Pennsylvania Democrat Rep. Brian Sims has locked his Twitter account after a pro-life rally outside a Planned Parenthood facility Friday drew over a thousand activists protesting his harassment and bullying of a woman and teens who were praying at the clinic.
“This account’s Tweets are protected,” reads the message received by visitors to Sims’ Twitter account. “Only confirmed followers have access to @BrianSimsPA’s Tweets and complete profile.”
The account is locked in the wake of Sims sharing video of himself as he berated a woman he referred to as an “old white lady,” as she prayed the rosary outside the Elizabeth Blackwell Center Planned Parenthood facility in Philadelphia, where the Democrat said he often served as a “patient escort.” Sims also mocked the woman’s Catholic faith.
Two weeks prior to his video showing his harassment of the woman, the state lawmaker had posted a video of himself calling pro-life teens also at prayer outside the abortion clinic “racist” and attempting to dox them by offering a $100 donation to Planned Parenthood if one of his supporters could identify the teens for him.
Pro-life media Life News also reported that Sims has a local Philadelphia police officer stationed outside his office. Catherine Glenn Foster, president of Americans United for Life, attempted to enter Sims’ office to discuss the recent controversy over his actions, but was turned away by a staff member who said she could not go into the lawmaker’s office.
“It’s just shameful that a publicly-elected representative, guarded by the police, is attacking the citizens of this great state and isn’t even allowing his own constituents to come to meet with him,” Foster said, adding:
Despite Pennsylvania State Representative Brian Sims’s bigoted verbal attack on peaceful women offering their fellow women alternatives to abortion, pro-life advocates have raised more than $100,000 for pro-life alternatives for women interested in making the choice for life. Sims’s tirade underscores what is at stake in the abortion debate, and is a challenge to all Americans to be loving and thoughtful in how we can best support women who often feel they have no choice other than abortion.
Sims, who identifies himself as an “LGBTQ activist” and is Pennsylvania’s first openly gay lawmaker, has been very vocal on Twitter about his anti-Christian views and his contempt for pro-life protesters.
“Push back against Planned Parenthood protestors, PLEASE!” Sims tweeted on May 2. “They prey on young women, they use white privilege, & shame. They’re racist, classist, bigots who NEED & DESERVE our righteous opposition. Push back, please!”
Three days later, Sims tweeted, “Bring it, Bible Bullies! You are bigots, sexists, and misogynists and I see right through your fake morals and your broken values.”
The pro-life leaders invited Sims to attend the rally Friday, but he did not make an appearance.
“We will not back down!” shouted Lila Rose, president of Live Action, to the crowd that rallied against Sims and the treatment he delivered to the pro-life activists. “We will not stop showing up, we will not stop praying outside abortion clinics!”
Rose recounted how Sims made “sexist and racist” remarks at the pro-life protesters, threatened to dox the underage girls praying outside the abortion clinic, and mocked their Christian faith. She called upon him to resign from office.
“This is unfit for someone in public office,” she said. “We will not stop showing up … we will not stop standing up for life.”
While the pro-life leaders called upon the lawmaker to resign from office, they also extended their forgiveness and prayers for his conversion.