Kansas State Prof Calls GOP a 'Death Cult,' Calls for App To Track Republicans
According to one university professor, Republicans are part of a “death cult” that needs to be tracked at all times.
Philip Nel, an English professor at Kansas State University, argued that GOP state lawmakers were “endangering the lives of us all” with their opposition to a complete shutdown of all religious services amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Nel — the author of books such as “Was the Cat in the Hat Black?: The Hidden Racism of Children’s Literature” and “Tales for Little Rebels: A Collection of Radical Children’s Literature” — made his comments in a Twitter thread on April 8.
“Local branch of death cult, aka @KansasGOP, votes to exempt churches from quarantine rules, endangering the lives of us all,” Nel wrote.
1. ? ⛪️ Local branch of death cult, aka @KansasGOP, votes to exempt churches from quarantine rules, endangering the lives of us all. This leads me to a serious question. https://t.co/94a8RzutPU
— Philip Nel ✍️ (@philnel) April 9, 2020
He was responding to Kansas GOP lawmakers who had voted to overturn Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s new stay-at-home order, which had been revised to include all religious services.
“Although religious institutions and funerals previously were exempt from this 10-person limit, they now will need to comply with this rule,” the order said.
Republicans were not on board with this decision, pointing to the First Amendment’s protection of religious freedom.
Susan Wagle, the Republican president of the Kansas state Senate, voiced the party’s concerns on Twitter.
“The Governor should not use this crisis, or any other crisis, as a basis to restrict our constitutional rights,” the senator wrote April 9. “This is the people’s government, always will be, and I will carry their voices when the call is clear.
“This is still America.”
The Governor should not use this crisis, or any other crisis, as a basis to restrict our constitutional rights. This is the people’s government, always will be, and I will carry their voices when the call is clear. This is still America. #ksleg
— Susan Wagle (@SenatorWagle) April 9, 2020
Nel, however, interpreted Republican opposition to the restrictive stay-at-home order as dangerous.
“Has anyone developed an app to track Republicans & other plague-spreaders?” he wrote. “I want to know which people & which businesses to avoid.
“This is a serious question. Rather than avoiding all local businesses, I want only to avoid those owned by or employing fans of contagion.”
3. ?? For the sake of the public’s health, we need a list of the virus-spreaders & the virus-adjacent. Indeed, employers that provide vital services need to know whether their employees are putting other employees or customers at risk. #COVID19Kills.
— Philip Nel ✍️ (@philnel) April 9, 2020
Nel portrayed those in Kansas opposed to the government order as utterly disregarding the dangers 0f COVID-19.
However, one of the pastors fighting the order has prioritized caution in his church’s gatherings.
According to The Kansas City Star, Aaron Harris of Calvary Baptist Church, who filed a suit against Kelly’s order, did his best to make sure the church’s Easter service was as safe as possible.
Calvary Baptist streamed the service online so that members who felt unsafe could stay at home. In total, 21 people attended in person in a church that can seat up to 300 people.
Although such a gathering could be made safe for all parties involved, it would still be in violation of Kelly’s original order.
Over the past two weeks, the Kansas Supreme Court and a federal judge have sided with Harris against the governor’s ban on religious services.
Churches across the country are practicing safe socially distanced services.
Temple Baptist Church in Greenville, Mississippi, for example, had a drive-in service where all churchgoers stayed in their cars and listened to their pastor through the radio.
If it were up to people like Philip Nel, all of these churchgoers would be put on a list of “plague-spreaders.”
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.
