GLASGOW’S Hydro is “reviewing” plans to host a night with controversial evangelical preacher, Franklin Graham.
The pastor, who spoke at Donald Trump’s inauguration, is critical of gay rights, and has described homosexuality as a “sin”. His eight-day tour of the UK is due to start in Glasgow in May.
Already, his date at the ACC Liverpool has been cancelled after the venue said his views were “incompatible” with their values.
Asked if they’d be following suit, a spokeswoman for the Hydro told The National: “We are aware of the recent issues surrounding this tour and will be reviewing this with our stakeholders in due course”.
Glasgow MSP Patrick Harvie said there was nothing to review: “Franklin Graham uses these tours to spread homophobia, transphobia and hate speech about immigrants.
“To host him anywhere is to give a platform to hatred, but for Glasgow’s biggest publicly owned venue to do so is an offence against the values that make this city so great.
“After pressure from local LGBT groups, the venue in Liverpool cancelled the gig, saying Graham’s views were ‘incompatible with our values’. There is nothing to review here, it’s time the SEC showed that level of leadership and told Graham that hate speech is not welcome here.”
In a statement, Graham warned that any venue who cancelled his show would be discriminating against Christians.
Much of the anger towards, Graham, son of the Rev. Billy Graham, comes from past comments about gay rights and his support for Trump, despite the President’s adultery.
In 2016, he accused LGBT activists of “trying to cram down America’s throat the lie that homosexuality is OK”, and said anti-discrimination laws in the US would mean that “your children, and your grandchildren will be at risk to sexual predators and
perverts”.
Last year he criticised presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg for being a self-described gay Christian.
He stated that the Bible defines homosexuality as “something to be repentant of, not something to be flaunted, praised or politicised".
“Mayor Buttigieg says he’s a gay Christian. As a Christian I believe the Bible which defines homosexuality as sin, something to be repentant of, not something to be flaunted, praised or politicised. The Bible says marriage is between a man & a woman – not two men, not two women.”
Graham has condemned the effort to bar him from speaking. He told Newsweek magazine: “For some time I have been planning to come and preach the Gospel in eight cities across the UK in 2020,” he said. “Hundreds of churches are working with the Graham Tour UK and praying for these events.”
“Some people have said I am going to bring hateful speech to the UK, but this couldn’t be further from the truth,” he asserted. “I’m coming to the UK to speak about God’s love through his son Jesus Christ. Jesus didn’t come to condemn the world – He came to save it. The Gospel is timeless, and Bible-believing Christians in the UK have proclaimed it for centuries.” He said the venues cancelling the tour were making a discriminatory decision which “disadvantages Christians”.
More than 8000 people have signed a petition calling for the O2 in London to ditch his show there, though there seems to be some confusion over whether it’s going ahead, with the venue claiming that nothing has ever been booked in.
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