On Saturday, men dressed as women entered Lititz Springs Park, a woman bared her surgically modified chest publicly, and a teenager barked like a dog in the face of a Christian street preacher.
Lititz Chooses Love, an organization with a special focus on reaching minors with the message of homosexuality and transgenderism, put on their third Lititz Pride Festival on June 17, billing it as a “family-friendly” event, with many activities aimed at children.
Volunteers carrying rainbow-colored umbrellas escorted attendees into the park, seeking to prevent them from receiving Christian literature or interacting with alternative viewpoints.
Over two dozen men gathered at multiple entrances to the park, handing out Christian literature, engaging in conversations, and street preaching. Other Christians walked around the park, silently praying that the attendees would change their minds about celebrating pride, homosexuality, and transgenderism.
As one man preached on the public sidewalk along Broad Street, a young person approached him and made loud barking sounds in his face before entering the festival.
Another man pulled his motorcycle alongside the public sidewalk and revved his engine in an attempt to drown out the public preaching of the Bible.
Security and volunteers screened who could enter the park, even turning away one man who was not involved in any outreach or protest but simply wanted to see what was happening in the park.
Another man, carrying a Satanic Temple flag, was welcomed into the park.
Even conversations on public property were targeted by festival volunteers and hired security.
At one point a private guard hired for security inside the park left the property of Lititz Springs Park and told a group of people having a conversation outside the park to disperse. When asked to confirm that he was only hired to provide security within park property, the security guard replied, “I was hired to make you shut up.”
Joel Saint, pastor of Independence Reformed Bible Church, was involved in the outreach and told The Lancaster Patriot that many of the attendees of the event responded in anger to attempts at conversation.
“Most of the time you try to engage people, and you get sworn at, you sometimes get flipped off,” Saint said. “They aren’t interested in talking, they’re interested more in yelling.”
Saint described the event as “vile” and specifically noted the amount of children being led into the festival.
“They love it when little children come in here, because they can’t have [children] – the homosexuals can’t have them – so they have to groom them from straight people,” Saint said. “And it’s wicked.”
Promoting Transgenderism Among Youth
Inside the park, various vendors and organizations sold or gave away items. One table had a t-shirt which read, “Protect Trans Kids.”
The nationwide movement to normalize transgenderism among youth includes a push to allow minors to receive puberty-suppressing hormones and even surgery, sometimes without parental consent.
One bill under consideration in the California legislature would classify parents in custody battles as “abusive” if they do not affirm their child’s gender identity, according to ABC7.
Parker Webb, president of Lititz Chooses Love, claims to be a “life-long trans man” and has publicly admitted that using drugs to block puberty in youth is a viable option.
“Once they hit puberty, puberty blockers may be an option,” Webb said during a community forum in Lancaster last month, according to One United Lancaster.
The Mayo Clinic’s website describes puberty blockers as a means “to delay the changes of puberty in transgender and gender-diverse youth who have started puberty” and claims that “delaying puberty” can improve social interactions with others.
Various potential side effects are also listed.
“If individuals assigned male at birth begin using GnRH analogues early in puberty, they might not develop enough skin on the penis and scrotum to be able to have some types of gender-affirming surgeries later in life,” the Mayo Clinic website states. “But other surgery approaches usually are available.”
Some of those other surgeries include vaginoplasty, wherein the penis is removed, and a faux vagina, clitoris, and labia are created. Risks to the surgery include urinary problems, pelvic floor problems, loss of sexual function, behavioral health problems, and infertility.
One California teen girl recently spoke out about the damage that was done to her by adults pushing the transgender narrative.
Chloe Cole, now 18, was medically “transitioned” from ages 13 to 16, taking “puberty-blockers” and testosterone, and having her breasts surgically removed at age 15.
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to fully carry a child, and I might be at increased risk for certain cancers, mainly cervical cancer,” Cole said, according to Fox News. “And because I do not have my breasts…I am not able to breastfeed whatever future children I have.”
During the Lititz Pride Festival Saturday, one woman holding a rainbow-colored umbrella exited the park and stood on public property with her vest open, revealing a scarred chest where her breasts and nipples used to be. The woman wore a pin that said, “They, Them, Theirs.”
Lititz Springs Park board president Jeff Rinehimer told The Lancaster Patriot that there were “no sexual overtones” in the park and everyone was welcome in the park unless “you come in to protest.”
Rinehimer also said, “I don’t approve, in a sense, their lifestyle.”
this is soooo horrible. its straight from hell. 😭
This is so wildly misrepresentative of the actual event its quite disgusting. I actually spoke with a reporter for this paper and its quite sad that what i felt was a good, honest conversation on such topics with her ended up being this incredibly poor report of the events on this day including but not limited to: recalling who was yelling versus speaking (the hate speach by the “pastors”) as well as the sexualization of children, which simply did and does not happen in this community, though it does unfortunately in other (religious) communities. So sad.
I completely agree. This event was full of music, food trucks, kids playing on the playground, and LGBTQ+ folks feeling ……safe. I personally witnessed the “protesters” yelling, and essentially talking to themselves since nobody was trying to reason with them. They were frustrated at the peacefulness of the event.
Sara, please point out what information was false in the article. The article reports that there was indeed street preaching and even includes two pictures of street preachers using megaphones. The article does not cite either side as using “hate speech,” though we could have our various perspectives on that. What information about children was incorrect? Do you deny that many children were brought to the park? Do you deny that there was a “Protect Trans Kids” shirt on display? Do you deny what the Mayo Clinic says regarding puberty blockers? Quotes from both sides were provided: Webb in favor of giving youth chemicals to block puberty and one from Saint against encouraging kids in that sort of thing. Did the article misquote Webb? Did the article misquote Saint? Or are you contending that no one used foul language in rejecting offers for conversations? Do you deny that Lititz Chooses Love promotes homosexuality and transgenderism? Again, what specific information is false? Thanks!
I personally went to the lititz pride festival on the 17th and I, as a 15 year old non-binary, omnisexual youth. I was told through a megaphone from one of their pastors who were protesting that I should be “struck down by a car” so that I could be “forgiven for my sins.” Again, I was told as a 15 yrar old, by a male pastor, who is 50-60 years old, to be struck down by a car. In simpler words, to be hit with a car as I crossed the street. These “peaceful” protests were affecting our day and telling us to get injured. I am a youth in this community and I have never felt MORE safe than when I am at pride fests. My own father tried to force me to speak to a pastor and force me into conversion camp. Pastors and Christians make me more uncomfortable than the people who are being targeted and threatened.
I was in attendance at the Lititz event and had at least a 15 min conversation with a woman who was part of the IRBC group that was friendly and very respectful and civil- to the degree that she provided me with her cell phone number and invited me to her home for tea. To say all engagements with attendees were aggressive & contained profanity and hostility is incorrect.
Olivia, agreed. And as the article reports, conversations did take place. Unfortunately, as reported, the park volunteers and hired security did try to end some of those, even though they were outside park property. And Saint’s quote was a general statement about his experience – he didn’t say that no one was willing to have a conversation, just that most were not.
Thanks for the accurate reporting.
I actually was there and had several great conversations with folks who attended the event. Truth about eternity was shared with them and during the exchanges both parties respectfully listened to one another. Christians showed up because of LOVE, the love of God which is the only True Love there is. Love compels a Christ follower to action, and sharing the Truth is a natural outgrowth of Love. No Christ follower wants to see the death of the wicked, so we share the gospel! Gospel means “Good News”.
“For God so loved the world, that He gave us His one and only Son that whoever believes on Him will not perish, but have everlasting life.”
When one rejects Christ, their end is in the lake of fire. Not because of what they “did” or “didn’t do” in life, ie, good or bad works, but because they have rejected the price Jesus paid on the cross as OUR substitute. He paid the debt each of us owe because of the fall of man.
I witnessed alot of great conversations, praise God, people engaging in dialogue about eternal matters. How can that be wrong? If you didn’t like the manner of some of those preaching, you could have found another. There were at least 30 God fearing believers present!
I attended the event in Lititz and spoke with a woman from the IRBC group for close to 20 minutes. Our conversation was civil and respectful and kind to the point where she provided me with her cell phone number and invited me to her home for tea. To say all interactions between attendees and the IRBC group were hateful, aggressive and antagonistic is not accurate.
Olivia, agreed. And as the article reports, conversations did take place. Unfortunately, as reported, the park volunteers and hired security did try to end some of those, even though they were outside park property. And Saint’s quote was a general statement about his experience – he didn’t say that no one was willing to have a conversation, just that most were not.
I personally went to the lititz pride festival on the 17th and I, as a 15 year old non-binary, omnisexual youth. I was told through a megaphone from one of their pastors who were protesting that I should be “struck down by a car” so that I could be “forgiven for my sins.” Again, I was told as a 15 yrar old, by a male pastor, who is 50-60 years old, to be struck down by a car. In simpler words, to be hit with a car as I crossed the street. These “peaceful” protests were affecting our day and telling us to get injured. I am a youth in this community and I have never felt MORE safe than when I am at pride fests. My own father tried to force me to speak to a pastor and force me into conversion camp. Pastors and Christians make me more uncomfortable than the people who are being targeted and threatened.
3 weeks have passed. I just read this article and the comments. The lack of Sarah supporting her accusations…speaks volumes.
Let me get this right… None of the “Patriots” served? Air Force doesn’t really count.