A man behind a planned ‘Straight Pride’ event in California provoked laughter at a meeting when he referred to the organizers as a ‘totally peaceful racist group.’
Don Grundmann addressed a Modesto City Council meeting on Wednesday about his plans to hold a ‘Straight Pride’ rally on August 24.
He chastened council-member Kristi Ah You, accusing her of ‘pulling the race card’ and allegedly inflaming tensions by attacking the group as racists.
Don Grundmann, (pictured), was mocked at a city council meeting in California for claiming organizers behind a ‘Straight Pride’ event were a ‘totally peaceful racist group’
Those present at Modesto city council meeting on Wednesday erupted in laughter at Grundmann’s comments with some accusing him of being racist
Footage then shows him make an embarrassing gaffe, with the room erupting into laughter at his remarks.
Grundman claimed: ‘You pulled the race card to pull in attacks against us, to justify attacks against us in that park, and when they come you’re going to turn right around and say we deserved it.
‘We haven’t done anything, we’re a totally peaceful racist group.’ People are then seen laughing and jumping up, with one man calling Grundmann a racist.
Grundmann then turned away from the microphone and engaged with the crowd, saying ‘we’re here to defend all races’
One council member was overcome with laughter and pulled her chair away from the crowd to compose herself
One council member was overcome with laughter and pulled her chair away from the crowd to compose herself, while the rest of the council stared unblinkingly at Grundmann.
Grundmann then turned away from the microphone and engaged with the crowd. When he returned to the microphone, he said: ‘We’re here to defend all races and colors. I started the WAR alliance — the Whites Against Racism alliance.’
CNN then reported that he said his group was ‘here to defend all races’ and claimed that Planned Parenthood was the ‘greatest mass murderer of blacks in this nation’s history’
He was later informed that his speaking was up and the crowd later started booing as he left the podium.
Grundmann, who previously ran two failed campaigns for the US Senate, leads a group called the National Straight Pride Coalition.
Matthew Mason speaks in opposition to the proposed Straight Pride rally during the Modesto City Council meeting on Wednesday
Shaun Gepley, (left), and Katy Forney, (right), attend a rally to show their opposition to a straight pride rally planned for Graceada Park in Modesto
It claims on its website that heterosexuality, the nuclear family and Western civilization, among other institutions, are under attack.
The group is planning a “straight pride” parade in a local park on August 24.
Around 30 constituents spoke against the event. A handful spoke in favor of it, citing free speech.
Matthew Mason, a Modesto native and Turlock resident, called event organizers ‘white supremacists.’
He said: ‘I’m here to condemn the straight pride event and to unequivocally state that this white supremacist rhetoric is not speech that deserves protection,” Mason said at the meeting.
Don Grundmann, (left), and Jeffrey Amman, (right), debate opposite views on same sex marriage while standing outside the California Supreme court March 4, 2008 in San Francisco
Don Grundmann, an opponent of gay marriage, carries a sign as people enter the California Supreme Court in San Francisco on March 4, 2008
‘Whenever this rhetoric is given a platform, violence always follows.’
Marjorie Sturdy, vice president of the Modesto Progressive Democrats, said she was opposed to the event at a meeting.
‘She told CNN: ‘You’ve never heard of anybody losing a job because they’re straight or white.
‘You’ve never heard of anybody not being able to obtain a job because they’re straight. The entitlement of being straight and white shouldn’t be celebrated. You get to celebrate that every day of your life.’
Modesto City Manager’s Community and Media Relations Officer Thomas W. Reeves confirmed that the proposal for the event by the National Straight Pride Coalition no longer includes a parade, CBS reported.
The permit for the ‘Straight Pride’ event is still being considered by the city and would take place on August 24 in Graceada Park, pending permit approval.