Last year, we wrote about Will Phillips, a 10 year old boy in Arkansas who was refusing to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance until gays can get married and achieve full equality.

Phillips has been tapped to serve as Grand Marshall of the Northwest Arkansas Pride Parade in Fayetteville on Saturday and the American Family Association is freaking out, sending out an action alert targeting the mayor and calling it a “form of child abuse”:

I am shocked to learn that the city of Fayetteville is issuing a proclamation in support of the homosexual activist group, Northwest Arkansas Pride. It’s offensive enough to sensibilities that they are going to parade their deviant lifestyle on the streets of the city. It’s even more abhorrent that the city is supporting it, knowing very well that the organizers of this event are exploiting children to push their radical sexualizing event. I implore you to withdraw the proclamation and focus on issues that promote a healthy and safe lifestyle, rather than one that is risky and dangerous. … AFA President Tim Wildmon says, “It’s shameful that adults would abuse a brain-washed child in this way. He’s obviously just parroting the nonsense he’s been told by manipulative adults. For gay activists to trot out this child and make him the poster child for promoting unnatural sexual expression is a form of child abuse.”

So of course Fox News picked up the story and just take one guess who they quoted:

“We believe that it goes beyond the pale for adults to exploit a 10-year-old child for dark political purposes,” said Bryan Fischer, the director of issue analysis at AFA. “He is too young to understand. There is nothing about homosexual conduct to be proud of and much to be ashamed of.” The AFA, according to Fischer, has sent an “action alert” to its members in Arkansas, and he says they have deluged the mayor’s and city council’s office with e-mails “asking him to stop this charade.” Though there are no plans to actively protest at the parade, Fischer said, “as of noon Thursday our records show that the mayor and city council had received 12,300 e-mails asking them to stop the parade.”

I’ve often wondered what media outlet would be the first to quote Fischer in a story like this and if they’d even bother to mention his long history of viciously anti-gay and all around crazy statements.

I guess it should come as no surprise that the answers were: Fox News ,and No.

But in good news, Fayetteville’s Mayor is refusing to bow to the AFA’s pressure and Saturday’s parade will go on as scheduled.