On Friday night, around 30 men, associated with the anti-LGBT group Christian Lives Matter, marched up a busy street in Sydney’s inner west, chanting the Lord’s Prayer and Hail Mary in protest.
The group’s founder, Charlie Bakhos, wrote on Instagram that the men were praying the rosary on King Street in Newtown as part of protests sparked by an offensive joke about Jesus by a queer comedian on The Project on Tuesday.
The video showed the men, escorted by several police officers, forming a circle to recite the Lord’s Prayer before marching up the street, with a person at the front holding rosary beads above his head.
Some diners seated outside were seen filming on their phones. Some viewers described the scenes as intimidating and creepy. Newtown Greens MP Jenny Leong slammed the protest as “disgraceful,” saying, “there is no place for aggressive, threatening and violent acts of discrimination and hatred.” She also advised people to “take care” as “these incidents can be traumatic and make you feel violated.”
The NSW Police said officers with Inner West Police Area Command, along with specialist police resources, attended King Street “in relation to unauthorised protest activity” at about 8 pm on Friday. “Police spoke with a group of about 30 people who marched along the footpath on King Street, Newtown, before dispersing just before 9 pm,” the police spokeswoman said. “No arrests were made. While we won’t comment on specific individuals, or groups, the community can be assured we continue to monitor activities and will take action where appropriate.”
Christian Lives Matter has also announced a “men’s rosary crusade” outside Sydney’s St Mary’s Cathedral on Saturday afternoon. Channel 10 faced calls for The Project to be cancelled this week after an X-rated joke about Jesus by queer comic Reuben Kaye sparked outrage among the Christian and Muslim communities.
»Protest erupts in Sydney’s busy street sparked by a joke about Jesus by a queer comedian«
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