The Broward County, Florida chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans, a gay GOP group, published a highly-offensive and irresponsible ad featuring an image of murdered Ambassador Chris Stevens‘ body, and attacking President Obama for not protecting “Gay/gay friendly American citizens.” Despite rumors from the radical right, there is no evidence or confirmation that Ambassador Stevens was gay, nor should the Obama administration’s role be to protect only “Gay/gay friendly American citizens,” but all American citizens, at home and abroad.
“If the Obama Administration isn’t going to protect Gay/gay friendly American citizens from the terror of Islamic radicalism, what makes you think they will protect us from Shariah law… ANYWHERE?,” the ad, parroting Tea Party and anti-Muslim rhetoric, reads, apparently channeling hate groups like those of Pamela Geller.
“Israel, regardless of anyone’s sexual orientation, is the one beacon of hope in the Middle East defending our communities human rights,” the advertisement, which was published in the Florida Agenda, an LBGT paper, adds. A source states that at least one other Florida paper declined the ad.
The ad gets so many issues — and spelling — wrong, and perpetuates the right wing’ false assertions that Ambassador Stevens body was dragged through the streets of Benghazi, when he was actually being taken to a hospital.
The ad is being denounced by the Stonewall Democrats, who stated:
“The Broward Log Cabin Republican Club of Florida has cravenly disrespected the life and legacy of a United States civil servant with this ad. Put bluntly, they have crossed the line of civil discourse and good taste by including an image of the corpse of slain US Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens being carried through the streets of Benghazi, Libya. “Their shameless and callous use of the image of Ambassador Stevens’ body aside, the confused hatchet men at Log Cabin are conflating a number of unrelated issues in order to attack Democrats and President Obama. First, they latch onto right-wing rumors that Ambassador Stevens was gay and then they insinuate that President Obama is responsible for the attack because he did not protect the Ambassador from ‘Sharia Law’.
“Then, in a very bizarre turn, they state their support for Israel as a ‘beacon of hope’ in the Middle East and urge voters to, ‘support Israel in this hour of darkness: vote Republican!’ It is simply unimaginable to me how any political message, let alone the muddy and ludicrous message of this ad, in any way justifies disgracing the memory of a man who gave his life in service to his country. This level of depravity and moral indifference must not be allowed to enter our political discourse. “We call upon the Broward Log Cabin Republican Club of Florida to retract this ad and apologize to Floridians for subjecting them to this sort of degenerate messaging. We also call upon Log Cabin Republicans national office to repudiate this ad for the partisan detritus that it is.”
National Log Cabin Republicans president R. Clarke Cooper denounced the ad as “obscene,” “fallacious, simple minded and irresponsible,” and said he is “deeply embarrassed,” according to a report by Joe Jervis.
The Broward County Log Cabin Republicans support Congressman Allen West, who is both extremely anti-Islam and anti-gay. In 2009, they co-hosted an event where West was a key guest speaker. And last summer, the Broward County Log Cabin Republicans, unlike other local Florida LGBT groups and allies, refused to denounce West after he labeled a gay group, “intolerable individuals.â€