American Family Association pretends to sack Bryan Fischer, who blamed the Holocaust on gays
UPDATE: Despite the purported ‘sacking’, Mr Fischer still openly continues to work for the American Family Association and American Family Radio.
Original story below:
The right-wing American Family Association (AFA) has sacked its long-time spokesman Bryan Fischer, who on his anti-gay talk show, has said “militant homosexuals” are “destroying America”.
Fischer was until yesterday the Director of Issue Analysis for the AFA which is amid a controversy surrounding a trip its subsidiary the American Renewal Project is funding for the US National Republican Party to Israel.
The trip, which was offered free for all 168 members of the Republican National Committee (RNC), is taking place this weekend, and has been condemned in the Israeli media because of the involvement of the AFA.
The former spokesman has for years used his talk show to make offensive and misinformed claims about gay people, including saying gay men caused the Holocaust.
He said: “Homosexuality gave us Adolph Hitler, and homosexuals in the military gave us the Brown Shirts, the Nazi war machine and six million dead Jews.”
Fischer also said last year suggested Jews and Muslims are not included in religious freedom protections in the US, saying: “I have contended for years that the First Amendment, as given by the Founders, provides religious liberty protections for Christianity only.”
He later wrote: “We are a Christian nation and not a Jewish or Muslim one.”
Speaking to the Rachel Maddow show, Tim Wildmon, AFA President said: “Bryan Fischer is just a talk show host”.
Asked why, he said: “… the soundbite quotes, you know, the Hitler and homosexuality one… we reject that.”
Fischer, since being fired, has tweeted to reassure fans that he will still broadcast his talk show as planned tomorrow.
Don’t believe everything you hear! I’ll be on air same time tomorrow as always 1-3pm CT, on https://t.co/sI2xhN0XQd. Tune in!
— Bryan Fischer (@BryanJFischer) January 29, 2015
The American Family Association is listed as an active anti-gay hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Centre.
Richard Cohen, the SPLC’s CEO, wrote to all members of the RNC saying: “The AFA has an extensive track record of bigotry and hate,” and urging them not to take up the trip.
