Father of Teenage Girl Harassed by Rep. Brian Sims Speaks Out

From Relevant Radio: 

On Holy Thursday, a trio of teenage girls (accompanied by an adult woman) were praying outside of a Planned Parenthood in Philadelphia when Pennsylvania State Representative Brian Sims approached them, recording the interaction, and called them “pseudo-Christian protesters who have been out here shaming young girls for being here.” Rep. Sims then offered to donate $100 to Planned Parenthood for any viewers who identified the three high school girls.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=69&v=G7-HmFFFmSQ

This tactic of publishing private or identifying information about someone is known as “doxxing,” and is a common way of encouraging the harassment of private citizens. Many people, particularly women, who have been doxxed have experienced harassment both online and off, including death threats. In fact, in another video, Rep. Sims encourages the doxxing of an older woman and says, “If you can give me her address we’ll protest out in front of her home.”

It’s hard to imagine how you would react when confronted by this kind of harassment. Harder still to imagine how you would feel if it was your own daughter who was the target of this bullying. However, in breaking this story on The Patrick Madrid Show, Patrick received a call from the father of one of the teenage girls who was threatened by Rep. Sims. Mark from Philadelphia was listening to The Patrick Madrid Show and called in to give his perspective on the event.

“I couldn’t be more proud of her and these girls,” he said of his daughter. “They were out there and it was Holy Thursday. They were down there praying peacefully at the Planned Parenthood clinic. Praying the rosary, just offering up the sacrifices of the Triduum on behalf of the unborn and the moms facing these unplanned pregnancies.”

Read more.  

Meanwhile, Philadelphia’s Archbishop Chaput has weighed in: 

Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia called for broad participation in a pro-life rally this week, scheduled in response to a Penslyvania state representative’s livestreamed harassment of a woman praying outside of a Planned Parenthood clinic.

“These videos, which Representative Sims took himself, have rightly sparked broad outrage … His actions were unbecoming of an elected official,” Archbishop Chaput said in a statement released May 8.

“I’m calling on all people of good will to channel their indignation into right action and prayerful witness,” he said.

Sims released a short video yesterday explaining his behavior — but not apologizing. Check it out.