Just weeks after it was featured by a right-wing, anti-LGBTQIA+ Christian YouTuber, a pro-LGBTQIA+ church in Plano, Texas, was set on fire on July 23rd.
Pro-LGBTQ+ church set on fire following video of visit by right-wing YouTuberhttps://t.co/se4feEdPHS
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) July 28, 2023
Authorities in the city are investigating the “intentionally set fire” at the Community Unitarian Universalist Church after being shown in a video by Bo Alford, a right-wing YouTube personality.
In a statement, Plano Fire-Rescue said that a passer-by noticed a fire in the church’s front door. The fire was quickly extinguished, and there were no reported injuries. It was working with the city’s police department on an ongoing criminal investigation.
A police spokesperson told the Dallas Morning News that the department “cannot confirm” whether the fire was a hate crime.
The Facebook page of the Community Unitarian Universalist Church of Plano posted about the incident shortly after the fire was extinguished, and the church’s members asked for “support and prayers” from residents.
“Church officials have been reviewing building security and working with the Plano Police Department since the intrusion of a hate group in the church building during and after Worship Service on Sunday, June 25. That group has posted video of their activities inside the church on various social media sites,” their Facebook post said.
Bo Alford, also known by his social media handle “Bodittle,” denied any involvement in the fire, and authorities in Plano have not suggested a direct link between him and the incident.
“If you watch the video, you will see members of the church having nothing but nice things to say about us. The fact we are being labeled as a hate group and being tied to this fire in any way is appalling,” Alford said.
Alford describes himself as a “pro lib troller,” and he often posts videos targeting LGBTQIA+ people and churches. His most recent video shows him entering a progressive megachurch in Nashville, Tennessee, where he argued with the lead pastor, who sought to prevent the video from being uploaded.
This is not only the perfect demonstration of what the term "stochastic terrorism" means, but also a perfect example of why these kind of right wing rabble rousers have to be so dismissive of its use as a descriptor for what it is they do.
— Erwotin Reotar (@eoinmonkey) July 28, 2023
Alford, fellow YouTuber Cassady Campbell, and another man wished to expose the church’s leaders as “false teachers” while calling it “pagan and satanic” in the now-deleted video uploaded last July 12th.
