Five months ago, Janice Daniels posted a status update on her personal Facebook wall that said, “I think I am going to throw away my I Love New York carrying bag now that queers can get married there.” But now, because Daniels is the newly elected mayor of Troy, Michigan, her tweet has gone viral. And if you think her tweet was offensive, wait until you see her explanation, because lady sure as heck did not apologize.
Daniels had this to say in her defense:
“I was not even considering running for mayor when I posted that. I probably shouldn’t have used that kind of language, but… I was thinking for myself. My personal belief is that marriage is between one man and one woman… They are my personal comments and I posted them. I am not going to change my opinion… But… As mayor, I represent all members of the community, and I am honored to have been elected… I love all people and will continue to work towards promoting a vibrant City of Troy.
“The groups that despise me are digging deep to try to find something to worry about. They probably should start worrying about how they can best work with a new Mayor who believes that we live in a free country and we all have first amendment rights to speak our minds on any and all issues that are before us. BTW, I am still carrying my I Love New York bag.”
It’s funny that Daniels thinks a person’s words only matter after they decide to go into politics—if that were the case, Herman Cain would still be running for president.
And she obviously meant “queer” in a disparaging way and has since deleted the Facebook comment—showing that her words matter to her, whether she’d like to admit their impropriety or not.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
But seeing as two local LGBT groups have called for her apology and an upcoming student protest will call for her resignation, the neophyte mayor is quickly learning how much words matter, no matter their age.
EmmaMTF
Well, no sense in commenting with something like “Queers did her hair/dressed her”, judging from that picture.
Geez. Girl’s got enough on her plate already, clearly having just arrived on the Mayflower.
Marie Cohn
Mayor Janice can’t help looking like a MTF middle-aged frump. She needs a gay friend to advise on style.
Yoder
Who gets to tell her that real homophobes don’t use Facebook, either?
Dan
And people wonder why the rule of law ends under corrupt bigoted politicians who violate human rights.
walter slaughter
I can’t help but think Ms Daniels is a reflection of her community.
Does anyone think she doesn’t go about spouting her suspect homophobic
comments with a sense of communal agreement? She’s a descendent of the
same crowd that moved to Troy in the ’50s and were soon making jokes
over the fondue kettle such as, “Blacks get sickle cell anemia from
licking food stamps.”
miss manda
Unreal. How do people like this get voted into any position of power??? I hope they do put enough pressure on her that she resigns, she doesn’t deserve to hold any job that influences people
Heidi
As much as I dislike her comments I agree she has a right to express them. Bashing her looks is just another form of bullying that I believe that most of use here are against. Having her in office with opinions like that scares me and I hope that she does not use her beliefs to try to change policy and right bigotry into the law.
Mike
It’s really strange that a woman could be anti gay marriage/homophobic. If we listen to what people have taken from the Bible that says gay marriage is wrong, shouldn’t we also assume it’s ok to stone adulterers and prostitutes, and have slaves. Didn’t people used to debate whether or not interracial marriage should be legal. How is it that people keep missing the real issue here. I understand ignorance, but this is ridiculously stupid.
Heidi
oops I meant “write” bigotry into the law…..and I would love to see her ousted from office.
R.
@Walter: As someone who grew up in Troy, I can confirm your feelings. Growing up, every local candidate mailing was about how a candidate was the “most conservative choice” because of their opposition to gay marriage and abortion – never mind that those are issues which will never come up in the Troy City Council, but dumbasses bought it. I first realized I was bisexual in middle school and knew I couldn’t tell anyone, and despite my parents being accepting, didn’t fully accept it myself and come out until I was in college, far far away from Troy.
Troy residents who are younger do tend to be more liberal, though – like, it doesn’t surprise me at all that it’s Troy High students who are leading the protests against her. The city’s a lot more racially and religiously diverse than it was in its post-white-flight days, and while their parents and grandparents can just pretend the Hindus on their block don’t exist, their kids who go to school with them can’t, and knocking out some prejudices to knock out all of them. But it doesn’t ultimately change anything, because anybody with any brains or talent ends up leaving the city for greener pastures.
Scott Stevenson
It’s people like this that make me embarrassed to say I’m from Michigan.
R.
“As much as I dislike her comments I agree she has a right to express them.”
Yeah, I agree with you – per the First Amendment, she shouldn’t be locked up for what she said. However, the First Amendment does not protect you against criticism and accountability. You can say whatever stupid, bigoted thing you want without the government doing anything about it; however, other people have the right to exercise their *own* First Amendment rights by calling you out on your stupidity and bigotry.
This really isn’t a First Amendment issue at all, any more than it’s a First Amendment issue when someone deletes a comment from a private blog. The fact that she’d invoke it at all means she doesn’t understand the First Amendment.
Cam
Just a nasty piece of bigoted trash.
Chris
@Scott Stevenson: Same here. I wonder if she realizes that Troy has one of the best economies in Metro Detroit because of the queer-laden Somerset Collection
christopher di spirito
Just more proof you don’t have to be smart to go into politics. But, we already knew this.
Michael in San Jose
I say own it honey! Get out there and be the bigot you were meant to be! Show the world the real you.
Paul F
I hear there’s a big wooden horse outside the city gates Ms.Mayor. Quick, fling open the gates and drag it inside. No harm can come from it because it’s got a big sign on it’s side saying marrage can only be between one man and one woman forever.
Trent
I think its ironic that she “likes” Gerard Butler (an openly bisexual actor).
slanty
This frumpy woman shouldn’t be running for public office anyway.
Yellow belly
“BTW, I am still carrying my I Love New York bag.”
Well, I’m glad she told us.
Tom J
I was born in Michigan, and up thru the time that I had moved, I was proud of that fact…now I embarrassed to even mention it…(((
Dave
This fugly evil bitch deserves a gift card for stage IV pancreatic cancer. The fact that she doesn’t already have it is how I know god either doesn’t exist or doesn’t give a fuck.
GayGOP
It’s hateful men and women like this who turned a once intelligent, reasonable party into the bag of mixed nuts it now is. I shan’t be traveling to Troy, even if I WERE to go to Michigan.
R.
@GayGOP: Well, there’s only one thing in Troy that’s worth going to and that’s their Somerset Collection mall, so don’t worry, you’re not missing much by choosing to skip.
Don’t diss all of Michigan, though, even a lot of the other Detroit suburbs are not as bad as Troy. Troy’s city government has always been full of dumbasses – to give another example, IKEA wanted to come to the city and they turned them DOWN because they said that the blue-and-yellow color scheme “didn’t go with their family, colonial look.” True story! (And no, Troy doesn’t actually look colonial, and somehow the “family” part didn’t keep them approving a Hooters in the location where IKEA was supposed to be.)
Kyle
Boycott the Somerset Collection. I will be.
Watcher
Troy Mayor Janice Daniels is a typical Troy miscreant. Since she is typical of the most corrupt and bigotted community in America, she has no remorse for her actions other than being found out.
Never forget this is a community with a public school district sued for a racially motivated firing. It is a community that has police that pull over people for “driving while black.”
It is also a community whose school district is engaged in a Penn State style cover-up of sex offenders within Troy School District.
Troy is a sick place and has been for a very long time.
Brandi
This is a huge embarrassment. I just moved to Troy from Royal Oak and love the diversity of the city. Any person in public office saying ignorant, redneck things like this ought to be flogged in public and quickly impeached. And she said it on Facebook? Clearly, she’s not only a bigot, but an idiot, too. Get her out of here. Please.
Brandi
@EmmaMTF:
I just wanted to say that your comment is hilarious and totally after my own heart. Well said! 🙂