One day before the start of Pride Month, an Alabama mayor reportedly recommended the killing of the LGBTQ community.
In a now-deleted Facebook post from Friday, Carbon Hill Mayor Mark Chambers railed against “a society where homosexuals lecture us on morals, transvestites lecture us on human biology, baby killers lecture us on human rights and socialists lecture us on economics,” local Fox affiliate WBRC reported.
In response, one of Chamber’s friends, whose identity was concealed by WBRC, wrote, “I hate to think of the country my grandkids will live in unless somehow we change and I think that will take a revolution.”
Replying, the mayor promoted the use of targeted violence:
“The only way to change it would be to kill the problem out. I know it’s bad to say but without killing them out there’s no way to fix it.”
Speaking exclusively to WBRC to address the remarks, Chambers initially claimed he didn’t write the comments, then called back to deny that he “said anything about killing out gays.”
After hearing the words read back to him, he acknowledged his comment.
“That’s in a revolution,” he said. “That’s right! If it comes to a revolution in this country both sides of these people will be killed out.”
On Tuesday, Chambers posted an apology on Facebook, but local newspaper Daily Mountain Eagle reported that the mayor appears to have taken down his Facebook page containing the apology.
“I and I alone am responsible for the comment that was made,” Chambers wrote according to the screenshot below.
Continuing, he then attempted to defend himself.
“Although I believe my comment was taken out of context and was not targeting the LGBTQ community, I know that it was wrong to say anybody should be kill. I am truly sorry that I have embarrassed our City, I love this City and while in office I have done everything in my power to make this a better place for our families.”
On Tuesday, the Alabama wing of the nonprofit civil rights group Human Rights Campaign released a statement condemning Chambers’ remarks.
“This is horrifying, unconscionable and unacceptable,” the statement said. “LGBTQ people face disproportionate levels of violence and harassment in their daily lives a fact that is especially true in Alabama, where there are no statewide LGBTQ-inclusive non-discrimination or hate crimes laws.”
HRC is calling for the mayor to “be held to account” for his actions.
HuffPost was not able to reach Chambers for comment.
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