Fact-checking the HRC’s flimsy, last-ditch push to pass the Equality Act

As the Equality Act falls off the radar and appears to be dead in the water, Human Rights Campaign is doubling down, launching an initiative to resurrect the defunct legislation.

In late February, HRC announced its Reality Flag campaign, described as “an ambitious, nationwide public awareness campaign to highlight the many basic freedoms missing for LGBTQ+ people in states across the country, and to galvanize public support for the Equality Act.” Being a gay man who closely follows the dysfunction and derangement of the gay community on social media, I almost completely missed the announcement of this new campaign.

The seemingly disingenuous and prematurely self-congratulatory campaign takes aim at 29 states that HRC describes as “lacking comprehensive protections for LGBTQ+ people.” To drive this point home, HRC designed a new version of the American flag removing 29 stars–suggesting those states are not worthy of being part of America. It is important to note, first off, this might be illegal. U.S. law states, “Whoever knowingly casts contempt upon any flag of the United States by publicly mutilating, defacing, defiling, burning, or trampling upon it shall be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.” I’d say symbolically removing states from the union because you disagree might be knowingly casting contempt upon the flag.

Something else struck me. It’s truly baffling how the radical left can change their position on the American flag so quickly. Many progressives have deemed our nation’s flag as a symbol of racism, labeling those who wave it “white supremacists.” Now, as midterm elections draw near and the smell of war with Russia is in the air, HRC embraces patriotism and flag waving, but only if certain states are removed.

The Reality Flag campaign uses stories of real LGBT people to push the Equality Act agenda. These stories are meant to evoke anger and fear over the false notion that we are somehow treated as subhuman in our country. As HRC is wont to do, the organization is pushing propaganda.

The top-billed story of discrimination for the campaign is, at face value, terrible and unfortunate, but seeing as though it occurred over six years ago in December 2015, during the Obama administration, it is certainly not indicative of the current state of the country. Staci Jenkins, a Navy vet, suffered from a debilitating neurological disorder forcing her to see a specialist in Minnesota. Jenkins alleges that she was discriminated against when the doctor refused to treat her upon discovering that she was a lesbian and had a wife.

I reached out to Jenkins personally, and she graciously answered a few of my questions. As it turns out, the story as written by HRC is vague and contains inaccuracies. HRC states that the neurologist in question practiced in Michigan, not Minnesota. However, Jenkins clarified to me personally that she has never lived in Michigan and that the clinic was located in Lakeville, Minn. Moreover, HRC writes that upon learning that Jenkins was a lesbian, “the doctor physically recoiled” and “refused to examine Jenkins.” As the story was recounted to me by Jenkins, the doctor did continued to examine her but did not do so thoroughly, she says. The doctor then proceeded to give a diagnosis. Jenkins claims that she notified her primary care doctor of the alleged discrimination, but she never considered legal action.

There is no proof of Jenkins’ allegations of discrimination, and I am in no position to call her a liar, but HRC is falsely claiming that there is an issue here that the Equality Act will solve. There is no current legal standing in the state of Minnesota for a medical professional to deny service to a member of the LGBT community. In fact, Minnesota does not even recognize religious exemptions for medical professionals to deny service. Jenkins already had legal recourse to sue the doctor for discrimination, but she chose not to.

The other story HRC is pushing in hopes to sell us on the need for the Equality Act involves a trans woman who goes by the name Queen. Elle magazine recently dedicated an article to Queen’s story of being evicted for being trans. Queen was allegedly renting a home for several years and the home required some maintenance. When the landlord came to address the issue, he discovered that Queen was a trans woman. Queen claims that very soon after that, the landlord gave notice that the property would be sold, and Queen had to vacate.

In the Elle article, Queen says regarding the landlord, “We had a lease agreement, but he knew I couldn’t afford a lawyer.” This appears to be an outright admission that what the landlord did was illegal; therefore, passing the Equality Act would in no way have changed the outcome of this scenario.

If these stories were true, they indicate intolerance and evil still exist in the world. That is not news to anyone, and no legislation will eradicate hatred and bigotry. You cannot legislate decency and acceptance. Passing the Equality Act will not magically change people’s opinions. HRC is using unverifiable stories to tug at heartstrings, fundraise, and play on our emotions to bolster the Equality Act–a piece of legislation that pushes radical gender ideology and rolls back women’s rights. It is beyond reprehensible for HRC to propagandize personal tragedy for political gain. The organization is dishonestly promising that the Equality Act will be a silver bullet against discrimination that is already illegal. In reality, HRC is simply pushing propaganda for the leftist agenda and carrying water for the Democratic Party.