April 28, 2021
Was a LGBTQ Publication 'Homophobic' for Story about Gay Reporter Thirsting Over Sen. Hawley? Reporter Thinks So.
READ TIME: 4 MIN.
Over at the LGBTQ website Queerty, a kerfuffle has erupted over an out reporter's tweet that addresses the line between politics and, well, desire.
It began when the Chris Johnson, an out reporter for the LGBTQ newspaper the Washington Blade, posted a tweet about Josh Hawley, the junior U.S. senator from Missouri. Johnson wrote: "I'm on Capitol Hill and just saw Sen. Hawley walk by. His chest is so built you can see it protruding from underneath his suit. I'm sorry but it's true."
Hawley has been one of the most vocal supporters of former President Donald Trump's attempt to overthrow the election by claiming alleged voter fraud. He most famously gave a thumbs up to the mob outside the Capitol on January 6, an image captured by an Associated Press photographer.
In a story published on Tuesday, Queerty's Graham Gremore asked, "The tweet came completely out of nowhere and left many people wondering: Why is the well-respected chief political reporter for one of the oldest LGBTQ newspapers in the country publicly thirsting over one of the most homophobic members of Congress?"
While Hawley may be hitting the gym enough to have caught Johnson's thirsty eye, he hasn't been much of a supporter of LGBTQ rights over the years. According to GLAAD he "claimed at a Senate hearing for the Equality Act that it would force individuals, adoption agencies, and other service providers to change [their] faith-based practices or face government punishment." He also made a floor speech against the Equality Act.
Additionally, GLAAD reports, Hawley "criticized the Supreme Court decision that bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in the workplace." And following "the Supreme Court's Obergefell marriage equality ruling, as a Republican candidate for Missouri attorney general, Hawley wanted the state legislature to exempt businesses and religious groups from participating in same-sex couples' marriage ceremonies. At the time, gay rights advocacy group PROMO said Missouri law already permitted such discrimination."
Johnson, though, was not amused by the story, and posted another tweet calling out Queerty as "homophobic" for having published it.
"There's something homophobic about this post in a gay publication," Johnson wrote, and then asked: "Isn't it part of the gay experience to pine after men who will never return those feelings, even ones who would vote against your rights?"
Queerty was perplexed, but many called Johnson out on social media, with some even calling for Johnson to be fired.
Others responded on Johnson's tweet negatively:
