Franklin Graham is scheduled to preach the gospel in eight cities across the United Kingdom later this year, but one of those stops is now in jeopardy after the venue canceled the booking over his biblical views on LGBTQ issues.
ACC Liverpool, an arena and conference center, dropped Graham and said in a statement, “Over the past few days we have been made aware of a number of statements which we consider to be incompatible with our values.” He was scheduled to preach in Liverpool on June 12.
“In light of this we can no longer reconcile the balance between freedom of speech and the divisive impact this event is having in our city,” the statement said. “We have informed the organisers of the event that the booking will no longer be fulfilled.”
Graham, though, said in a Monday statement that everyone is welcome.
“The Gospel is inclusive,” Graham wrote. “I’m not coming out of hate, I’m coming out of love.”
A Change.org petition that labeled Graham a “homophobic hate preacher” had gathered more than 350 signatures as of Tuesday morning.
“We fear that with such a high-profile event gaining traction, Graham’s appearance may incite hateful mobilisation and risk the security of our LGBTQ+ community,” the petition said.
Liverpool’s mayor, too, wanted the event canceled.
The Liverpool City Region Pride Foundation wrote to city leaders and said of Graham’s…
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