Mormon Church Accidentally Spotlights Gay Mormon Fashion Designer—And People Can't Get Enough

A Mormon church tried to stay hip and garner new followers by promoting a fashion line, only to prove to all of us that we're really not as different as the prejudiced people among us would like us to believe.

Let's unpack this: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has an Instagram account over at @churchofjesuschrist. They regularly promote members of their community, demonstrating what they do, how they give back to their community, and how their religious testimony ties into their mission.

That's a great way to shout out members of their church and help people get to know each other, given the massive size of the LDS population, but church members were split after their latest feature on Instagram of fashion designer Pono Skousen.

When asked to describe himself, Skousen stated:

“I am Pono. I am from Hawaiʻi, grew up military, and moved a lot. I came to New York about five years ago to study fashion at Parsons and just graduated. Now I design women's wear for a brand that we show at New York Fashion Week, which still feels unreal in the best way."

"I actually started as a ballet dancer, but when my family moved to a small town, I chose to go with them instead of pursuing ballet somewhere else. I missed creating, so I learned to sew with Relief Society sisters at church. That turned into a portfolio, then fashion school, and now a career."

"A lot of my inspiration comes from the women in my life. My mom held our family together through deployments. Relief Society sisters taught me to sew. My sister is here in New York now too, chasing her own dreams."

"I love designing for women and helping them feel strong, confident, and true to who they are. There is a real spiritual power in femininity."

"Faith has always been part of my life, and it shows up in my work in quiet ways. I love exploring identity, spirituality, and purpose through clothing. Clothes can tell stories. They can carry light."

"There were times in fashion school when I felt different from everyone around me, but I learned I do not have to choose between being creative and being a disciple of Jesus Christ. Both shape me. Both matter."

"I just want to create things that honor where I come from and help people feel seen and powerful.”

You can see the post here:

There were, predictably, a lot of hateful comments about the inclusion of Skousen as a member of LDS.

Not only is the Mormon church within the Christian umbrella, which generally is hateful towards the LGBTQ+ community, but the LDS specifically preaches the importance of conformity and shedding of all individuality and sin, so that the members of the church can properly emulate the image of Jesus Christ and better communicate the church's message in this lifetime.

For most, that means that LGBTQ+ pride does not play well with LDS ideals.

But there were some members of the church who were openly celebratory of Pono Skousen's feature.

@churchofjesuschrist/Instagram

@churchofjesuschrist/Instagram

@churchofjesuschrist/Instagram

@churchofjesuschrist/Instagram

@churchofjesuschrist/Instagram

@churchofjesuschrist/Instagram

And there were others who found the inclusion hilariously ironic, not just because Skousen is a member of the LGBTQ+ community, but because the designs he primarily creates represent women's liberation, women's individuality, and LGBTQ+ pride.

@queerty/Instagram

@queerty/Instagram

@queerty/Instagram

@queerty/Instagram

@queerty/Instagram

@queerty/Instagram

More specifically, he's the co-founder of a fashion brand called "The Church of Martin," which specifically creates clothing for gay Mormons and ex-members of the LDS church.

Their current fashion line is a Boy Scout-inspired line featuring young men kissing, which you can see here:

For such a long time, going to a Christian church has meant conforming to a specific set of ideals and never admitting if you've stepped outside of those boundaries.

It's lovely to see more inclusive efforts are being made, especially in a community known for its rigidity like the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Because even if this was initially an accident, they could have taken the post down or written a statement about the misunderstanding.

The fact that they've embraced the post and kept it live, even if they originally did not intend it, speaks volumes about trying to build a community that's more inclusive than it was yesterday.