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José Rolón, known as @nycgaydad on social media, is speaking out after a "D-list Tucker Carlson" accused him of sexcrimes without evidence.
It wasn’t long after the video went up that José Rolón began receiving threats.
As a family content creator with nearly 150,000 followers on Instagram and over 510,000 followers on TikTok, Rolón is used to attention – even the negative comments. As a gay, single father, he’s also acutely aware of the combustive political climate he must navigate while raising his three young children. Still, nothing could soften the blow of the disturbing, false accusations levied against him earlier this week.
The video was from conservative commentator Stew Peters, who Rolón said he had not previously heard of. The influencer woke up that morning to find his account, @nycgaydad, tagged in a post from the pundit accusing him – without evidence – of committing sex crimes against his children.
The video included Rolón’s full name, as well as the name of his account, which doubles as his business. Peters levied various insults throughout the clip posted to his Instagram, which has since been removed, including referring to the father as a “creep” and “pervert homo.” The host then took his defamatory statements further, accusing Rolón of “criminal sexual conduct” and calling for his public execution.
“Some pervert homo has access to at least four kids around the clock all the time,” Peters said. “He can take them to drag conventions and then post the evidence, post pictures and videos of criminal sexual conduct … and somehow not end up in jail, or better yet, the gallows.”
Peters also tagged the New York Police Department and urged them to investigate the father.
“I just couldn't believe the things that were coming out of his mouth,” Rolón told The Advocate. “He tagged the NYPD and requested for them to investigate me for not only sex crimes, but also [for me to] be met at the gallows. That, to me, is the line that was [most] shocking. … This man is actually calling for my hanging in public.”
The accusations were deeply disturbing, but Rolón said “all of this just comes down to misinformation.” He noted that many of the basic facts in Peters’ video were also incorrect, including how many children he has, and what was actually said in the clips from his account, which the host did not fully show while condemning.
Because the allegations are so unfounded, Rolón said he grappled with whether or not to speak out about them. Ultimately, he said he felt he needed to respond publicly for the sake of both his kids and his community.
“In our community, we're often faced with this question of do we ignore it so that we don't give this person a voice, or make it so that people are aware of the kind of people that are out there spreading misinformation about our community, especially in an election year,” he explained. “I made the decision to talk about it because I think it's important.”
While Peters blurred the faces of Rolón’s children in his Instagram clip, he did not do so in the full segment on Rumble, a video hosting platform where the conservative has significantly more followers. The full video, over 50 minutes in length and targeting multiple LGBTQ+ parents, spends a sizable chunk of time covering Rolón and his children. Peters levies more insults at the family during the segment, while showing their faces and home unredacted, and without permission.
Since then, Rolón said his account has been hit with a wave of threatening messages from Peters’ followers, which has forced him to take precautionary measures in his daily life.
“My kids were initially allowed to self dismiss from their school, and they are no longer able to self dismiss. I certainly have had to change my schedule around so that I can pick them up at an appropriate time,” Rolón shared, adding, “It's forcing us to be a little bit more vigilant and just take extra precaution. These are the things that our community is constantly having to deal with.”
While he said he might feel otherwise if the hatred was only directed at him, it is “a different thing when children are involved, and it does put them in danger.” The father said he has not spoken to his kids “in the context of what's currently going on,” though “they’re certainly aware at their ages” of the discrimination against their family that exists. Still, unexplained changes to their routine are never easy to navigate.
“They understand racism, they understand homophobia, they understand that we are a Latinx, LGBTQ family and that sometimes we will get discriminated against,” Rolón said. “But in terms of this situation, they have no idea what's going on at all.”
Rolón noted it is ironic that the political pundits claiming to act in the interest of protecting children are actually the ones endangering them. He also confirmed that he is pursuing legal advice, and is weighing his options in regards to both Peters and the platform itself.
“It's shocking to me that Rumble continues to allow these things on their platform, and this is something that I am willing to investigate,” he stated, continuing, “It's important for someone like myself to speak out because I do have a bit of a platform.”
The Advocate has reached out to Rumble for comment.
Beyond that, Rolón said that he also aims to make a statement against bigotry, and wants “people like Stew Peters to know that there is a stronger movement to stomp out hate and misinformation.”
“Most people follow us because we are relatable to all families. … I think people can relate to what it is like to be wrongfully attacked or accused,” Rolón said, continuing, “I do feel like I have a responsibility to stand up for those families like myself that don't have a platform. He can easily do this where they don't have a voice, where they don't have the means and the resources to go against someone like this. I'm aware it's an uphill battle, but it's something that I'm willing to try and climb.”
