title:  Franklin Graham’s Daughter: 9/11 Happened Because God Is Mad At Trans People (AUDIO)
text: Religious bigots continue their hateful rhetoric against transgender people at alarming rates, and now Anne Graham Lotz, daughter of hateful evangelical pastor Franklin Graham and sister to the equally hateful Billy Graham, has jumped into the fray as well. Her statements are especially outrageous; in fact, she has said that the reason the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on U.S. soil happened is because God is  upset that transgender people exist.Lotz appeared on a right-wing hate radio show run by Steve Deace to express her horrible opinions. She said to Deace: What I see in the nation of America right now, just the chaos on every level.There is silliness, there is craziness, there s the most illogical rulings. The one in North Carolina on HB2, which is to protect our children in bathrooms and locker rooms, has become something where the justice department is suing us for something that s just common sense.To me it s evidence that God has backed away. Here is a bit of audio of these statements, via Right Wing Watch:[soundcloud url= https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/263809966  params= color=ff5500  width= 100%  height= 166  iframe= true  /]If you think that s bad, you ain t seen nothing yet. This nutty woman then went on to pretty much directly blame the advancement of transgender rights in the United States for terrorism. Lotz said: In our nation, one of the things we pray for is that some of this craziness would settle down  [but] our nation seems to be shaking its fist in God s face, we re abandoning God as a nation.What happens then is God abandons us and backs away, he he takes his favour and blessing away from us.[If we repent] I think he would begin to reveal the plots of terrorists before they are carried out, even the weather patterns he can control and protect us from violent storms.I think that s why God allows bad things to happen. I think that d why he would allow 9/11 to happen, or the dreadful attack in San Bernardino. To show us we need him. Here is more audio:[soundcloud url= https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/263809967  params= color=ff5500  width= 100%  height= 166  iframe= true  /]So, in other words, this nutty woman actually believes that giving human being rights is the reason for terrorism. This rhetoric is beyond dangerous, especially considering how misunderstood transgender people are. This is straight up hate speech, and it should not be tolerated. It s people like this who are responsible for the huge uptick in violence against vulnerable groups of people.This woman does not deserve a platform for her hate. Hopefully, one day, she and others like her won t have one.Featured image via Tara Walton/Getty Images