Carbon Hill Mayor Mark Chambers – City of Carbon Hill.
The mayor of a small city in Alabama has issued an apology after calling for the killing of gay people.
Mark Chambers, the mayor of Carbon Hill, Ala., a small city of less than 2,000 people, wrote a Facebook post in which he complained about people on the political left.
“We live in a society where homosexuals lecture us on morals, transvestites lecture us on human biology, baby killers lecture us on human rights and socialists lecture us on economics,” he wrote in the post, which has since been removed from Facebook.
In response to the original post, one of Chambers’ friends wrote: “By giving the minority more rights than the majority. I hate to think of the country my grandkids will live in unless somehow we change and I think that will take a revolution.”
Chambers replied: “The only way to change it would be to kill the problem out. I know it’s bad to say but without killing them out there’s no way to fix it.”
When Chambers was confronted by local news station WBRC about the Facebook comments, he initially denied writing them.
Upon further questioning, Chambers finally acknowledged writing the post, but said it was being taken out of context.
He also said that he had mistakenly posted the comment publicly, instead of as a private message to the friend in question.
While speaking with WBRC, Chambers spoke about immigrants, calling them “ungrateful” and saying they were taking over the country. He expressed his belief about a possible forthcoming civil war in the United States along ideological lines.
He defended his comments, saying: “I never said anything about killing out gays or anything like that.”
When a WBRC reporter read aloud the post, Chambers responded: “That’s in a revolution. That’s right! If it comes to a revolution in this country both sides of these people will be killed out.”
Chambers has since changed the settings for his Facebook page to private.
He said he was not concerned about criticism from his constituents, claiming there is only one person in the town who does not like him and that he does not have a problem with anyone.
According to the Daily Mountain Eagle, Chambers later posted an apology on his page.
“I would like to make a public apology to my community, I and I alone am responsible for the comment that was made. It is not a reflection of the Carbon Hill City Council, or any City Personnel or Citizens,” he wrote.
“Although I believe my comment was taken out of context and was not targeting the LGBTQ community, I know it was wrong to say anybody should be kill (sic),” he added. “I am truly sorry that I have embarrassed our City. … There are not enough words for me to express how much a regret posting that comment. I hope very much our Citizens and anyone that was hurt by this comment can accept my apology.”
After years of playing while closeted, Jesse Kortuem says the HBO series Heated Rivalry helped him finally reconcile his identity with the sport he loves.
Jesse Kortuem, a hockey player who has competed in several adult leagues but never at the professional level, says he was inspired to come out after watching HBO's Heated Rivalry, a romance centered on closeted gay hockey players.
In a Facebook post, Kortuem recalled growing up in Minnesota as the youngest of four boys and playing hockey from a young age, while struggling to reconcile his love for the sport with his sexuality.
"To any hockey player, the sounds of the rink and the feel of cold air are unmistakable. The slapshots, the pucks hitting the boards, the skates carving fresh ice, and the high-pitched clang of a puck hitting the post bring immense comfort," Kortuem wrote. "For a long time, however, the rink did not feel like a place where I could be all of me. I felt I had to hide parts of myself for far too long."
A transgender woman has filed a lawsuit against hotel giant Hilton, alleging that she was assaulted by a security guard at the Hilton Dallas Lincoln Centre while she was a registered guest.
According to the complaint, filed in the 192nd Civil District Court in Dallas County, Kimberly Barnett, an Afro-Latina transgender woman from Nebraska, was staying at the hotel in late June while attending Dallas Pride Weekend and other LGBTQ events.
Barnett returned to the Hilton Dallas Lincoln Centre around 3:45 a.m. on June 24 and attempted to "valet her vehicle," according to the lawsuit.
A New York City subway rider was slashed in the face earlier this month by an unidentified assailant who took offense to him kissing his transgender partner. The attack occurred around 7:50 p.m. on January 10 aboard a southbound No. 6 train as it traveled through Manhattan.
According to police, the 28-year-old victim was kissing his partner when the suspect began shouting anti-gay slurs. The verbal abuse quickly escalated into a physical confrontation. During the argument, the suspect struck the victim with a sharp object, causing a deep laceration on the right side of his face, according to New York CW affiliate WPIX.
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
The mayor of a small city in Alabama has issued an apology after calling for the killing of gay people.
Mark Chambers, the mayor of Carbon Hill, Ala., a small city of less than 2,000 people, wrote a Facebook post in which he complained about people on the political left.
“We live in a society where homosexuals lecture us on morals, transvestites lecture us on human biology, baby killers lecture us on human rights and socialists lecture us on economics,” he wrote in the post, which has since been removed from Facebook.
In response to the original post, one of Chambers’ friends wrote: “By giving the minority more rights than the majority. I hate to think of the country my grandkids will live in unless somehow we change and I think that will take a revolution.”
Chambers replied: “The only way to change it would be to kill the problem out. I know it’s bad to say but without killing them out there’s no way to fix it.”
When Chambers was confronted by local news station WBRC about the Facebook comments, he initially denied writing them.
Upon further questioning, Chambers finally acknowledged writing the post, but said it was being taken out of context.
He also said that he had mistakenly posted the comment publicly, instead of as a private message to the friend in question.
While speaking with WBRC, Chambers spoke about immigrants, calling them “ungrateful” and saying they were taking over the country. He expressed his belief about a possible forthcoming civil war in the United States along ideological lines.
He defended his comments, saying: “I never said anything about killing out gays or anything like that.”
When a WBRC reporter read aloud the post, Chambers responded: “That’s in a revolution. That’s right! If it comes to a revolution in this country both sides of these people will be killed out.”
Chambers has since changed the settings for his Facebook page to private.
He said he was not concerned about criticism from his constituents, claiming there is only one person in the town who does not like him and that he does not have a problem with anyone.
According to the Daily Mountain Eagle, Chambers later posted an apology on his page.
“I would like to make a public apology to my community, I and I alone am responsible for the comment that was made. It is not a reflection of the Carbon Hill City Council, or any City Personnel or Citizens,” he wrote.
“Although I believe my comment was taken out of context and was not targeting the LGBTQ community, I know it was wrong to say anybody should be kill (sic),” he added. “I am truly sorry that I have embarrassed our City. … There are not enough words for me to express how much a regret posting that comment. I hope very much our Citizens and anyone that was hurt by this comment can accept my apology.”
More from Metro Weekly: