ community. People who are fighting, risking their lives, cannot be denied their rights. It is both unjust and undignified, and the war has only highlighted these challenges.”
National
Leaders of terrorist group targeted ‘Black, immigrant, LGBT, Jewish people’
FBI arrests two leaders of ‘Terrogram Collective’
In a little-noticed development, the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice announced on Sept. 9 that federal prosecutors obtained indictments against two leaders of a U.S.-based terrorist group that allegedly was arranging for the murder of federal government officials and soliciting others to commit hate crimes against “Black, immigrant, LGBT, and Jewish people.”
The Sept. 9 announcement says Dallas Humber, 34, of Elk Grove, Calif., and Matthew Allison, 37, of Boise, Idaho, who are leaders of the Terrorgram Collective, a transnational terrorist organization, were charged in a 15-count indictment for “soliciting hate crimes, soliciting the murder of federal officials, and conspiring to provide material support for terrorists.”
It says the two men were arrested on Sept. 6, but it does not say where they were at the time of their arrest.
“Today’s indictment charges the defendants with leading a transnational terrorist group dedicated to attacking America’s critical infrastructure, targeting a hit list of our country’s public officials, and carrying out deadly hate crimes – all in the name of violent white supremacist ideology,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in the announcement.
“This indictment charges the leaders of a transnational terrorist group with several civil rights violations, including soliciting others to engage in hate crimes and terrorist attacks against Black, immigrant, LGBT, and Jewish people,” Assistant U.S. Attorney General Kristen Clarke said in the announcement. “Make no mistake, as hate groups turn to online platforms, the federal government is adapting and responding to protect vulnerable communities,” Clarke said.
U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California, Phillip A. Talbert, one of the prosecutors in the case, added in the announcement, “The defendants solicited murders and hate crimes based on the race, religions, national origin, sexual orientation, and gender identity of others…My office will continue to work tirelessly with our partners in law enforcement and in the Justice Department to investigate and prosecute those who commit such violations of federal criminal law.”
The announcement also says federal investigators determined Hunter and Alison helped to develop a “hit list” of targets for terrorist attacks and hate crimes that included “U.S. federal, state, and local officials, as well as leaders of private companies and non-government organizations, many of whom were targeted because of race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity.”
District of Columbia
LGBTQ veterans event set for Sept. 20 at D.C.’s Crush Dance Bar
Event to commemorate 13th anniversary of repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
The Mayor’s Office of Veterans Affairs and the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs are hosting a special event on Friday, Sept. 20, to commemorate the 13th anniversary of the repeal of the federal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law that banned LGBTQ people from serving openly in the U.S. military.
The event, called “Voices of Courage: Reclaiming the Legacy of LGBTQIA+ Inclusion In the Military,” will take place from 3-5 p.m. at D.C.’s LGBTQ Crush Dance Bar at 2007 14th St., N.W.
An announcement from the mayor’s office says the keynote speaker at the event will be Under Secretary of Defense For Personnel And Readiness Shawn G. Skelly, who will discuss “her experiences of service and the future of the LGBTQIA+ inclusion in the military.”
Skelly, a military veteran, will be joined by another veteran who will also speak at the event, Pip Baitinger, who currently serves as LGBTQIA+ Veterans Outreach and Relation Specialist in the Executive Office of the D.C. Mayor.
The announcement says the event will also include an official reading of a proclamation to be issued by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser declaring Sept. 20, 2024, as LGBTQIA+ Veterans Day in Washington, D.C.
“On this day, we honor and celebrate the LGBTQIA+ veterans who have served with honor and bravery, and we reaffirm our dedication to fostering an inclusive and respectful environment for all who have served our nation,” the mayor’s proclamation says.
A statement from the mayor’s office says that since the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law was repealed by Congress in 2011, with the repeal bill signed by then President Barack Obama, “LGBTQ+ service members have enjoyed greater opportunities to serve authentically.”
The statement adds, “However, many transgender, intersex, nonbinary, and gender non-conforming individuals still face boundaries to serve fully authentically in the armed services.” It says the event will allow attendees to “mix and mingle” and allow “veterans, service members, and military family members with lived experiences in navigating restrictive policies to discuss the work that still needs to be done today.”
Kharkiv activists hold annual Pride event
Leaders of terrorist group targeted ‘Black, immigrant, LGBT, Jewish people’
Behind the scenes at the Emmys
LGBTQ veterans event set for Sept. 20 at D.C.’s Crush Dance Bar
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