Violence Overshadows Christian Rally In Seattle
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
SEATTLE, USA (Worthy News) – An investigation was ongoing Sunday into violence that broke against a Christian rally in the U.S. city of Seattle, where believers expressed concern about what they view as efforts to “indoctrinate” children with the LGBTQ+ agenda.
Mayday USA, a conservative Christian group, brought its #DontMessWithOurKids gathering to Seattle on Saturday, the fourth of five stops on a national tour.
Organizers say the #DontMessWithOurKids movement “refuses to stand idly by while the children of our nation are indoctrinated by liberal, political, and sexual agenda that seeks to destroy their God-given identities.”
However, Worthy News observed that the rally also focused on the Gospel, with Gospel singers and crowds enthusiastically singing Christian songs.
Yet footage obtained by Worthy News showed activists interrupting the rally, some violently, forcing police to intervene.
Several people were tackled on the ground while a Gospel concert continued on stage. One man could be seen holding a sign: “I love my gay kid.”
The Seattle Police Department said it made 23 arrests—22 adults and a juvenile—in Cal Anderson Park. One officer was reportedly injured.
‘FAR RIGHT RALLY’
However, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, a Democrat, claimed that a “far-right” rally was being held in the park to “provoke a reaction by promoting beliefs that are inherently opposed to our city’s values, in the heart of Seattle’s most prominent LGBTQ+ neighborhood.”
He added that “anarchists” had infiltrated a group of counter-protestors opposing the rally and “inspired violence,” prompting arrests and causing the event to be shut down early.
In a statement obtained by Worthy News, evangelist Ross Johnston said he wasn’t surprised about the protests against the rally.
“We have “protesters” coming to our protest which always increases the glory of the Lord Church, tension and pushback is a part of the Christian life,” he explained in a statement seen by Worthy News.
“Think of Peter, Paul, Jesus – they all faced resistance but it only led to greater measures of salvation, healing and deliverance! Many of them will be saved and encounter Jesus! Can’t wait!” he added.
Ross suggested he has a message for the LGBTQ# community and others searching for Christ in their lives. He said he “was born by artificial insemination and grew up in a lesbian household with two moms.”
At 15 years old, he said, he “was invited to church,” where the teenager “encountered the Holy Spirit and presence of God” for the first time.
‘BORN AGAIN’
He said he “then surrendered” his life to Jesus and became “born again” during that time.
After earning a business degree and running several businesses, he said it was allegedly through the Holy Spirit: ‘If you don’t stand now, you never will.’
He then resigned from his full-time job and became an evangelist, supporting what he says are signs of “revival” in colleges and other public areas nationwide.
Yet not everyone shared his views Saturday with a counterprotest—urging people to “Protest Fascist ‘Family Values.”
The Freedom Socialist Party, Organized Workers for Labor Solidarity, Puget Sound Mobilization for Reproductive Justice, and Radical Women arranged the protest in Seattle.
Organizers called on people to “send a message with a loud picket line, signs, and banners: Bigotry is not welcome here!”
Johnston described the anti-Christian crowd as “Antifa” members, referring to the self-declared left-wing anti-fascist and anti-racist political movement in the United States.
However, in his view, they, too, need to hear the Gospel and its values.
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