Pastor Welcomes Support From Nazi Sympathizers at Protest of Local Drag Queen Story Hour

Thomas F. Booher
Screengrab via YouTube / @Heritage Reformed Presbyterian Church

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Last week, the owners of Sanford Yoga & Community Center in Sanford, North Carolina, held a Halloween Drag Story Hour. When they did, they were met with a group of protesters that included Thomas F. Booher, pastor of the nearby Heritage Reformed Presbyterian Church, as well as some apparent neo-Nazis. 

The event, which took place on Oct. 15, is emblematic of a larger culture war that has been brewing in various places around the nation, including more rural communities like Sanford. 

Heritage Reformed Presbyterian Church posted a 38-minute video of the protest to its YouTube page, which provided an account of how the small protest unfolded. 

Toward the beginning of the video, the group of protesters can be seen assembling on the sidewalk just beyond the building’s parking lot, as the yoga studio in which the event took place is private property.

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Inside, drag performers dressed as characters such as Ahsoka from “Star Wars” and Ursula from “The Little Mermaid” read children’s Halloween books to a group of families. 

“Greetings. I come to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,” Booher said in the direction of the event, using a microphone connected to a speaker attached to his hip. “I want to share some Scriptures with you to rebuke what you are doing here in this building to harm precious children.”

After reading from the creation narrative found in Genesis 1, Booher said, “When we have men dressed up as women, with children, in the attire of depravity and wickedness and confusion, this is not honoring the image of God in which each one of us have been made in.” 

One of the protesters who stood alongside Booher was draped in a Confederate flag, which he was using as a cape of sorts. Another man wore a shirt that read, “Support Your Local Einsatzkommando,” a reference to a Nazi kill squad responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent civilians during World War II. 

“Why would you stand here to defend this wickedness, sir, and what’s going on in there?” Booher asked a man standing outside the yoga studio to ensure protesters did not come onto the property. “Don’t you love and care for these precious children?”

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After delivering his remarks, Booher yielded the floor to the others who were present, shaking hands with the various protesters, several of whom were wearing masks to conceal their identities. Among the protesters who were masked was at least one child.

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Dale Chamberlain
Dale Chamberlain (M.Div) is Content Manager for ChurchLeaders. With experience in pastoral ministry as well as the corporate marketing world, he is also an author and podcaster who is passionate about helping people tackle ancient truths in everyday settings. Dale lives in Southern California with his wife Tamara and their three sons.

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