
During a school board meeting in Arkansas on Tuesday night, a man was caught on camera declaring LGBTQ people “deserve death.”
The remarks came from a local preacher identified as Cal Paulson during the public comment portion of the Conway School District school board meeting. They were recorded by someone in attendance and posted on TikTok.
“God gave them over to a depraved mind so that they do what they should not be doing. They invent ways of doing evil. But let me remind you that those who do such things deserve death. The LGBTQ community not only continues to do these very things but also approves of those who practice them.” Said Paulson
The video quickly racked up thousands of views and comments… many of which condemned the speaker and his views.
A spokesman for Conway Public Schools was quick to distance the district from the remarks:
“The Conway School District is aware that a video of contentious comments made by a patron last night is circulating on social media,” said Heather Kendrick, the districts Communication specialist, “and we want to be clear that CPSD does not endorse these comments or any comments made by patrons during public comments.”
Though the district disavowed the comments, they passed several changes that onlookers perceived as anti-LGBT, including removing certain books from the library and limiting bathroom access based on assigned sex at birth.