Planting Peace Pokes Fun at Mississippi’s Law, but Offers Strong Support for LGBT Youth
With the state capitol building in the background, a Jackson, Mississippi billboard now spreads an amusing yet pointed message mocking Governor Phil Bryant‘s anti-LGBT law. The Republican governor Tuesday signed into law a hate-based “religious freedom” bill that allows those who claim to have sincerely held religious beliefs the right to deny service to LGBT people, especially same-sex couples.
“Guys, I said I hate figs, and to love thy neighbor,” the electronic billboard reads, with an image of Jesus holding his head in shame. Love is spelled with a heart.
The billboard is the quick-thinking response of a worldwide non-profit organization, Planting Peace, and its president, Aaron Jackson.Â
“The intent of this billboard is to bring awareness to how the anti-LGBT movement continues to try to move us backwards in the fight for equal rights,” Jackson told NCRM in an email today. “Like many other anti-LGBT groups, Governor Bryant and Mississippi legislators are sighting ‘religious objections’ as a validation for discrimination and being extremely selective in their definition of ‘traditional’ institutions or values. It’s important to bring awareness to this fact, because these actions have never been simply about a political or religious debate.”
Jackson, whose recent project included traveling to Antarctica and planting LGBT equality flags in the snow, among penguins, has a special message for LGBTQ youth.
“There are LGBT youth across the world who are taking their lives at an alarming rate because of these messages that make them feel broken or less than,” Jackson told NCRM. “We have to meet intolerance with compassion. Our message to our LGBT youth: You are loved, valued, supported, and beautiful. There is nothing wrong with you, and we will stand by you. You are not alone. We will keep sharing this message as long as we need to to counter hateful actions designed to infringe on people’s basic human rights and dignity.”
On their website, Planting Peace writes, “we are making a bold statement to show how ridiculous these laws are, and to bring attention to the need for equality. Our latest billboard sends a message about literal interpretations of the bible and addresses some of the hateful, homophobic language anti-LGBT hate groups often feature on their protest signs. In Matthew 21: 18-22, Jesus literally curses a fig tree. But we don’t see a lot of ‘God Hates Figs’ protests or cries for stronger legislation regulating figs. It’s heartbreaking to see in this day and age groups are still fighting so hard to restrict basic human rights of others based on claims of religious freedom. We want to be sure the opposing voice is heard.”
Planting Peace, which Jackson co-founded in 2003, famously bought a house across the street from the anti-gay hate group Westboro Baptist Church, and painted it in rainbow colors. Equality House now stands “as a visible reminder” to WBC members in in Topeka, Kansas, of the organization’s “commitment, as global citizens, to equality for all.”
The humanitarian organization calls itself a “global nonprofit organization founded for the purpose of spreading peace in a hurting world,” and says their “projects focus primarily on humanitarian aid and environmental initiatives, including our multi-national deworming campaign, Equality House LGBTQ rights advocacy, a network of orphanages and safe havens, and conservation effort in the rainforests of Peru.”
You can make a donation to the group here.
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Images via Planting Peace