RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson said Tuesday he is not resigning and that he will continue to fight against certain materials present in public schools in the state.
“We are not going to stop until the schools of North Carolina are safe from this kind of filth,” he said, referring to what he said are materials unsuitable for classrooms in the state’s public schools.
North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson continued to deny referring to members of the LGBTQ community as “filth” when speaking at a Randolph County church over the summer.
Robinson attested that he separates his spiritual beliefs on transsexuality and homosexuality from his work as lieutenant governor.
CBS 17’s Michael Hyland asked: “How can that possibly be? You don’t stop being the lieutenant governor when you walk out the door here. You are who you are, no matter where you’re talking.”
Another reporter mentioned that Robinson was introduced as lieutenant governor when he spoke at Asbury Baptist Church in Seagrove in June.
“When I make moves to stifle people’s rights in this state, no matter who they may be, you can come and see me then. Until I make moves to stifle people’s rights in this state the way the governor stifled my right to go to church, come and see me,” Robinson said.
Robinson said his statements in June had to do with materials that were being used in schools in the state.
“When I stood in that pulpit on that Sunday and referred to filth, I was not talking about any person. I was talking about materials that are being presented to our children that are absolutely inappropriate,” he said.
In the video that surfaced last week, Robinson was discussing topics taught in public schools when he likened homosexual and transgender people to “filth.”
“There’s no reason anybody anywhere in America should be telling any child about transgenderism, homosexuality, any of that filth,” Robinson said at Asbury Baptist Church in Seagrove.
State lawmakers and LGBTQ advocates called for this resignation but Robinson refused to back down.
Robinson posted a video over the weekend, defending what he said and calling attention to three books he said are in North Carolina schools, including “George,” “Lawn Boy,” and “Gender Queer.” He included explicit images from the third book.
“The idea that our children should be taught about concepts about transgenderism and exposed to sexually explicit material in the classroom is abhorrent,” Robinson said in a Facebook video.
On Tuesday, he referred to the book as “borderline child pornography.” He also called on Attorney General Josh Stein and other state leaders to take action against the materials.
CBS 17 confirmed Durham Public Schools and Orange County Schools have one copy each of “Gender Queer.”
DPS said “Gender Queer” is not a curriculum resource and is not standard in its library collections.
“One DPS library has this book available in its collection and available for check out. Durham Public Schools is in alignment with the American Library Association’s philosophy regarding the Library Bill of Rights: ‘Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.’”
Robinson is calling for those books to be removed from schools.
“I’m not the bad guy, folks. I’m the guy trying to get pornography out of schools,” Robinson said Tuesday.
