N.C. Republican gubernatorial hopeful Mark Robinson used clumsy euphemism in place of antigay slur (exclusive)

North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican politician who recently won theGOP primary for governor, has a history of making bigoted remarks aboutLGBTQ+ people, including a series of unreportedFacebook posts reviewed by The Advocate.

These posts reveal Robinson’s years-long pattern of using homophobic slurs and promoting fearmongering claims against the LGBTQ+ community, describing it as “perverted,” “unnatural,” “sinful,” and “demonic.”

Robinson repeatedly used the euphemism “British cigarette” — a term seemingly employed to circumvent Facebook’s community guidelines — to refer to a highly offensive homophobic slur. Robinson used the term at least three times.

In 2017, he mocked Facebook’s standards bywriting, “So apparently, using the British word for cigarettes violates Facebook’s ‘community standards.’ LOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!!!!!!”

The next year, he questioned whether domestic violence incidents involving transgender individuals should be categorized as violence against women,asking, “Will the feminists raise hell over it? I’m asking for a British cigarette,” and again in 2018, apparently during the Winter Olympics,commenting, “I can’t watch these Olympics. There are entirely too many British cigarettes smoking up the screen.”

In another 2017 post, he partially used the f-slur,writing, “Why does Facebook think it’s okay to insult God by using his rainbow as a symbol of perversion, but doesn’t think it’s okay to insult homosexuals by calling them fa......oooops. Better watch myself. He alsowrote, “They might as well make this ‘f@g’ uh-um I mean, flag football.”

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In a particularly troubling post in 2018, Robinsonposted a photo of himself with a handwritten sign that said, “GO OUTSIDE WITH THE DOG!!!” in response to anonbinary person asking where to use the bathroom.

Recently, Robinsonsaid that trans women should be “arrested” for using the bathroom of their choice and outrageouslysuggested they “find a corner outside somewhere” instead. Hereiterated these views in May, claiming Republicans “were right about HB2,” the2016 anti-trans bathroom bill that cost North Carolina over $3.7 billion.

His history of inflammatory remarks extends beyond his stance on bathrooms. In a 2017 Facebookpost, Robinson implied God would “‘punish’ us” with hurricanes for lighting the White House with the rainbow flag.

In 2015, he railed against prominent LGBTQ+ athletes Caitlyn Jenner and Michael Sam,calling ESPN a network that celebrates “silly perverts” without further explanation after Jenner was awarded an Espy. From 2014 to 2019, Robinsonclaimed homosexuality was “A FILTHY ABOMINATION, that satisfies [a] degenerate, un-natural lust,” said the LGBTQ+ acronym was “anything except the same old tricks of Satan to drag people away from God and into Hell,” and described the LGBTQ community as a “satanic cult of sexual perversion” andan “ABOMINATION.” In 2019, Robinsoncalled “men dressing like women in public” “perverted” and claimed it would lead to the legalization of “grown men to marry prepubescent children.” In additional posts, Robinson repeatedly contended that homosexuality was a sin and those who follow it will go to Hell,calling those who support the “movement” of homosexuality and “transgenderism” “disciples of Satan” and “black-hearted haters of Christ.”

Robinson’s views have ignited a firestorm of criticism,particularly after his endorsement by former PresidentDonald Trump, who called Robinson “better” than Martin Luther King Jr. in March.

A representative of the Democratic Governors’ Association reacted sharply to The Advocate’s request for comment.

“Mark Robinson wants the government to be inside your bedroom, exam room, and to tell North Carolinians who they’re allowed to love and how they can live their life. His long track record of attacking North Carolina’s LGBTQ+ community is incredibly dangerous and also threatens to kill jobs and hurt the economy," said DGA states press secretary Emma O’Brien. “This November, voters will reject Mark Robinson’s hatred and extremism.”

The Advocate contacted Robinson for comment but did not receive a response.