Florida Family Association: Office Depot helping Lady Gaga ‘turn children gay’
Office Depot, the US stationer that has partnered with Lady Gaga’s ground breaking Born This Way Foundation has been accused of helping the popstar to turn children gay.
The bizarre claims have been made by the Florida Family Association following a $1m donation by Office Depot to the foundation. Office Depot is the parent company of the UK’s Viking Direct.
The Florida Family Association said that Office Depot is delivering an “irresponsible message to many teens who would have eventually chosen to be straight.”
The right-wingers continued: “The one million dollar pledge from Office Depot to the Lady Gaga Born this Way Foundation will influence many teens to embrace homosexuality for their lifetime who may have otherwise worked through their crisis with straight results,”
“Thousands of kids who might have otherwise worked through their pubescent sexual identity issues will be inspired to accept the wrong choice based upon this unscientific, emotionally charged propaganda. What’s brave or kind about telling thousands of sexually frustrated teens that they were Born This Way when a high percentage of them would have ended up taking the straight heterosexual path for life?”
Bob Moore, Chief Marketing Officer for Office Depot, praised the Born This Way Foundation as “an inspirational organization that has the power to make a difference in the lives of today’s youth.”
The store will sell limited edition Born This Way branded goods including bravery braclets among other items.
The popstar announced the launch of the foundation last November. She founded the foundation with her mother Cynthia Germanotta, and a number of partners including the John D & Catherine T MacArthur Foundation, the California Endowment and the Berkman Centre for Internet & Society at Harvard University.
In a statement at the time Lady Gaga said: “My mother and I have initiated a passion project. We call it the Born This Way Foundation. Together we hope to establish a standard of Bravery and Kindness, as well as a community worldwide that protects and nurtures others in the face of bullying and abandonment.” She added that the foundation will work towards “youth empowerment and equality by addressing issues like self-confidence, well-being, anti-bullying, mentoring and career development and will utilise digital mobilisation as one of the means to create positive change.”
Her single Born This Way was hailed as ”the new gay anthem” by Elton John and features lyrics including: “No matter gay, straight, or bi/ Lesbian, transgendered life/ I’m on the right track, baby” and “Don’t be a drag, just be a queen.”
Gaga has long been a campaigner against bullying. In September she met with US president Barack Obama to talk about the issue of bullying.
The meeting came after a gay teenager, Jamey Rodemeyer killed himself after being bullied. He had previously recorded an ‘It Gets Better’ video and shortly before killing himself posted a line from a Lady Gaga song on his Facebook wall: “Don’t forget me when I come crying to heaven’s door.
Paying tribute to the teenager, Gaga told the audience at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas: “I just wanted to take a moment because we lost a little monster this week. Jamey, I know you’re looking down on us and you’re not a victim, you’re a lesson to all of us.”
