Conservative MO lawmaker says child abuse made him gay — for 5 years

The campaign for governor hopeful Sen. Bob Dixon issued a statement regarding “teenage confusion” that Dixon’s mother says led him to live as a homosexual for five years.

Dixon, who stressed his conservative values in announcing his candidacy for governor last week, said he was the victim of abuse as a child, and this abuse led to the confusion he felt about his sexuality as a teenager, according to a press release from his campaign.

“I have put the childhood abuse, and the teenage confusion behind me,” said Dixon, R-Springfield, who has a wife and three children. “What others intended for harm has resulted in untold good. I have overcome, and will not allow evil to win.”

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“From passing the Child Witness Protection Act, to protecting children from those who would do harm to them from the shadows of the Internet, and to reforming Missouri’s Criminal Code — I have consistently worked to treat all people with respect, understanding, and compassion, and to bring people together, not divide them,” Dixon said in the release.

His campaign staff denied a News-Leader interview request.

“The campaign will not say anything further on this matter,” it said in an email.A call made directly to Dixon, a supporter of traditional marriage who said his foundation is “faith in God,” was not immediately returned.

His mother, former Republican state representative Jean Dixon, discussed this episode in Dixon’s life in a 1992 News-Leader article. In the story, Jean Dixon said her son’s homosexuality caused her great distress and was part of the reason she so vehemently opposed a play produced by Missouri State University in1989 called “Normal Heart,” which explored the topics of homosexuality and AIDS. (That story is attached to this report.)

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Dixon also discussed the teenage years he spent as a homosexual before the Springfield City Council in May 1991, when he spoke against a bias crime ordinance, the article states.

City Council meeting minutes state Dixon was one of 16 speakers who opposed the bias-crime ordinance, which would have created greater penalties for people who committed crimes that were “bias-motivated offenses,” but the minutes did not include his specific comments.

Over this past weekend, the issue of Dixon’s teenage sexuality was raised in a pair of articles, one by the Riverfront Times and one by St. Louis Public Radio.

In the release, Dixon said it would be disappointing if his political opponents tried to use his past against him.

“There are people who to this day try to turn politics into a blood sport. This sort of approach discourages many good people from public service. While it is disappointing, I will have no fear of those who wish to tear down others for their gain. I will have no part of it,” Dixon said in the release.

Dixon said during his announcement speech last week that he is a proponent of “traditional marriage” while listing some of his conservative views.

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“It’s true. I’m 100 percent pro-life. I’m a strong supporter of the the second amendment, actually I’m a strong supporter of the whole constitution. And I’ve spent about the last 23 years as a strong supporter of traditional marriage,” Dixon said.

Representatives from the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of the Ozarks and PROMO, a statewide gay rights advocacy group, declined to comment on Dixon’s remarks Monday.