A damning report has revealed that nearly 200 U.S.-based Christian leaders with anti-LGBTQ+ views have been accused of child abuse so far in 2025.
The list, maintained by journalist Evan Hurst, highlights a disturbing trend: individuals who have positioned themselves as moral crusaders against LGBTQ+ people are being accused or convicted of the very abuse they falsely associate with queer communities.
As of 31 October, Hurst had documented 188 separate cases involving Christian pastors, priests, youth leaders, and teachers who were arrested, charged, or convicted of child abuse this year alone.
“As of that day, I had tracked 138 separate stories in 2025 alone involving Christian pastors/ youth group leaders/priests/ Christian school teachers, etc., who had been accused/caught/arrested for/convicted of abusing kids in some way,” Hurst wrote.
“Now it is October 31. That list has grown to… 188!”
A Hypocrisy Exposed
The revelations arrive at a time when conservative groups continue to baselessly label LGBTQ+ people, drag performers, and trans individuals as ‘groomers’, pushing false claims of child endangerment. These slurs have gained traction in right-wing online spaces, despite lacking any factual or statistical foundation.
Hurst was quick to contrast the documented abuse cases with the virtually nonexistent accusations against drag performers and trans people—the very groups targeted by these dangerous conspiracy theories.
“You can take sabbaticals to Europe as often as you f**kin’ want, because those stories just don’t happen much, despite the lies vile MAGA Christians tell,” he wrote.
Pastor Arrested Days After Report Updated
Shortly after Hurst updated the list, California youth pastor Joshua David Kemper—a man who had publicly shared anti-LGBTQ+ views on social media—was arrested and charged with child sexual abuse.
According to investigators, Kemper, 47, allegedly abused a 15-year-old girl over a period spanning March to July 2025. During that same time, he reportedly posted an AI-generated meme on Facebook implying that LGBTQ+ people are a danger to children.
Political Context: From Misinformation to Extremism
Hurst has also drawn attention to efforts by Trump-aligned conservatives to brand transgender identity and activism as a form of domestic terrorism.
In September, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters it was “worth looking into” claims of supposed violence by “trans extremists”—claims that have not been substantiated.
Soon after, the Heritage Foundation, a right-wing think tank and backer of the Project 2025 agenda, called on the FBI to add “Transgender Ideology-Inspired Violence Extremism” to its watchlist.
“They’re declaring everything they don’t like to be terrorism,” Hurst wrote.
“People protesting authoritarianism, fascism, and Nazi fkery? Terrorism.
People standing up for the rule of law, or demanding that Trump and his band of fkwit criminals be held accountable? Terrorism.
Standing up for our immigrant friends and neighbours and trying to protect them from Trump’s Gestapo? You get the idea.”
As accusations of hypocrisy mount and the evidence continues to grow, many are calling out the disproportionate focus on LGBTQ+ communities, while abuse within conservative religious circles remains a persistent and underreported crisis.
