On Saturday, anti-gay Religious Right activists rallied in Montgomery in support of Alabama Supreme court chief justice Roy Moore, who has been suspended from his position by the state’s judicial inquiry committee for attempting to defy federal court rulings on marriage equality.
The event kicked off with a prayer from pastor Rusty Johnson, who called upon God to not only bless the rally and Justice Moore, but also “to stand against this militant homosexual movement that is invading our land, stand against the demonic influences that have come not only to the state of Alabama but across the United States of America” by granting to Christians “the power and authority” to “cast these wicked spirits out of our society.”
Kayla Moore, who is the wife of Justice Moore and currently runs the the Foundation for Moral Law that he started, delivered the keynote address, during which she spent several minutes attacking Ambrosia Starling, a drag queen who was a member of the coalition that filed a complaint against Moore.
Conflating Moore’s suspension with the current right-wing outrage over transgender equality, Moore declared that she will not stand by and watch as men are allowed to enter the restroom with one of her granddaughters, which then prompted her to voice her outrage that her husband has been removed from the bench based on a complaint filed by “a man dressed as a woman.”
“This man dresses as a woman, with makeup, a blonde wig, a dress, jewelry and calls himself a drag queen,” Moore complained, as she demanded that the press investigate and expose him. “He works a regular job during the day and, at night, dresses as a woman and goes into nightclubs and bars. Now, I ask the press, who is he? Who is this man who hides his true identity? I charge you, find out who he is and let us know.”
After declaring that her husband did not serve in Vietnam to protect the rights of people like Starling “because up to the last couple of years ago, it was a mental illness,” she then read a reworked version of Martin Niemöller’s famous “First They Came For The Socialists” anti-Nazi quote.
“First they came for the bakers, but we sat back because we don’t bake cakes. Then they came for the florists and we sat back because we don’t arrange flowers. Then they came for the clerks and the judges and we sat back because we don’t issue marriage licenses and we don’t judge. But then they came for me and there was no one left to defend me.”
