Former 'Daily Show' Host John Oliver Blasts Pastor Scott Lively for Gay Comments
The former host of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" and current host of HBO's "Last Night Tonight" mocked an anti-gay pastor and current Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate on Sunday.
British comedian John Oliver, who spent most of his show this week focusing on the accomplishments of LGBT activists, also highlighted Scott Lively, who is currently the subject of a lawsuit filed by a Ugandan gay advocacy group partially blaming him for inciting violence against the country's LGBT population.
While homosexuality was already illegal in the country, earlier this year, Uganda passed a law expanding the criminalization of same-sex relations – "aggravated homosexuality" is punishable by life imprisonment and the "promotion" of homosexuality is also criminalized. It also requires citizens to report to the police anyone suspected of being gay.
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"Calling Uganda's laws 'harsh' doesn't really do them justice. That's like calling Stalin 'a bit of a grump'," Oliver told his audience. "Or the Triangle Shirtwaist fire a 'whoopsie-doo'. Or the Titanic a 'disappointing vacation'."
Oliver skewered Lively, whom he blamed for contributing to the law's extreme nature.
"You may know Lively as that crazy guy … attempting to take back the rainbow as a symbol from the gays," Oliver added. "Scott Lively is clearly an idiot, and luckily, over here we just get to laugh at him."
Oliver also played video clips of Lively informing Ugandans that it was not uncommon in the United States for "lesbians to be molested by other women." Lively was also shown comparing homosexuality with pedophilia, insulting gays as "monsters" and "Nazis" and suggesting that gays were "probably involved" with the Rwandan genocide.
"It's like he ate the most offensive package of magnetic poetry and then vomited it all over his audience," Oliver said.
In response to Oliver's segment, Lively called the host a "liar and a fraud who couldn't go 10 minutes with me in an unscripted, unedited debate."
"Without his teleprompter and his cheap-shot, out-of-context video clips he would be exposed as just another left-wing loony," he said, also accusing Oliver of selectively editing his video clips.
"I find it funny that lefties like John Oliver, who pose as humanitarians, are the masters at dehumanizing other people through ridicule and never give the subjects of their smears a fair chance to respond," said Lively.
Last fall, Lively announced his intentions to seek the office of governor in the first state in America to legalize gay marriage via a press release on his website.
"The people of this state need a candidate who can clearly and unapologetically articulate Biblical values without fear or compromise. They need a candidate who will tell the simple truth that abortion is murder, and homosexuality is condemned by God (but that Jesus forgives and heals those who repent)," read the press release.
A notable campaigner against LGBT organizations, Lively has taken credit for inspiring recently passed anti-gay legislation in Russia. While Lively has publicly stated his opposition to the recently passed law in Uganda, he has campaigned against LGBT groups in the East African nation.
In 2012, Uganda-based LGBT rights group, Sexual Minorities Uganda, argued by promoting and contributing to the success of anti-gay legislation in the East African nation, Lively had committed crimes against humanity.
While U.S. District Court Judge Michael A. Ponsor has allowed lawyers to "exchange discovery" on the case, the process remains a slow one, according to Stephanie Barry of Masslive.com.
"Ponsor set a deadline late last year for lawyers to exchange discovery but put off deadlines to file final motions and disclose information about witnesses until next year. The next pretrial hearing is set for May 6, 2015," wrote Barry.
"The complaint alleges Lively encouraged government-backed acts of violence against gays as a result of his rhetoric. Lively has denied this, and has contended chiefly that his First Amendment rights protect free speech."
