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submitted 7 months ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/politics@lemmy.world

A small-town Alabama pastor and mayor killed himself Friday, days after a local conservative news website published a story that included photos of him wearing women’s clothing and makeup.

F.L. “Bubba” Copeland, who was the mayor of Smiths Station and the pastor at First Baptist Church in Phenix City, shot himself in front of police during a welfare check, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said.

Copeland’s private life was exposed Wednesday by the conservative blog 1819 News, which was once owned by the right-wing Alabama Policy Institute and whose top editor is a former Breitbart News contributor.

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[-] xantoxis@lemmy.world 102 points 7 months ago

This, in a nutshell, why people become conservative. Because shame and a toxic community keep them from being who they really want to be. Because they need to belong to something so badly that they'll even join a gang of bigots rather than admit they're actually the target of that bigotry.

[-] just_another_person@lemmy.world 90 points 7 months ago

"The party of personal freedoms"

[-] Fapper_McFapper@lemmy.world 89 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

Conservative blog 1819 must be very proud of themselves.

Edit: I just emailed them asking which Republican they plan on killing next. Will let you all know if I get a reply.

[-] pivot_root@lemmy.world 22 points 7 months ago

We need a RemindMe bot for things like what you're doing.

[-] RagingRobot@lemmy.world 68 points 7 months ago

Poor guy. This is sad. I hate hearing stories like this

[-] dylanmorgan@slrpnk.net 73 points 7 months ago

I wouldn’t feel as bad if he was a raging bigot about lgbtq issues, but apparently he didn’t have much to say about that which is pretty impressive for a BAPTIST PREACHER IN ALABAMA.

[-] Instigate@aussie.zone 24 points 7 months ago

Yeah, he obviously dealt with a lot of cognitive dissonance between his experience and the culture he was raised in. He wasn’t some hypocrite who was preaching ‘family values’ or some other nonsense, just a tortured soul driven over the edge.

The world just lost another potential ally. He could have helped shape the discourse in his town for the better, but instead he’s being buried. This is a sad day.

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[-] Boddhisatva@lemmy.world 49 points 7 months ago

The cognitive dissonance from being a transitioning person and a Republican politician at the same time must be agonizing.

[-] DragonTypeWyvern@literature.cafe 85 points 7 months ago

Crossdressing isn't transexuality by itself.

[-] halcyoncmdr@lemmy.world 38 points 7 months ago

I wish more people understood this. Seems like so many are simply incapable of accepting any nuance anymore. Everything is binary. This or That. With me or against me.

[-] meco03211@lemmy.world 20 points 7 months ago

You mean I could wear clothing ostensibly for women and I wouldn't need to immediately identify as a woman and become gay? Well fuck. Wasted my whole life on all this man stuff.

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[-] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 17 points 7 months ago

True, but the article did indicate that they were posting as a trans woman. Maybe she’s trans, maybe he’s a cis crossdresser, either way what did they expect.

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[-] insomniac_lemon@kbin.social 19 points 7 months ago

Also religious in the deep south AND a pastor. He must've been seeing Green-Goblin hallucinations but with Kenneth Copeland instead of Willem Dafoe.

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[-] moog@lemm.ee 45 points 7 months ago

Fuck I just feel sorry for them

[-] pwnieb0y@lemmy.world 37 points 7 months ago

IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE LIKE THIS! If people won't listen to Jesus, maybe they can listen to his modern day apostle Fred Rogers when he said "I like you just the way you are."

[-] athos77@kbin.social 23 points 7 months ago

maybe they can listen to his modern day apostle Fred Rogers when he said “I like you just the way you are.”

Right. That would be Presbyterian minister, children's show host, gave-out-full-size-candy-bars-at-Halloween Fred Rogers, yes? The one that Fox went out of their way to describe as "an evil, evil man" who was [in effect] responsible for corrupting today's youth? Well, sadly, I think I can explain why they don't listen to Mr. Rogers ...

[-] LemmysMum@lemmy.world 15 points 7 months ago

They do listen to Jesus. Not the Middle-Eastern Jewish Socialist Jesus. They listen to white racist Conservative American Jesus, they listen to Supply Side Jesus, they listen to the Jesus who can fit a rich man through the eye of a needle and who's death gives them the right to sin.

[-] Welt@lazysoci.al 13 points 7 months ago

Trickle-down Jesus, with an exceptionally wide stance.

[-] surewhynotlem@lemmy.world 27 points 7 months ago

"he shot himself in front of us" -trustworthy police

[-] cannibalkitteh@lemmy.blahaj.zone 23 points 7 months ago

I'm absolutely horrified by so many folks in the comment section blinded by partisan hate.

[-] jerome@lemmy.world 15 points 7 months ago

Welp, conservatives fucking suck.

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[-] Nipplecreek@lemm.ee 22 points 7 months ago

Republicans love stuff like this. If you're different they think you should die.

[-] TigrisMorte@kbin.social 20 points 7 months ago

Repression is the cause of much suffering.

[-] Nusm@lemmy.world 16 points 7 months ago

One of the sad things is how big he's smiling in the picture. Looks like a jolly guy.

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[-] SuperSpaceFan@lemm.ee 13 points 7 months ago

This is extremely sad. His own GOP community first outed him, then rejected him.

[-] Fapper_McFapper@lemmy.world 18 points 7 months ago

Outed him and if you know anything about Southern Baptist, they killed him too.

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[-] cupcakezealot@lemmy.blahaj.zone 13 points 7 months ago

charge the owners of the blog with 3rd degree murder.

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this post was submitted on 04 Nov 2023
580 points (98.7% liked)

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