The Colorado Republican Party said it supports a social media post that called for all Pride flags to be burned this week as the LGBTQ+ community celebrates the start of Pride Month.
“Let’s burn all #Pride flags in June,” the state Republican Party said. X wrote in his post, The party also sent out an email blast Monday, formerly known as Twitter, aimed at Pride Month.
“June is upon us and the atheists in our society are once again attacking what is decent, holy and righteous, and ultimately seeking to harm our children,” said the email, signed by party chairman Dave Williams.
The chairman said in an email to USA Today on Wednesday that the state Republican Party “makes no apologies” for its messaging.
“We make no apologies for saying that God hates Pride and the Pride flag because it hurts children and undermines parental authority. The only backlash we’ve seen has come from radical Democrats, the fake news media and weak Republicans who succumb to the left-wing cancel culture,” Williams said.
The Colorado Republican Party’s message is the latest incident targeting the LGBTQ+ community as Pride Month kicks off. In Carlisle, Massachusetts, more than 200 pride flags were stolen just days before a local pride event. Last June, pride flags were stolen, ripped, or burned in several states.
Colorado Republican Party under fire for anti-LGBTQ+ posts
Politicians from both parties have condemned the Colorado Republican Party’s anti-LGBTQ+ messaging this week.
“To those in the back, the two parties are not the same,” Colorado Democratic Party Chairman Shad Murib said in a post on X. “This kind of vile hatred has become the hallmark of the Colorado Republican Party, and that’s why we’re organizing from top to bottom of the ballot to defeat them at every level.”
Valdemar Archuleta, Colorado state president of the conservative LGBTQ+ advocacy group Log Cabin Republicans and a Republican congressional candidate, responded to the email by declining the party’s endorsement and saying it doesn’t reflect Republican voters in the state.
“I have been a vocal critic of the direction Pride celebrations have taken in recent years and have been a strong supporter of protecting children from adult environments and entertainment, but this email went too far and was simply hateful,” Archuleta said.
The state Republican Party chairman said Archuleta still has the party’s support as the “presumptive nominee.” Williams added that Archuleta should withdraw from the race if he does not want the party’s nomination.
A series of anti-LGBTQ+ incidents occurred last June.
According to the Human Rights Campaign, the largest LGBTQ+ rights organization in the U.S., more than 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were proposed in 2023. In June 2023, the organization declared a “state of emergency” after more than 75 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were passed across the U.S., more than double the number in 2022.
There were several incidents of Pride flags being stolen or destroyed last year. Before a Pride Day gathering at an elementary school in North Hollywood, California, authorities said someone broke into the school and set a small LGBTQ+ flag on fire.
In Omaha, Nebraska, a masked man set fire to a Pride flag flying outside a home on June 2, 2023. The next day, police arrested a teenage boy for allegedly tearing up a Pride flag when he pulled it down from a home in Huntington Beach, California.
In Tempe, Arizona, authorities said someone took down and burned a Pride flag outside City Hall. In Pennsylvania, a Pride flag from a candy store has been stolen multiple times, and there have been a number of Pride flag thefts around Salt Lake City.
Contributors: Thao Nguyen and Amanda Lee Myers, USA TODAY
