A Republican state senator is reacting after his home was vandalized last week with red spray paint indicating a violent threat against him, presumably because he sponsored a Utah bill that would ban the surgeries transgender for minors.
What are the details?
State Sen. Mike Kennedy’s home was vandalized Thursday, KTVX-TV reported. The spray-painted message on a garage door read: “FASH.” On another garage door and driveway, the message read: “THESE [WORD REDACTED] BASH BACK,” the station said.
KTVX said it blacked out an offensive word from the spray-painted message that is “sometimes used to describe transgender people.”
Senator Mike Kennedy’s home vandalized with spray paint as possible ‘act of retaliation’ for transgendeyoutu.be
“The suspects appear to have targeted the senator based on legislation that was recently passed in the last legislative session,” Lone Peak police said in a statement, according to KTVX. “Officers are working diligently to gather evidence to find the suspects involved.”
Kennedy doesn’t exactly look like he’s shaking in his boots. Check out the statement he released in the wake of the vandalism, according to KTVX:
To those who seek to use violence, vandalism and intimidation to dissuade me from standing up for what is right, let me be clear: you will not succeed. The recent vandalism at my home was not just an attack on me, but on the very principles our state stands for. I will not be intimidated by your cowardly actions. I will not stop fighting for what is right and just. Your attempt to threaten and silence me will only make me stronger. I am more determined than ever to work with the good people of Utah for a better future for our state. We will not let fear and violence control our destiny. As Utahns, we will always stand up and fight back against radicals who seek to push their agenda in our state. I am determined to make our state a better place for all, especially our children, and I will not back down.
WITHOUT MIKE KENNEDY, 4/20/23
Something else?
The station added that representatives of Equality Utah, the state’s largest LGBTQ civil rights organization, in a statement Friday denounced the vandalism and violent message.
“To the extent that this, or any other act of violence or vandalism against our public officials, is related to LGBTQ advocacy, we want to make it clear that Equality Utah condemns these tactics in the strongest possible terms,” the statement said. KTVX.
The statement added that “we do not know the ideology of those who vandalized Senator Kennedy’s home. But we have repeatedly called on conservatives to call on the extremists who verbally harass our community and attack our freedoms with harmful legislation. In return , we now call out and condemn extremists who can identify with our side, who deploy tactics to intimidate and frighten political opponents.”
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