An anti-gay preacher has been banned from entering most of Europe, Dutch officials have confirmed.
Steven Anderson, from Arizona, US, has previously called for the execution of gay people by stoning and said it was ‘good news’ that 49 victims died in the Orlando nightclub mass shooting.
LGBTI campaigners, Dutch MPs and Amsterdam’s mayor, Femke Halsema, called on the government to block the preacher’s entry ahead of his European tour, which included events in Ireland and Sweden.
Dutch security minister Mark Harbers announced he had taken steps to stop Anderson entering the Schengen Area, comprising 26 European countries, for a planned visit to The Netherlands on May 23.
In a statement issued to Dutch parliament on Wednesday, Harbers said: ‘There is no place in a democratic nation like ours for discrimination, incitement to hatred or intolerance and violence on any grounds. ‘Civil liberties are not a license for intolerant behaviour that limits the freedoms of others.
‘The government is committed to taking strong action against extremist speakers who, by spreading their beliefs restrict the freedoms of others or incite people to hatred or violence.’ Amsterdam’s mayor Halsema said he was ‘relieved’ at the decision to block Anderson.
Philip Tijsma, a spokesman for Dutch LGBTI rights organisation COC, said the move was ‘a wise and good decision’.
Anderson founded the Faithful Word Baptist Church in Tempe, Arizona, in 2005, which describes itself as an ‘old-fashioned, fundamental’ church which has made international headlines ever since.
On its website, a doctrinal statement says: ‘We believe that homosexuality is a sin and an abomination which God punishes with the death penalty.’
He has previously said in a 2014 sermon that the world would be cured of AIDS within months if ‘homos’ were stoned to death, reported Pink News.
Anderson said: ‘It’s curable, right there. Because if you executed the homos like God recommends, you wouldn’t have all this AIDS running rampant.’
Following the Orlando Pulse nightclub attack, which killed 49 people and severely injured 53, he called it ‘good news’ because there were ‘less paedophiles in the world’ who wanted to ‘recruit people into their filthy lifestyle’.
He is also reported to have denied the Holocaust and to have prayed for President Barack Obama’s death because of his views on abortion rights.
Source: metro.com.uk, Elisa Menendez, May 3, 2019
Dozens of countries just banned America’s ‘kill the gays’ hate preacher from entering
He called Pulse victims “a bunch of disgusting perverts and pedophiles” and encouraged his congregants to kill all gay people, calling it a “cure for AIDS.”
American Christian extremist Steven Anderson, best known for his hateful diatribes and calls for violence against LGBTQ people, has been denied entry into 26 European countries this week. The Arizona pastor has already been banned from Jamaica, South Africa, the UK, and Canada; he was arrested and deported while in Botswana in 2016.
Anderson planned a trip to the Netherlands to do some “soul winning” according to the Netherlands Times. After activists pointed out Anderson’s history, State Secretary Mark Harbers of Justice and Security responded by not only banning Anderson from entering Dutch boundaries, he made sure that Anderson wasn’t allowed entry into the entire Schengen Area.
The area functions as a single jurisdiction for international travel purposes, with a common visa policy, for 26 countries and encompasses Europe and Iceland.
The Dutch government is “taking strong action against extremist speakers who, by spreading their beliefs, restrict the freedoms of others or even incite hatred or violence,” according to Harbers.
Anderson is a Holocaust denier who praised the Pulse nightclub shooter, calling victims “a bunch of disgusting perverts and pedophiles” and “disgusting homosexuals who the Bible says were worthy of death.”
In the past, Anderson has encouraged his congregants to kill all gay people, calling it a “cure for AIDS.”
He has also advocated for world governments to execute gay people.
Source:
lgbtqnation.com, Bill Browning, May 3, 2019
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