The new speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, has a long history of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and actions that have been exposed by several media outlets. Johnson, who was elected by the Republican conference on October 25, 2023, is a former chief counsel for the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a conservative legal group that has been designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center for its anti-LGBTQ agenda.
Right after graduating, Johnson worked for the Alliance Defending Freedom, labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. Johnson consistently denies various issues, such as climate change, reproductive rights, free and fair elections, and LGBTQ+ rights.
SLPC describes what ADF and Johnson want for LGBT as follows: advocating for the recriminalization of consensual sexual acts among LGBTQ adults in the U.S. and endorsing their criminalization abroad; supporting state-sanctioned sterilization of trans individuals in foreign countries; asserting that LGBTQ individuals are more prone to engaging in pedophilia; and asserting that a ‘homosexual agenda’ will lead to the destruction of Christianity and society. ADF also focuses on promoting ‘religious liberty’ legislation and case law that permits the denial of goods and services to LGBTQ individuals based on religious grounds. Since President Trump’s election, ADF has emerged as one of the most influential groups shaping the administration’s assault on LGBTQ rights.
Johnson strongly opposes marriage equality, but his opposition extends further. He has allowed his contempt for us to invade our personal lives. During his time at ADF, he penned an editorial for a nearby newspaper in which he referred to homosexuality as “intrinsically unnatural” and a “hazardous lifestyle” that could result in the legalization of pedophilia and potentially even the downfall of the democratic system, as reported by CNN.
He also said America is not a democracy, so theoretically, queers are worse than insurrectionists in his demented mind.
Johnson let his warped brain show in another opinion piece that he wrote in a Louisiana newspaper. “Your race, creed, and sex are what you are, while homosexuality and cross-dressing are things you do,” he wrote. “This is a free country, but we don’t give special protections for every person’s bizarre choices.”
Johnson has supported and defended laws that would criminalize gay sex, ban same-sex marriage, and allow discrimination against LGBTQ people on religious grounds. He has also advocated for conversion therapy, a harmful and discredited practice that attempts to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
One of his most controversial cases was defending Louisiana’s sodomy law, which was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2003. Johnson argued that the law was necessary to protect public health and morality, and that gay sex was “unnatural” and “deviant”.
Johnson’s record has drawn criticism from LGBTQ advocates and civil rights groups, who question his motives and obsession with gay sex. They also point out that he is out of step with the majority of Americans who support LGBTQ equality.
“Mike Johnson is obsessed with gay sex. He can’t stop thinking about it. He can’t stop talking about it. He can’t stop legislating about it,” wrote Advocate.com in an article titled “Speaker Mike Johnson’s Obsession With Gay Sex”.
Johnson has not responded to the allegations or the criticism.
Relevant articles:
- Speaker Mike Johnson’s Obsession With Gay Sex, Advocate.com, November 02, 2023
- How new House Speaker Mike Johnson spent years fighting against gay rights, ABC News, October 25, 2023
- As Extreme as It Gets: Supposed ‘Moderates’ in GOP Conference Choose as Speaker an Election Denier Who Called LGBTQ+ People a ‘Deviant Group’, HRC.org, October 25, 2023
- New House Speaker Mike Johnson used to be top counsel for anti-LGBTQ hate group, Salon.com, October 26, 2023