'I Witnessed Men With Size 13 and 14 Shoes … Kissing Each Other;' Birmingham Preacher Makes Explosive Speech About Gay Marriage
Cedric Hatcher, a Birmingham, Alabama-based street preacher, has come out swinging at fellow Christian leaders for not doing enough to publicly disapprove of same-sex marriage, which started taking place in that city and around the state last Monday.
Hatcher, described as "an outspoken street evangelist and regular at Birmingham City Hall" by the news website al.com on Feb. 11, gave an impassioned dissent of gay marriage during the public comment section of a meeting at Birmingham City Hall.
"It was one of the most comedic scenes I've ever seen in public, when I witnessed men with size 13 and 14 shoes out there kissing each other in the mouth in front of little kids," Hatcher said. "It was like a freak scene going on, that's what I call it."
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Gay couples in Jefferson County started getting married in Birmingham last Monday after U.S. District Judge Callie Granade ruled to strike down the state's ban against same-sex marriage. Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore had ordered local probate judges not to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, but Granade ordered a judge in Mobile County to disregard the directive from Moore and abide by her ruling.
Hatcher lamented the ruling during the council meeting and warned that it would open the door to all sorts of unorthodox unions between people and animals.
"You're gonna be able to marry your dog; you're gonna be able to marry your cat; you're gonna be able to marry your snake; you're gonna be able to marry your rat, the roaches. Some of you been with the roaches so long you might as well gonna marry the roach, he been around the house so long. You're gonna be able to marry your broom, your mop. Ain't we going crazy in this world, ya'll?" he said.
He then ripped into Christian leaders who've failed to speak up.
"I'm so delighted and honored that God would have me bold enough to stand and talk about these issues," he said. "Somebody should have stood up yesterday."
"Where all the preachers was yesterday? You know, I mean the only time you gonna make them come out them doors is when they stop them tithes and offerings in your church and you can't have men's day no more, and youth day and women's day. … Somebody should have stood up yesterday. Ain't it funny that everybody got a right but the Christian?" he asked.
"I can barely say 'Praise the Lord' in public now," he added. "I might go to jail, I might threaten a lawsuit on the job. You can't tell a person to have a blessed day. Ain't it sad?"
Watch Hatcher's full address below:
