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People are reeling from a horrifying story about a family attacked and the parents accused of being kidnappers, “groomers” and "pedophiles."
One of the dads told the internetwhat happened to him, his husband and their two young children while riding an Amtrak train for a family vacation.
It began when they were approached by a man yelling at their son.
Well that didn't take long. We decided to take a trip on Amtrak with the kids for spring break. 9 hours into a pleasant ride, a man was suddenly standing next to me, shouting across me at my 6yo son, "Remember what I told you. They stole you. They're pedophiles."— Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d (@Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d) 1649831026
"Family!? That's not a family! You're rapists. You steal black & Asian kids." My son and my 5yo daughter were both now openly crying, petrified. He yelled right at them, unmoved: "These guys aren't natural. Homosexuals are an abomination. They steal and rape kids." [3/10]— Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d (@Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d) 1649831031
I grabbed the kids and moved them to another car while my ferocious husband went into papa bear mode and shouted the man away from us. Eventually the conductor arrived and the man lost his focus on us. [5/10]— Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d (@Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d) 1649831039
Robbie Pierce and his family were riding a train that made a stop in Diridon Station in San Jose, California. There, his son proudly asked to use a restroom by himself, only to be confronted by a conspiracy spouting bigot.
According to Pierce, the man raged and accused Pierce and his husband of horrible things.
When Pierce told the man to get away from his family, the stranger responded:
“Family? That’s not a family! You’re both rapists. You steal Black and Asian kids.”
“You guys aren’t natural. Homosexuals are an abomination. They steal and rape kids.”
As the stranger yelled, the children started crying. Eventually, the conductor distracted the bigoted stranger, and the family was able to get away.
This man was clearly angry at an unjust world; we have that in common. He's clearly not receiving the resources he needs. We've dealt with this brand of terrifying homophobic stranger before with our son. But "pedophiles" and "rapists" were new in the mix, at least out loud. 7/10— Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d (@Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d) 1649831039
The stranger was eventually arrested for refusing to leave the train.
Thank you. A lot of people nearby sent sympathetic looks or later told us sorry that happened which is nice (?) but they all just sat with their heads down while it was going on. I get how disorienting it can be, but we really need to be better at taking action for each other.— Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d (@Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d) 1649831871
The treatment of your children is both horrific and disgusting. I am sorry for the pain this caused and will continue to work for fair elections to insure we remove the perpetrators of these behaviors.— Deb (@Deb) 1649863731
They\u2019ve emboldened that man\u2019s hate, though, for sure— Just Joseph (@Just Joseph) 1649855397
Exactly, their world is dying and they're terrified.— \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 PashhaTheosifon \ud83d\udd1e (@\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 PashhaTheosifon \ud83d\udd1e) 1649882697
Republicans are, observably, a hate group; any individual\u2019s reasons for belonging, even if sincerely held, don\u2019t touch the fact of what the party is doing, which includes fomenting this violence.\n\nA tree is recognized by its fruit.https://twitter.com/robbiepierce/status/1514127186214621185\u00a0\u2026— A.R. Moxon (@A.R. Moxon) 1649895120
In his Twitter thread, Pierce blamed the hateful rhetoric spewed forth by Republican politicians and right-wing commentators.
I asked my son if he'd seen the man before. He said the man had confronted him when we let him go to the bathroom alone, which he'd been so proud to do @ 1st but too afraid to do again after. Yet *we're* the groomers. I'm livid & ashamed that I didn't notice something was up.— Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d (@Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d) 1649831040
To be clear, as much as we need people standing up for us in such moments of confrontation, we need allies to shut down this rhetoric everywhere it rears its ugly head anywhere, especially when we're not there. Don't vote for them or support their art or avoid confrontation.— Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d (@Robbie \ud83c\udf2e\ud83e\udd9d) 1649836459
He called out those who’ve pushed lies about the LGBTQ+ community:
“We all know where that comes from. So thanks to Fox & Murdoch, JK Rowling & Marjorie Taylor Green, to the senators & priests & everyone else who harms kids & thinks it's politically expedient to project onto gentle families like mine to stir up their lucrative culture war.”
Pierce is referring to regular attacks on LGBTQ+ people.
Fox News has been pushing major talking points to defend bills being passed in multiple states attempting to ban any talk about gay or trans people.
While Florida was the first to pass a “Don’t Say Gay” bill, Republican legislatures in other states are looking to do the same.
Children's author J.K. Rowling and GOP House Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia were mentioned for their attacks on the trans community, bigotry that has become all too common.
All of this has been cloaked in claims that they just want to protect children from predators, while in actuality seeking to punish anyone who isn’t a cisgendered, straight man.
Which makes people ask what they do when they see these kinds of attacks in real life.
This is true. If one stranger stands up in defense, many will follow suit.\nAll it needs is one.— ADNK (@ADNK) 1649861416
Silence = consent. He took their silence as agreement & acceptance of the foul putrid hate he was spewing. It's very difficult for many people to challenge bullies, unless the person being bullied is someone they love.We all need to vow to do better for strangers facing the same.— Delaney Gates-Ashli Babbitt died for Trumps Sins (@Delaney Gates-Ashli Babbitt died for Trumps Sins) 1649862715
Absolutely heartbreaking thread. If you see this kind of utter repulsive nonsense happening, stand up. Intervene. Every little bit of this hateful garbage these people spew needs to be checked and shut down on the spot. Kids need love, not hate. It\u2019s pretty simple.https://twitter.com/robbiepierce/status/1514127186214621185\u00a0\u2026— Mitch Gerads (@Mitch Gerads) 1649871591
Remember it was @GovRonDeSantis team that put this \u201cgroomer\u201d messaging in the public in a massive way to justify his #DontSayGay classroom censorship and book banning legislation. He has stoked hatred, division, and violence.https://twitter.com/robbiepierce/status/1514127186214621185\u00a0\u2026— Nadine Smith (@Nadine Smith) 1649866200
Pierce and his family are recovering, despite the emotional trauma. Sadly, bigoted rants aren’t uncommon for the family.
However, the accusations of pedophilia are.
“We've dealt with this brand of terrifying homophobic stranger before with our son. But ‘pedophiles’ and ‘rapists’ were new in the mix, at least out loud.”
As these anti-gay bills are passed, and defended by claims of protecting children from groomers, these types of attacks will only become more common.