Gay Son of Ex-Klansman Runs for Office in Kansas
Gay Son of Ex-Klansman Runs for Office in Kansas
Erich Bishop, the gay son of a former Ku Klux Klan member, wants to unseat Jan Pauls, a state representative who is a Democrat but has an antigay record.
The gay son of a former Ku Klux Klansman is planning to challenge a conservative Kansas legislator in the state’s primary election this August.
Erich Bishop, 28, announced his plans today during a rally at the state capitol in Topeka, The Topeka Capital-Journal reports. He will run in the Democratic primary against state representative Jan Pauls of Hutchinson, who despite her party affiliation “has been as right-wing as any of her Republican colleagues on social issues,” the newspaper reports. She recently has backed a bill that would allow state residents to opt out of laws that conflict with their religious beliefs, such as laws prohibiting anti-LGBT discrimination.
Today’s rally was a gathering of people opposed to that bill, which has been passed by the state House of Representatives and is awaiting a vote in the Senate. Bishop, announcing his candidacy while addressing the crowd, discussed experiencing bigotry firsthand.
“My father is a former member of the Ku Klux Klan,” he said. “To call my household as a child racist and homophobic would be an understatement. My father rightly faced opposition from people like you.”
More:
http://www.advocate.com/Politics/Election/Gay_Son_of_Ex_Klansman_Runs_for_Office_in_Kansas/
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