The Republican Party of Colorado has called for all pride flags to be burned in addition to other attacks on the LGBT community in the state.
In a mass email titled “God Hates Pride,” signed by state party Chairman Dave Williams, the Colorado GOP began Pride Month with statements referencing “godless groomers” and a call to burn all pride flags. The posts were some of the harshest anti-gay rhetoric seen from the party, according to News 9.
“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,” Williams said in the email, alongside a picture with the words “God Hates Flags,” a nod to a derogatory term used against gay people.
A social media post from the Colorado Republican Party on X said, “Burn all the #pride flags this June.”
Williams defended the party’s post and email in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
“We make no apologies for saying God hates pride or pride flags as it’s an agenda that harms children and undermines parental authority, and 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,” Williams said.
Valdamar Archuleta, a Republican running for Congress in Colorado’s 1st Congressional District, distanced himself from the party’s sentiments. He said he could not accept the party’s endorsement due to the email calling it “just hateful” and “disgusting and offensive.”
“The morons running our state party made it extremely hard for some of us to accomplish our goals for Liberty,” Archuleta posted on X.
Archuleta, who is gay, told Colorado Public Radio he wasn’t surprised by the party’s messaging after it released similar sentiments last year. He said the anti-gay rhetoric is dangerous not only for gay Republicans but for those with friends or family members who are gay.
“They’re going to take it personally, and even if they don’t, it’s just a bad message to send out,” he said. “It’s [also] going to make it harder for everyone running in Colorado as a Republican because everyone’s going to have to face the question of how they feel about this email.”
Williams said Archuleta will still have the support of the party.
“Archuleta is the presumptive nominee in an overwhelmingly Democrat-heavy district, so we will, of course, continue to highlight his candidacy,” he said.
State Rep. Richard Holtorf of Akron, who is running in the GOP primary for the 4th Congressional District, agreed with Archuleta that the message was made in poor taste.
“I don’t think it’s something the state party should be doing,” Holtorf told Colorado Public Radio. “We should be focused on supporting Republicans, not submitting statements against Pride Month or promoting a slate of GOP candidates.”
Colorado Democrats also piled on the fallout from the chairman’s email.
“This type of vile hatred has come to define the Colorado GOP,” Colorado Democratic Party Chairman Shad Murib posted on X. “It’s why we’re organizing up and down the ballot to beat them at all levels.”
For those in the back, both parties are NOT the same.
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. https://t.co/Et99Pi6qFz
— Shad Murib
(@ShadMurib) June 3, 2024
Rep. David Ortiz, a Democrat who served in Afghanistan and is the state’s first bisexual legislator, said the Colorado GOP has “more in common with the Taliban than the founding fathers.”
“LGBTQ folks served and serve in the military. We are cops, we are firefighters, we are your family members and neighbors,” Ortiz wrote on X. “We will outlast your bigotry and hate.”
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Fellow Republicans have called for Williams to resign. Using resources from the state party, Williams has launched his run in Colorado’s 5th Congressional District and has received the endorsement of former President Donald Trump. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) endorsed his opponent, Jeff Crank, making the race one of two for House seats where Johnson and Trump deviated in their endorsements.
Williams’s anti-gay sentiments are out of line with Trump’s, who recognized Pride Month for the first time in 2019.
