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A small-town Alabama pastor and mayor killed himself Friday, days after a local conservative news website published a story that included photos of him wearing women’s clothing and makeup.

F.L. “Bubba” Copeland, who was the mayor of Smiths Station and the pastor at First Baptist Church in Phenix City, shot himself in front of police during a welfare check, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said.

Copeland’s private life was exposed Wednesday by the conservative blog 1819 News, which was once owned by the right-wing Alabama Policy Institute and whose top editor is a former Breitbart News contributor.

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[-] xantoxis@lemmy.world 102 points 1 year ago

This, in a nutshell, why people become conservative. Because shame and a toxic community keep them from being who they really want to be. Because they need to belong to something so badly that they'll even join a gang of bigots rather than admit they're actually the target of that bigotry.

[-] just_another_person@lemmy.world 90 points 1 year ago

"The party of personal freedoms"

[-] Fapper_McFapper@lemmy.world 90 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Conservative blog 1819 must be very proud of themselves.

Edit: I just emailed them asking which Republican they plan on killing next. Will let you all know if I get a reply.

[-] pivot_root@lemmy.world 22 points 1 year ago

We need a RemindMe bot for things like what you're doing.

[-] RagingRobot@lemmy.world 69 points 1 year ago

Poor guy. This is sad. I hate hearing stories like this

[-] dylanmorgan@slrpnk.net 74 points 1 year ago

I wouldn’t feel as bad if he was a raging bigot about lgbtq issues, but apparently he didn’t have much to say about that which is pretty impressive for a BAPTIST PREACHER IN ALABAMA.

[-] Instigate@aussie.zone 23 points 1 year ago

Yeah, he obviously dealt with a lot of cognitive dissonance between his experience and the culture he was raised in. He wasn’t some hypocrite who was preaching ‘family values’ or some other nonsense, just a tortured soul driven over the edge.

The world just lost another potential ally. He could have helped shape the discourse in his town for the better, but instead he’s being buried. This is a sad day.

[-] Boddhisatva@lemmy.world 52 points 1 year ago

The cognitive dissonance from being a transitioning person and a Republican politician at the same time must be agonizing.

[-] DragonTypeWyvern@literature.cafe 83 points 1 year ago

Crossdressing isn't transexuality by itself.

[-] halcyoncmdr@lemmy.world 41 points 1 year ago

I wish more people understood this. Seems like so many are simply incapable of accepting any nuance anymore. Everything is binary. This or That. With me or against me.

[-] meco03211@lemmy.world 20 points 1 year ago

You mean I could wear clothing ostensibly for women and I wouldn't need to immediately identify as a woman and become gay? Well fuck. Wasted my whole life on all this man stuff.

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[-] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 18 points 1 year ago

True, but the article did indicate that they were posting as a trans woman. Maybe she’s trans, maybe he’s a cis crossdresser, either way what did they expect.

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[-] insomniac_lemon@kbin.social 19 points 1 year ago

Also religious in the deep south AND a pastor. He must've been seeing Green-Goblin hallucinations but with Kenneth Copeland instead of Willem Dafoe.

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[-] moog@lemm.ee 48 points 1 year ago

Fuck I just feel sorry for them

[-] pwnieb0y@lemmy.world 37 points 1 year ago

IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE LIKE THIS! If people won't listen to Jesus, maybe they can listen to his modern day apostle Fred Rogers when he said "I like you just the way you are."

[-] athos77@kbin.social 23 points 1 year ago

maybe they can listen to his modern day apostle Fred Rogers when he said “I like you just the way you are.”

Right. That would be Presbyterian minister, children's show host, gave-out-full-size-candy-bars-at-Halloween Fred Rogers, yes? The one that Fox went out of their way to describe as "an evil, evil man" who was [in effect] responsible for corrupting today's youth? Well, sadly, I think I can explain why they don't listen to Mr. Rogers ...

[-] LemmysMum@lemmy.world 15 points 1 year ago

They do listen to Jesus. Not the Middle-Eastern Jewish Socialist Jesus. They listen to white racist Conservative American Jesus, they listen to Supply Side Jesus, they listen to the Jesus who can fit a rich man through the eye of a needle and who's death gives them the right to sin.

[-] Welt@lazysoci.al 13 points 1 year ago

Trickle-down Jesus, with an exceptionally wide stance.

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[-] surewhynotlem@lemmy.world 27 points 1 year ago

"he shot himself in front of us" -trustworthy police

[-] cannibalkitteh 26 points 1 year ago

I'm absolutely horrified by so many folks in the comment section blinded by partisan hate.

[-] jerome@lemmy.world 16 points 1 year ago

Welp, conservatives fucking suck.

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[-] Nipplecreek@lemm.ee 21 points 1 year ago

Republicans love stuff like this. If you're different they think you should die.

[-] cupcakezealot 19 points 1 year ago

charge the owners of the blog with 3rd degree murder.

[-] TigrisMorte@kbin.social 19 points 1 year ago

Repression is the cause of much suffering.

[-] Nusm@lemmy.world 16 points 1 year ago

One of the sad things is how big he's smiling in the picture. Looks like a jolly guy.

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this post was submitted on 04 Nov 2023
582 points (100.0% liked)

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