Franklin Graham claimed that Margaret Court was simply ‘quoting the Bible’ (Getty)
Evangelical leader Franklin Graham has claimed that disgraced Australian tennis star Margaret Court, who has previously compared gays to Hitler, is facing “discrimination” for being Christian.
Australia’s right-wing government this week opted to present the former tennis player with the country’s highest honour, marking Australia Day on Tuesday (26 January) by making her a Companion in the General Division of the Order of Australia.
Some LGBT+ honourees have decided to return their prizes in protest at the decision to honour Court, who has previously likened gay people to Hitler and claimed lesbian tennis players “recruit” younger athletes.
Trump fanatic Franklin Graham, the embattled head of anti-LGBT+ evangelical charity Samaritan’s Purse, opted to involve himself in the row with an unsurprising attempt to defend the tennis player, who he described as “a fine lady who stands on her Christian faith and believes what the Bible says”.
Franklin Graham thanks Margaret Court for ‘standing with God’.
In a Facebook post, he claimed: “Some, including two governors are being very vocal about their opposition — all because she believes what the Bible says about homosexuality and doesn’t back down from that position. A state leader recently said her views were disgraceful and bigoted.
“Sadly, we are living in a time when some say that quoting the Bible’s truth is ‘spewing hate.’ Why should Margaret Court’s firmly held religious beliefs cause her to be discriminated against?
“I thank her for courageously standing with the Word of Almighty God. Join me in sharing some encouraging words with Margaret.”
While Graham claims that Court is being “discriminated against” for “quoting the Bible”, this is far from the reality of her comments.
Margaret Court has a disgraceful anti-LGBT history.
Maragret Court has previously called homosexuality an “abominable sexual practice”, calling on people who are “perhaps dabbling in things” to turn to God to “overcome” their sexuality.
In a 2019 sermon , she suggested transgender children were inspired by Satan, claiming: “That LGBT in the schools, it’s of the Devil, it’s not of God… you know, when children are making the decision at seven or eight years of age to change their sex.
“It’s so wrong at that age because a lot of things are planted in this thought realm at that age, and they start to question, ‘what am I?’”
In 2017, she claimed lesbian tennis players “recruit” younger athletes who need help to “overcome” their sexuality.
She said: “Tennis is full of lesbians, because even when I was playing there was only a couple there, but those couple that led, that took young ones into parties and things.
“And you know, what you get at the top is often what you’ll get right through that sport.
“We’re there to help them overcome. We’re not against the people.”
Venting about LGBT+ people, she said: “That’s what Hitler did. That’s what communism did — get in the minds of the children. There’s a whole plot in our nation and in the nations of the world to get in the minds of the children.”