The Advocate: “His record on LGBTQ+ rights is dismal”
New reporting from The Advocate slams MAGA extremist Sam Brown for his anti-LGBTQ+ record, which includes praising Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” legislation, refusing to support protections for marriage equality, and serving as the local chairman of an extreme anti-LGBTQ+ organization that strongly opposes marriage equality.
Nevada State Democratic Party Spokesperson Katharine Kurz
“MAGA extremist Sam Brown’s dangerous record is a direct threat to LGBTQ+ Nevadans and puts him, once again, squarely out of step with people in our diverse state. A senator should run to represent everyone, regardless of who they are or who they love, and Brown’s extreme record and his disregard for LGBTQ+ Nevadans is harmful and disqualifying.”
Read more about Sam Brown’s extreme anti-LGBTQ+ record below:
The Advocate: Raising the alarm about Nevada’s extremist anti-LGBTQ+ Republican U.S. Senate candidate Sam Brown
Christopher Wiggins
July 3, 2024
- As the November elections loom, and democracy and LGBTQ+ rights are on the ballot, Republican candidates around the country pose a significant threat to equality. In Nevada, that’s Sam Brown.
- Brown’s tenure as president and chairman of the Nevada Faith and Freedom Coalition demonstrates his deep entrenchment in the anti-LGBTQ+ movement. The organization has vehemently opposed marriage equality and backed legislation that permits discrimination against same-sex couples under the guise of religious liberty.
- According to the Coalition’s statements, when President Joe Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act in December 2022, the group decried it as an assault on religious freedom, a perspective that Brown has echoed.
- During his 2022 Senate campaign, Brown praised Florida’s “don’t say gay” legislation, framing it as necessary against what he described as “indoctrination” in schools.
- In 2022, after the leak of the Dobbs opinion, Brown was asked during a debate if he was concerned about same-sex marriage being taken away after Roe v. Wade was overturned. Brown refused to say he thought same-sex marriage should be protected.
- Brown also had a history of affiliations with anti-LGBTQ+ churches. Since relocating to Nevada in 2019,he has been actively involved with Calvary Chapel Reno-Sparks, where pastor Phil McKay has denounced LGBTQ+ acknowledgment as a form of idolatry. According to McKay, government support for LGBTQ+ rights is “the kind of idolatry that destroys souls.”
- Brown also had a history of affiliations with anti-LGBTQ+ churches. Since relocating to Nevada in 2019, he has been actively involved with Calvary Chapel Reno-Sparks, where pastor Phil McKay has denounced LGBTQ+ acknowledgment as a form of idolatry. According to McKay, government support for LGBTQ+ rights is “the kind of idolatry that destroys souls.”
- In contrast, Democrat Rosen, endorsed by the Human Rights Campaign, has been a stalwart defender of LGBTQ+ rights. According to the HRC, she has played a crucial role in combating anti-LGBTQ+ amendments in crucial funding legislation and in helping the Respect for Marriage Act become law.
- Rosen’s re-election is seen as pivotal in maintaining a pro-equality majority in the U.S. Senate, especially as the nation faces an onslaught of conservative efforts to roll back LGBTQ+ protections.
- The American Civil Liberties Union is tracking nearly 550 anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced by Republicans in 2024 nationwide.
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