Bishop Mariann Budde called out Donald Trump in a sermon in Washington D.C, asking him for “mercy” towards LGBTQ+ and immigrant communities.
During the service, held at the Washington National Cathedral, Trump sat in the front row with a stone-cold face as Budde bravely addressed him directly.
“Mr President, millions have put their trust in you,” she said.
“As you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.”
“There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in both Democratic, Republican and independent families who fear for their lives.”
Shortly after being sworn in as US president on Monday, Trump stated that he would make it “official policy” that there are “only two genders– male and female”.
He also vowed to end illegal immigration into the US, saying that millions of “criminal aliens” would be deported.
Speaking to immigration, Budde told Trump in her sermon: “They may not be citizens or have the proper documentation– but the vast majority… are not criminals.”
“They pay taxes and are good neighbours, they are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues and temples,” she added.
“I ask you to have mercy, Mr President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away, and that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome here.”
Following Budde’s brave address, Trump was asked by reporters what he thought of the service.
“What did you think?” Trump quipped back. “Did you like it? Did you find it exciting? Not too exciting, was it. I didn’t think it was a good sermon. […] They could do much better.”
The Washington National Cathedral is a progressive institution that has long resisted Trump’s values, as reported by Rolling Stone, and Budde’s sermon delivered that pointed message.
In 2020, Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington, called out Trump for using St. John’s Episcopal Church for a photo-op, after federal law enforcement used tear gas to break up a peaceful Black Lives Matter protest in the area. She described Trump’s actions as “antithetical to the teachings of Jesus and to the God of justice.”
Will Trump’s gender policies impact Australia?
In his first hours in office on Tuesday, Trump issued a series of executive orders, including moves to remove recognition of diverse gender identity and sexual orientation.
Here in Australia, prominent Coalition MPs have already spoken out, saying the country should follow Trump’s lead.
In particular, Trump signed an executive order titled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government”, which intends to remove all “radical gender ideology guidance, communication, policies and forms”.
This means such removing “nonbinary” and “other” options from federal documents would come into play. Transgender rights within federal workplaces, as well as sport, are also under attack, and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives are set to be removed in an ongoing effort by the Trump administration.
In his inaugural address, Trump said: “We will forge a society that is colour blind and merit-based.”
Nationals senator Matt Canavan told The Australian Financial Review that Australia should “take a leaf” out of “Trump’s book”, such as to limit transgender women’s right to play sport, in order to “protect women”.
Other Coalition MPs are urging Opposition Leader Peter Dutton to take a more aggressive stance against diversity and inclusion measures, including the participation of transgender women in sport.
Coalition frontbencher and former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce said Trump’s move on gender was correct. And South Australian Liberal senator Alex Antic welcomed Trump’s moves to rollback DEI initiatives, saying they don’t “make sense to me”.
Advocates for gender equality and LGBTQI+ rights are warning that Trump’s views on gender have the potential to embolden hateful rhetoric and policies here in Australia, particularly as the federal election approaches, due by May 17.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Transcend Australia (@transcend_australia)
Addressing public concern about increasing hostility towards the LGBTIQA+ community here in Australia, the Victorian Commission for LGBTIQA+ Communities, Joe Ball offered some words of hope.
Ball said that while this “fear is real” and that “it is valid”, “it does not define us.”
“As a transgender person, I refuse to let this rhetoric terrorise or erase me. Our existence is a historical fact. We are not a modern phenomenon or a fleeting idea; we have always been here.”
“While Trump’s words might feel like an attack, they also remind us of something profound: we are powerful,” he said. “If we weren’t, there would be no need to target us.”
“We stand on the shoulders of generations who resisted before us, and we owe it to them—and to ourselves—not to back down and importantly to not be afraid.”
Support:
Full Stop Australia’s Rainbow Sexual, Domestic and Family Violence Helpline: 1800 497 212
1800RESPECT: 1800 737 732
Say It Out Loud Visit www.sayitoutloud.org.au
QLife on 1800 184 527 or chat online via www.qlife.org.au
The post Bishop Mariann Budde confronts Donald Trump, asks for “mercy” towards LGBTQ+ and immigrant communities appeared first on Women's Agenda.
Source: View source
