Oregon’s newest Republican lawmaker says LGBTQ+ support is akin to child abuse

Oregon has a new member in its House of Representatives, and he's OK with being called a "Christian Nationalist." He also thinks “the ever-expanding alphabet movement" is discriminating against his religion.

Dwayne Yunker was appointed to his seat in December after Republican Rep. Lily Morgan resigned to become the city manager of Gold Hill, according to the Oregon Capital Chronicle. Several posts from his campaign website have resurfaced in light of his appointment, highlighting his self-professed "homophonic" record.

In a post from August titled “No to Gay Pride Month,” Yunker ranted about why he chose to skip the beginning of a Grants Pass City Council meeting, of which he is a member, to protest their recognition of June as LGBTQ+ Pride Month.

In the post, he likened the support of queer people to "child abuse." He said that drag shows "clearly attempt to make pedophilia seem acceptable," and that LGBTQ+ people want to add pedophiles to the community acronym, claims that have long been debunked.

“It is shocking that any adult would endorse this child abuse,” he wrote. “Therefore, on June 7, I did not attend the beginning of the Grants Pass City Council meeting. I will not be a part of or stand next to anyone who supports these abuses.”

Yunker expanded on his anti-Pride beliefs in a subsequent post titled “Shouldn’t Christians avoid politics?” in which he claimed that LGBTQ+ people are not discriminated against in society, and that it is instead “the ever-expanding alphabet movement" that discriminates against Christians.

“We cannot sit out afraid someone might call us right wing, homophonic [sic], or even Christian Nationalists,” he continued.

Kyndall Mason, executive director of Basic Rights Oregon, said that the group was shocked by the "hateful and false" statements from Yunker, as well as "alarmed to learn that they are still on his campaign website, and are from less than a year ago.”

“The uninformed, hateful and false ideas written in Rep. Yunker’s blog posts are deeply dangerous, and will direct more hate to these constituents and all trans and queer Oregonians,” Mason said in a statement via the Chronicle.