On what Mannery wants to say to the men who yelled anti-gay slurs and rushed the shop: My main thought was to protect everyone inside the store, protect the customers and make sure no one got hurt." But at this point in my life, since I've dealt with it so many times it didn't even cross my mind twice.
During my time out here in Utah, I've had a few incidents and run-ins with a couple of people who haven't been too excited to see me due to my skin color. "With the fact that I'm bisexual and black, generally most people who would have a problem with either of those things, they tend to notice the black part first. So this really surprised me that we had people out there, that Saturday night, who were taking actions like that." When I first came out to Utah a few years ago, I went to Pride, I saw a couple signs out there but I didn't hear about anything violent going on and it just seemed like in the past few years that everyone was becoming more accepting and everyone was coming together more. "I was surprised because I thought, like, as a community we were moving forward. On his initial reaction to the mob: Terrance Mannery. Here & Now's Robin Young talks with Mannery about his actions, and the climate for the LGBTQ community. Mannery barricaded the door with his body, sustaining at least seven punches as the mob tried to enter. The men had just left the Utah Pride Festival.
Behind them, Mannery saw a group of about 15 people, who witnesses say were shouting anti-gay slurs. Terrance Mannery was closing the Doki Doki dessert shop in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Saturday night when four distraught men burst in. (Rick Bowmer/AP) This article is more than 3 years old. Salt Lake City police are looking for leads after a man was allegedly attacked while trying to defend several gay men being chased after the Utah Pride Festival. “No doctrine is more important than God’s children.In this Sunday, June 3, 2018, photo, people carry a flag during the Utah Pride parade in Salt Lake City. “There have been too many LDS deaths,” said Adam Ford, 40.
Thank you organizers! We will see you all next year!!”Īnother marcher hinted at the deep emotional wounds in the community, telling the Tribune about the suicides he’d seen among teens and gays when he was growing up. “I was touched by the number of people who cried and thanked us as we walked in the parade. “So proud to have been a part of this,” one person wrote.
Judging from the responses on Facebook afterward, the event was a success. A church spokesman declined to comment to Fox 13 when asked about the group. “All who wish to march whether currently active LDS and/or former LDS are welcome.”īefore the march, Fox 13 in Salt Lake City reported that Munson said that Mormons Building Bridges does not take a stance on same-sex marriage but that the group plans to march in LGBT events around the country this summer. “This march is not a political gesture rather it is a simple statement that average Mormons do love their LGBT brothers and sisters and want to make that message clear,” the event’s organizer, Erika Munson, wrote on Facebook. Sunday’s event tried to steer clear of politics, focusing on a love-thy-neighbor message. The church openly backed California’s Proposition 8, which banned gay marriage, and it urged members to volunteer for the cause. The Mormon Church has had a tense, sometimes condemnatory, relationship with the LGBT community. “It’s been so hard to be in Utah knowing the Mormon Church is against the gay community.” “I think it’s amazing,” Holly Nelson, 38, told the Salt Lake Tribune as she watched, tears in her eyes. Based on the Facebook event set up for the march, they had anticipated 100 marchers. The number of Mormons participating to show support surprised organizers of Mormons Building Bridges. Over 300 straight, active Mormons showed up to march with me at the Utah Pride parade in support of LGBT people.” Parade Grand Marshal Dustin Lance Black tweeted afterward, the Tribune said: “In tears. The Tribune said she hugged a crying woman watching the parade who said, “Thank you.” She carried a sign with words from a Mormon children’s song: “I’ll walk with you, I’ll talk with you. “I haven’t recognized them as equals,” one marcher, Emily Vandyke, 50, told the Salt Lake Tribune. More than 300 current and former members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints participated in the Utah Gay Pride Parade on Sunday as part of a group called Mormons Building Bridges. They came in suits and skirts, and they drew tears and cheers.