This week, Delegate Eric Porterfield (WV-27) is facing numerous calls for his resignation after he compared the LGBTQ+ community and gay activists to the Klu Klux Klan (KKK), a white supremacist group, and called the LGBTQ+ community a “terrorist group.” Despite criticism and backlash for his homophobic comments, he refuses to resign.
These comments were made last week during a House meeting over a proposed amendment to an anti-LGBT-discrimination bill that barred cities in the state from passing non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people. Two days after the meeting, where he made his comments, the West Virginia Democratic Party called for his resignation. Porterfield victimized himself, saying he was being “persecuted” by the LGBTQ+ community because of his anti-LGBTQ+ comments.
Chairwoman Belinda Biafore released a statement regarding Porterfield stating, “West Virginia has no room for someone who expresses such hate. Let alone room for him to hold a public office where he is supposed to represent the people of West Virginia”
Media Resources: CNN 2/12/19; Out 2/12/19; USA Today 2/13/19; The Hill 2/11/19