This week, in a fundraising email and several social media posts criticizing Pride Month, the Colorado Republican Party demanded that LGBTQ Pride banners be destroyed, branding LGBTQ Americans as “godless groomers.”
The state GOP posted on social media on Monday, saying, “Burn all the #pride flags this June.” The party spread the myth that LGBTQ individuals are “grooming” children to mistreat them in an email received earlier on Monday with the subject line, “God Hates Pride.”
“The month of June has arrived and, once again, the godless groomers in our society want to attack what is decent, holy, and righteous so they can ultimately harm our children,” the email reads.
State Republican Party Chair Dave Williams, a candidate for Congress, signs the party’s statement, which contains a link to a sermon delivered by evangelical preacher Mark Driscoll, who is well-known for his anti-LGBTQ beliefs.
Former President Trump has endorsed Williams’ bid for Colorado’s 5th Congressional District. Williams is battling a strong primary fight from conservative podcast personality Jeff Crank, who received Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.)’s endorsement in May.
Notably, Colorado Springs, which is part of Colorado’s 5th District, saw a mass shooting at an LGBTQ nightclub in 2022 that left five people dead and over twenty-six injured. Survivors connected Republican-backed legislation and “extreme anti-LGBTQI+ rhetoric” to the Club Q attack.
The Colorado Republican Party “makes no apologies for saying God hates pride or pride flags as it’s an agenda that harms children and undermines parental authority,” Williams said in a statement to The Hill.
“The only backlash we see is coming from radical Democrats, the fake news media, and weak Republicans who bow down at the feet of leftist cancel culture,” he stated.
In response to the email on Monday, Valdamar Archuleta, a Republican candidate for Congress and the president of the Log Cabin Republicans’ Colorado chapter, retracted the party’s endorsement.
Read Also: Florida’s LGBTQ+ Community Gains Momentum as Pride Month Begins
A list of more than 100 approved candidates for Congress, state legislature, and statewide office was made public earlier this month by the state Republican Party. Running in Colorado’s firmly blue First Congressional District, Archuleta was still listed as of Wednesday afternoon.
“I have been an avid critic of where the celebration of Pride has gone in recent years and firm supporter of protecting children from environments and entertainments that are of an adult nature. However, this email went too far and was just hateful,” he stated on Tuesday.
“This email does NOT Represent the Republican voters of Colorado,” he added.
Similar conflicts arose between the state GOP and Archuleta and the Log Cabin Republicans during Pride Month of last year, when the party sent supporters an email with the subject line “Pride is evil.”
Democrats from the state also denounced the GOP’s social media and email statements.
“This type of vile hatred has come to define the CO GOP and it’s why we’re organizing up and down the ballot to beat them at all levels,” Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib stated on X.
“What a ridiculous mailer. Governor Polis is focused on creating a Colorado for All where everyone can thrive no matter who they love or how they identify,” the spokesperson stated. “The Governor looks forward to celebrating Pride Month alongside his fellow Coloradans and will not let the incoherent ramblings of a politician stand in the way.”
