Parents of transgender children want Trump's judicial nominee to apologize for 'Satan' comment

Jeff Mateer has 278 parents angry at him.

Jeff Mateer, one of Trump's nominees for the federal bench, is going to have a particularly rough hearing because of his extreme anti-LGBTQ comments. One of those comments continue to haunt him,

From Think Progress:

Many of President Trump’s judicial nominees have taken controversial positions in the past, but Jeff Mateer has expressed particularly toxic views on LGBTQ equality. In a 2015 speech — video of which has recently been deleted — he said that transgender children are evidence that “Satan’s plan is working and the destruction that’s going on.” The parents of those transgender children are responding. 

In a joint letter organized by the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE), 278 parents of transgender children from 36 states are asking Mateer to apologize or withdraw his nomination to serve on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas: 

As parents, we are deeply disturbed by your remarks stating that children like ours are evidence of “how Satan’s plan is working.” It is hard to imagine a crueler thing to say about a child. It is obvious from your remarks in 2015 that you did not know the child whose very existence you mocked. Have you ever met a transgender child like ours? If you met our families, you would know that while children like ours can face a lot of misunderstanding, there is nothing wrong with who they are. 

We believe our children are miracles, like every child — not a part of “Satan’s plan.” As every reputable medical and pediatric association agrees, there is nothing wrong with being transgender, and children like ours can grow and thrive if they are loved and supported, just like their peers. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, “transgender children fare much better when they feel supported by their family, school and larger community. Shaming children based on their gender identity or expression is harmful to their social-emotional health and may have lifelong consequences.”

For the rest of the article, go to Think Progress. I sincerely hope that Mateer apologizes for such a cruel and thoughtless comment. Either way, I think it's a good thing to keep him in the hot seat. He really had no business being nominated in the first place.

Presently, neither the Trump Administration nor members of the religious right have commented about Mateer. 

'Anti-LGBTQ hate groups attempting to bully SPLC' & other Thur midday news briefs

Anti-LGBTQ hate group Alliance Defending Freedom is leading an effort to bully SPLC.

ADF and friends: Hate group Alliance Defending Freedom is at the center of an anti-LGBTQ industry - Let's dispense with the bull, right now. The anti-LGBTQ industry does not consider being called hate groups by SPLC an honor. They are spooked over it. Why else would this be happening:

 Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) is the largest anti-LGBTQ hate group in the nation and is representing plaintiff Jack Phillips in the upcoming Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission Supreme Court case. The case may determine whether businesses serving the public have the right to discriminate against LGBTQ people under the guise of “religious” or “artistic freedom.” ADF is also currently part of a joint effort, alongside a number of other anti-LGBTQ groups and hate groups, to undermine the “hate group” designation made by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). As such it has co-signed two letters opposing the designation and formally joined an “SPLCexposed” campaign. 

The SPLCexposed webpage is a paper thin misdirection. It does NOTHING to address specific charges SPLC has lodged against these groups. And we all know why the groups WILL NOT address the following: 

18 ANTI-GAY GROUPS AND THEIR PROPAGANDA

10 ANTI-GAY MYTHS DEBUNKED 

In other news: 

Critical gay issues await Supreme Court justices - And guess what anti-LGBTQ hate groups is arguing against us in the lead case? See above. 

Transgender teen goes viral with epic retort to transphobe - Her retort was RICH!

El Salvador activist: Trump immigration policy is ‘dehumanizing’ - Awful!