Gay rights foes have launched a
petition to counter an effort to cancel TLC's reality show 19 Kids
and Counting over its stars' opposition to gay rights.
19 Kids and Counting focuses on
Christians Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, who live in Tontitown,
Arkansas with their 19 children, all of whose names begin with the
letter “J.”
Over the summer, Michelle Duggar
unsuccessfully lobbied against passage of an LGBT-inclusive
anti-discrimination ordinance in Fayetteville, Arkansas. She warned
in a robocall that the ordinance would allow men to enter public
restrooms and sexually assault women and children. “I don’t
believe the citizens of Fayetteville would want males with past child
predator convictions that claim they are female to have a legal right
to enter private areas that are reserved for women and girls,”
Michelle Duggar said. More recently, Jim Bob and Michelle asked “all
married couples” on Facebook to share photos of themselves kissing.
When same-sex couples responded, most of their images were deleted.
“The Duggars have been using their
fame to promote discrimination, hate and fear-mongering against gays
and transgender people,” Jim
Wissick's change.org petition against the Duggars reads. “You
need to take a stand on the side of justice and cancel their show.”
He added that the Duggars are
bankrolling an effort to repeal Fayetteville's ordinance.
Wissick's campaign to ditch 19 Kids
has led to a counter petition in support of the Duggar family.
A
#DefendTheDuggars petition launched by LifeSiteNews has received
more than 182,000 signatures as of Monday morning. That's more
support than Wissick's petition, which has more than 164,000
signatures.
In calling on supporters to sign the
petition, Christian conservative American Family Association (AFA)
said that the Duggar family was under attack by “rabid homosexual
activists” who have launched a “hate-filled” petition.
“Rabid homosexual activists have made
America’s favorite family enemy Number One,” the AFA said in an
email to supporters. “The Duggar Family from TLC network’s
19 Kids and Counting has shared their strong Christian faith
with millions of families across America for years. They are
unashamedly pro-life and Christ-centered. Because of their
uncompromising stand on marriage and abstinence, the homosexual lobby
has drawn a bully bead on Jim and Michelle Duggar. Gay activists are
publicly labeling Jim and Michelle with words like 'ignorance' and
'fear mongering.' In the past week, homosexuals launched a very
frightening and fast-growing petition asking TLC to cancel 19 Kids
and Counting. Already, their hate-filled petition has gathered
130,000 signatures, thanks to the liberal media’s propaganda
machine.”
[UPDATE: Life Site News' Dustin Siggins
points out that AFA has its own
petition in support of the Duggar family, though an original
email linked back to Life Site's petition.]