Over the past few weeks, the mainstream media has been getting a little worried. This year, “Pride Month” is getting substantially more backlash than it usually does. Some sports players have stated that they do not want to wear LGBT jerseys or participate in LGBT events. Canada has had several of the largest protests against gender ideology it has ever seen – within a single week. Dissident journalists and public intellectuals are pushing back, with several high-profile victories – in state legislatures and the U.K.’s National Health Service – adding fuel to the fire.
I’ve noted before in this space that the mainstream media publishes propaganda for the LGBT movement constantly – but as it becomes clear that issues they insisted were “not up for debate” are, in fact, being debated, they’re adding another tactic: publishing explainers so that their viewers and readers can understand how ignorant they are, become enlightened, and join them on the Right Side of History.
The Toronto Star, for example, has responded to several sports players showing signs of discomfort with LGBT ideology by publishing a column titled: “Sports teams should be looking at Pride events as opportunities to learn, experts say.” That is, when people express their disagreement, this should be seen as the perfect time to initiate re-education. Some excerpts:
The controversies surrounding Pride celebrations in professional sports should serve as an opportunity for teams and players to get educated about LGBTQ rights, experts say…
The NHL was in the spotlight on several occasions during its regular season when some players refused to wear Pride warm-up jerseys. Brothers Eric and Marc Staal, of the Florida Panthers, and San Jose Sharks goalie James Reimer cited Christian beliefs as their reason not to participate. Some players from Russia mention the country’s strict anti-LGBTQ laws and the fear of repercussions for taking part…
Teams are well within their rights to ask players to wear warm-up jerseys with Pride signs on them, said Simon Darnell, an associate professor of sports for development and peace at the University of Toronto. There’s no violation of a player’s rights as long as there’s no penalty for those who choose not to participate. But those refusals of Pride celebrations are illustrative of the fact that homophobia could still be an issue in pro sports today, he said.
To summarize: declining to wear the symbols of an ideology you disagree with physically on your person is an indication of hatred that must be purged – but you’re in luck. LGBT activists, in their magnanimity, are willing to seize the day. “I think these players are on the wrong side of history, unfortunately,” Darnell told the Star. “Athletes can do what they want, they have the right not to participate. But it seems like there’s an educational moment there that could be embraced.”
The unspoken implication: or else. Anthony Bass, the Blue Jays pitcher who issued a grovelling apology after indicating his support for the Target boycott, was still booed on the field and then sidelined by his team.
Another explainer comes from TIME, once one of America’s most prestigious news magazines (and one I grew up reading). In response to the battles unfolding in state legislatures across the country, they have published “How to Talk to Your Kids About Gender,” in which they make the case that parents simply are not qualified to talk to their children about gender and that “experts” should be put in charge of this task, instead. And who do you think they have in mind? LGBT activists:
‘When you take the job of education around complex issues out of the hands of experts and educators, you are leaving parents and caregivers and guardians to do jobs that they aren’t qualified to do,’ says Melanie Willingham-Jaggers, executive director of GLSEN, an organization advocating for affirming learning environments for LGBTQ youth.
