President Joe Biden's social media post celebrating Transgender Day of Visibility, which fell on Easter this year, ignited a new wave of backlash from conservatives, including from a prominent Republican LGBT group.
On Sunday afternoon, Biden posted on X, formerly Twitter: "Today, on Transgender Day of Visibility, I have a simple message to all trans Americans: I see you. You are made in the image of God, and you're worthy of respect and dignity."
The social media post by Biden, who is a Catholic and had posted an Easter message hours earlier, was met with swift criticism, amassing more than 14,000 comments in a few hours.
Log Cabin Republicans, according to its website is the "nation's original and largest organization representing LGBT conservatives and straight allies," reacted to Biden's Transgender Day of Visibility X post in an exclusive statement to Newsweek on Sunday.
The Context:
The International Transgender Day of Visibility was created on March 31, 2009, and has continued to be celebrated every March 31 for more than a decade. The day is meant to not only honor transgender people, but raise awareness of the discrimination they continue to face.
Easter, a Christian holiday that usually falls between March 22 and April 25 every year, is celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon on or following the spring equinox.
On Friday, the White House sent out an announcement, a formality marking the annual event, proclaiming March 31, 2024, as Transgender Day of Visibility. In the announcement, Biden wrote, "Today, we send a message to all transgender Americans: You are loved. You are heard. You are understood. You belong. You are America, and my entire Administration and I have your back."
The announcement sparked fury online where critics slammed the Biden administration's message.
Former President Donald Trump's national press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, called it "appalling and insulting" that Biden "formally proclaimed Easter Sunday as 'Trans Day of Visibility'" in a statement on Saturday. Leavitt said the president's announcement is an example of his administration's "years-long assault on the Christian faith."
"We call on Joe Biden's failing campaign and White House to issue an apology to the millions of Catholics and Christians across America who believe tomorrow is for one celebration only—the resurrection of Jesus Christ," she added.
The Response:
Charles Moran, president of the Log Cabin Republicans, described the president's Easter post as disrespectful in an exclusive statement to Newsweek on Sunday.
"Time and time again, the Biden-Harris Administration shows that it's utterly tone-deaf when it comes to the priorities of average Americans," Moran said. "Yes - this Administration has been marking March 31st as Transgender Day of Visibility for several years now. And yes, Easter moves around. But I'm awe-struck that nobody in the White House thought that it might be prudent to possibly move the trans proclamation up or back a day, so it didn't directly conflict with the most important holiday in the Christian faith."
He continued: "This entire episode shows extreme disrespect to Christians, or extreme malpractice upon Biden's advisors. Either way, it's a bad look for this Administration, creates unneeded division in America, and shows that LGBT voters should seriously look elsewhere for leadership than the failed Biden-Harris Administration. They're needlessly making it worse, not better, for all of us, with stunts like this."
Newsweek reached out via email on Sunday to Biden's representatives for comment.
Meanwhile, the White House rebuked conservative backlash over the transgender event overlapping with the Christian holiday in previous a statement.
In response to the criticism, White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates told Newsweek via email on Saturday: "As a Christian who celebrates Easter with family, President Biden stands for bringing people together and upholding the dignity and freedoms of every American. Sadly, it's unsurprising politicians are seeking to divide and weaken our country with cruel, hateful, and dishonest rhetoric. President Biden will never abuse his faith for political purposes or for profit."
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Maura Zurick is the Newsweek Weekend Night Editor based in Cleveland, Ohio. Her focus is reporting on U.S. national news ... Read more
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