Members of the Queer Justice League who attended a community forum and meeting at My Sisters Room said they are planning a direct action on March 8. A group plans to deliver a letter to state Rep. Bobby Franklin (R-Marietta) at the Capitol asking for his apology for remarks he has made publicly against gay people, as well as against women's reproductive rights and against other marginalized communities.

Franklin has compared gays and lesbians to unrepentant drug dealers. He also called for a bill that would investigate miscarriages as possible murders or abuse against "fetal citizens, and wants to reclassify those who say they have experienced rape or abuse as "accusers" rather than "victims."

QJL and GetEqual GA are working to collaborate with PFLAG Marietta, whose members are constituents of Franklin, to deliver a letter demanding an apology while the legislature is in session, said Art Izzard of QJL.

Activists plan to confront state Rep. Bobby Franklin

The organization asked for an apology from Franklin in a letter in early February, but Franklin refused, telling the Marietta Daily Journal, “I will not apologize for making references to what the Bible teaches. If anyone has a problem with what the Bible teaches then their problem is with God and not with me.”

QJL members and Paul Schappaugh of GetEqual GA met with state Reps. Simone Bell and Karla Drenner Feb. 25 about ways to combat Franklin’s anti-gay rhetoric. Attendees said they were given tips on how to collaborate with his constituents in particular. Bell and Drenner, the two openly gay members of the Georgia General Assembly, declined comment about the meeting.

The time the activists plan to deliver the letter was not determined by press time.