Texas State Senator Charles Perry Speaks at Virulently Anti-Muslim Conference Where ISIS is Called 鈥淭rue Islam鈥�
The anti-Muslim media group known as Christian Reporter News hosted a 鈥淗omeland Terrorism Conference鈥� in San Angelo, Texas, on Saturday that was attended by around 50 people.聽
The gathering brought together a number of Islamophobic speakers, a virulently anti-LGBT pastor 鈥� and Charles Perry, a newly elected Texas state senator representing District 28 who apparently was not put off by hours of hard-line Muslim-bashing.
Joe Carey, president and co-founder of the anti-Muslim Radical Truth Ministry (RTN), spoke twice at the event. RTN calls Islam 鈥渢he greatest challenge to the church in today鈥檚 world鈥� due to the religion 鈥済rowing at an alarming rate through both evangelistic efforts and biological reproduction.鈥� RTN鈥檚 website refers to 鈥渢he truths of Christianity found in the Bible against the lies of Satan found in the Qur鈥檃n, masquerading as truth,鈥� and describes Islam as 鈥渢he greatest deception ever given to humankind.鈥�
Carey鈥檚 remarks at the event echoed the virulently anti-Muslim sentiments found on his group鈥檚 website. 鈥淚slam is the only religious system of which I am aware that actually gives religious sanction to domestic violence,鈥� he said. He also described ISIS, the extremist group behind numerous atrocities in North Africa and elsewhere, as representing 鈥渢rue Islam.鈥�
In his second speech, Carey offered his theory as to why some Americans in prison are converting to Islam. 鈥淚slam provides religious sanction for some of the very behaviors that landed these people in prison to begin with,鈥� he said. He added, 鈥淭hey convert to Islam because Islam gives them religious sanction for robbery. That鈥檚 what Mohammed did.鈥�
During a Q&A session following Carey鈥檚 second speech, someone asked if it is common for wealthy Muslim men to keep male sex slaves. Carey called that dubious claim 鈥渙ne of the deep dark and hidden secrets in Islam. It鈥檚 something that鈥檚 done that鈥檚 not talked about.鈥� Carey then said that Muslim men seek to marry virgins, although men face no such restrictions. 鈥淪o if they [the men]are not having sex with women, who are they having sex with?鈥� Carey demanded. Attendees responded by yelling out 鈥渄onkeys鈥� and 鈥済oats,鈥� bringing a roar of laughter that filled the room. Carey responded to this by smirking and saying, 鈥淕od, I鈥檒l just leave it at that!鈥�
State Sen. Charles Perry also addressed the crowd before lunch. Perry did not discuss Islam at length but did compare it to Christianity. 鈥淚 will not kill you if you choose not to come along with me as a Christian,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat is fundamentally different than Islam. And we miss that, we won鈥檛 say that in public anymore.鈥� He went on in the same vein, adding, 鈥淲e don鈥檛 come out and cut your heads off if you don鈥檛 subscribe to it [Christianity].鈥�
Perry also lambasted the Supreme Court鈥檚 June that the Constitution guarantees a right to same-sex marriage. 鈥淲e have a lifestyle a few weeks ago that is now called a right,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a lifestyle. A choice. It鈥檚 contrary to what my faith says it should be, but it鈥檚 not a right.鈥�
After lunch, anti-LGBT pastor Dr. Steven Branson of the Village Parkway Baptist Church in San Antonio spoke. Branson came to prominence a few years ago, when he supported claims by Air Force Sgt. Phillip Monk that Monk was reassigned for making his opposition to same-sex marriage known.
According to , Branson has a long history of anti-LGBT activism, and he lauded a number of anti-LGBT hate groups and extremists in his speech. He called , now the executive vice president of the gay-bashing (FRC), 鈥渢he greatest warrior in the last 30 years in American history.鈥� Since his retirement from many decades of distinguished service in the military, Boykin has entrenched himself in anti-Muslim and anti-LGBT circles. In 2010, he said that Islam 鈥渟hould not be protected under the First Amendment, particularly given that those following the dictates of the Quran are under an obligation to destroy our Constitution and replace it with sharia law.鈥� As any constitutional scholar or even police officer knows, Islam is protected by the First Amendment.
Branson also sang the praises of , head of the FRC, which the Southern Poverty Law Center lists as a hate group, calling Perkins a 鈥済ood man.鈥� Perkins is known for claims like the one he made in a 2010 article on the FRC site: 鈥淲hile activists like to claim that pedophilia is a completely distinct orientation from homosexuality, evidence shows a disproportionate overlap between the two. 鈥� It is a homosexual problem.鈥� That assertion has been roundly debunked by virtually all relevant professional associations.
Branson also discussed his work with Mat Staver, who heads another anti-LGBT hate group, the . Staver has that with full marriage equality, everyone will decide to be gay and society will 鈥渃ease to exist.鈥� He also has linked homosexuality to rampant increases in disease, homosexuality to pedophilia, and claimed, also against the evidence, that homosexuality is the result of childhood sexual abuse.
The keynote speaker was Lt. Col. Roy White, leader of the San Antonio chapter of , the largest grassroots anti-Muslim group in the country. ACT! is headed nationally by, a woman prone to making sweeping generalizations and exaggerations as she describes a grand, sophisticated Muslim conspiracy bent on world domination. White called immigration a form of jihad and claimed that Muslims believe that the establishment of mosques means that they have 鈥渃onquered鈥� that area.
Unfortunately, many anti-Muslim groups and figures are given an air of legitimacy by certain media and elected officials. Instead of distancing themselves from bigotry, media outlets continue to give anti-Muslim figures a platform and elected officials at the state and local level continue to work with them. The recent event in San Angelo was no different. Despite the crystal-clear anti-Muslim agenda of many of the speakers and organizations involved, a state senator chose to speak at the event and KIDY, the local FOX affiliate for San Angelo, sponsored the conference.
