The current “LGBT panic” in Indonesia is getting even more ridiculous. Yesterday, famous TV cleric Abdullah Gymnastiar (aka AA Gym), essentially called upon his 1.69 million Twitter followers to protest coffee giant Starbucks after he found out that the company supports marriage equality.
“It turns out that Starbucks actually really supports and contributes to LGBT causes, each cup is donated [to their cause]”
Gym was also one of the protesters who successfully pushed for LINE Indonesia to pull their pro-LGBT stickers from their stores, a move which has led the government to say it would push for other online services such as Whatsapp to remove pro-LGBT emoticons.
“I have stopped using LINE because they unabashedly promote LGBT. C’mon, let’s just use social media that is healthy.”
Gym has clearly not thought through his anti-Starbucks and LINE position. After all, if he is condemning Starbucks and LINE for supporting gay marriage, then surely he shouldn’t be supporting any other businesses that also stand for marriage equality, right?
And yet, as the top comment to his Starbucks tweet points out, he posted his anti-LGBT message using an iPhone, which is produced by Apple, a company that strongly supports gay rights and whose CEO, Tim Cook, is openly gay.
“Sorry @aagym, but why are you using an iPhone? You know that Apple CEO Tim is gay, right?”
Unsurprisingly, Gym never responded.
But Gym’s original tweet against Starbucks has already been retweeted 750 times, mostly by people who support boycotting Starbucks for standing up for gay marriage.
Which is, of course, their right. Indonesia is a free country after all. But unless they want to be huge hypocrites, all those people who are ready to boycott Starbucks also better stop using all Apple products, as well as:
Twitter
Visa and Mastercard
Not to mention Microsoft, Coca-Cola and Pepsi, Levi Jeans, GAP, Disney, Nike, Toyota, Procter and Gamble, Oreos and so many more.
So please haters, go ahead and try not to use any of the products from any of those companies. See how far you can spread your message when you can’t use any modern technology. If you want to keep living in the past, then accept the consequences of your beliefs.
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