‘Patrons Saying Hateful Things’

UN Ambassador Nikki Haley took to Twitter Sunday evening to complain that she and her family were out having lunch and were booed by “patrons” as she and her group were leaving a restaurant during New York City Pride. “Our country is better than this,” she tweeted.Â

It’s actually unclear who was doing the booingÂ â€“ Pride attendees or the restaurantÂ patrons, or both.Â

We,incl my son, were booed by patrons saying hateful things as we left lunch @ Pride Parade.Our country is better than this. #HateNeverWins â€” Nikki Haley (@nikkihaley) June 25, 2017

Haley has a tenuous relationship with the LGBTQ community. In 2010 she made clear that to her, marriage was between a man and a woman, only.

As Governor of South Carolina Haley in 2013 defended her state’s ban on same-sex marriage.Â “The citizens of South Carolina spoke,” she said, “spoke something that I, too, believe, which is marriage should between a man and a woman.”

In 2016 she delivered the Republican rebuttal to President Obama’s State of the Union address.Â â€œWe would respect differences in modern families,â€ she said of the GOP, â€œbut we would also insist on respect for religious liberty as a cornerstone of our democracy.â€

Some saw it as a softening from her and Republicans, on marriage equality.Â

Haley has never come out in direct support for same-sex marriage or full LGBT civil rights.Â

In April she became the firstÂ and still only Trump administrationÂ official to fully denounce the abduction, torture, and murder of gay men in Chechnya’s gay concentration camps. In that statement she said: “We are against all forms of discrimination, including against people based on sexual orientation.”

But how far that extends is unknown.

Also how much she was actually booed is up for debate. The Advocate’s Lucas Grindley reports “there seems to be a dispute about the amount of booing that Haley experienced,” and points to this tweet from a New York City talent agent:

NIkki- I was there at that restaurant. We treated you with respect. You should not malign the #LGBT community by the actions of a few. â€” Jamie Harris (@jamieharrisnyc) June 26, 2017

On Twitter, many responded to Haley’s complaint of being booed, explaining why it might have happened:

Your party has done nothing to advance LGBTQ rights. Sorry but guilt by association. @mike_pence supported conversion therapy. â€” â„ï¸snowflakeâ„ï¸ (@walts_undertoad) June 25, 2017

If you want to change hateful rhetoric, CHANGE hateful rhetoric of your party. â€” Danny Deraney (@DannyDeraney) June 26, 2017

So sorry. Hope you explained to your son this was frustration & anger w/Trump admin, of which you are a part. Learning moment, for you both. â€” Karen Germaine (@KarenGermaine) June 26, 2017

Well, @nikkihaley opposes trans protections, tried to oppose SSMs from other states, and now works for Trump. So yeah, she was booed. â€” Zack Ford (@ZackFord) June 26, 2017

Nikki Haley defended a gay marriage ban in South Carolina and has the audacity to act holier than thou about being booed at a PRIDE parade. â€” Euclid (@Deuce1042) June 26, 2017

As it turns out, Haley has some experience being booed. In April she attended the Women in the World summit, also in New York. She was subjected to booing there too over trump administrationÂ policies and lack of action over Syria.

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Image by United Nations via Flickr and a CC license