Florida GOP lawmaker calls transgender speakers ‘demons and imps,’ apologizes

State Rep. Webster Barnaby, R-Deltona, seen in this 2021 photo, apologized after publicly calling transgender people “demons.” [ Florida House of Representatives ]

TALLAHASSEE — A Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives called transgender Floridians “demons and imps” and compared them to “mutants from another planet” during a committee hearing on Monday.

During a debate over a bill that would prevent people from using bathrooms “designated for the opposite sex,” Rep. Webster Barnaby, R-Deltona, lashed out against the several transgender Floridians who spoke out against the bill.

“The Lord rebuke you, Satan, and all of your demons and all of your imps who come parade before us,” Barnaby said. “That’s right, I called you demons and imps who come and parade before us and pretend that you are part of this world.”

He compared the speakers, who included transgender Floridians and parents of transgender children, to the X-Men, characters from the Marvel comic books in which bigotry, hatred and fear of mutants are central themes.

“I’m looking at society today and it’s like I’m watching an ‘X-Men’ movie,” Barnaby said. “When you watch the ‘X-Men’ movies or Marvel comics, it’s like we have mutants living among us on planet Earth.”

“This is the planet Earth,” Barnaby continued, his voice rising, “where God created men male and women female. I’m a proud Christian, conservative Republican.”

Barnaby added, “I’m…

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