Academy Award-winning actor Jennifer Lawrence had social media users cackling after she ripped former Vice President Mike Pence with a joke about conversion therapy during her appearance at the GLAAD Media Awards.
It's well known that the ultra-conservative Pence, the former governor of Indiana, has come under fire for his ties to groups such as the socially conservative Family Research Council that denounce homosexuality and bemoan "attacks" on "traditional" marriage. Pence has also faced heated criticism for his views on transgender rights and conversion therapy.
As a candidate for Congress in the 1990s, Pence's campaign website included a statement that appeared to indicate his support for "conversion therapy" for LGBT youths. “Resources should be directed toward those institutions which provide assistance to those seeking to change their sexual behavior,” the website said.
A spokesman for Pence once told reporters that Pence's statement was misconstrued, insisting that "any assertion that Vice President-elect Pence supported or advocated for conversion therapy is patently false and is a mischaracterization of language from a 16-year old campaign website."
Lawrence was on hand to present the Vito Russo Award to musician Orville Peck, who was honored for his efforts generating acceptance for the larger LGBTQ+ community.
She said:
“I love seeing so many humans who can top their field while still being power bottoms.”
"In fact, I was in love with a homosexual, it was my first love. I tried to convert him for years but now I know conversion therapy doesn’t work. Did you hear me Mike Pence? I said conversion therapy isn’t real even though I know you think it worked on you."
“He’s in New York tonight. He’s receiving a Kid’s Choice Award for weirdest d**k.”
You can hear what Lawrence said in the video below.
Jennifer Lawrence Honors Orville Peck at the GLAAD Media Awardswww.youtube.com
Many appreciated Lawrence's jab.
Former President Donald Trump gained favor from the right when he picked the evangelical Pence as his vice presidential running mate in 2016.
A former GOP leader who served in the chamber for nearly a decade, Pence fulfilled Trump's need for someone who could work closely with the executive branch. Pence's record for social conservatism has drawn harsh condemnation from LGBTQ+ and abortion rights advocates.
As governor of Indiana, Pence approved the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, a measure allowing businesses to discriminate against consumers based on their sexual orientation and gender identity. A fierce backlash from business and the tourist industry, along with a trending hashtag #BoycottIndiana, forced the governor and state legislatures there to add an amendment clarifying that nothing in the law was intended to permit discrimination.
In 2006, as head of the Republican Study Committee, Pence voiced his opposition to same-sex marriage legislation when he declared “societal collapse was always brought about following an advent of the deterioration of marriage and family.”
