GOP official pressured city council to block gay pastor’s nomination to library board

The chair of a local Republican Party in Missouri threatened city council members with political retaliation if they approved the reappointment of a gay pastor to the city’s public library board.

A pastor at the progressive First Christian Church in St. Joseph, Missouri, Brian Kirk’s three-year term on the St. Joseph Public Library’s Board of Trustees was meant to end on June 30. But according to KCUR, controversy ginned up by a local anti-LGBTQ+ pastor around what would have otherwise been a routine reappointment led the city to suspend all nominations to its boards and commissions while it updated appointment processes.

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Josh Blevins, senior pastor at Grace Calvary Church, has urged St. Joseph residents to oppose Kirk’s reappointment, citing Kirk’s support for the LGBTQ+ community. “We don’t want our public libraries to become indoctrination centers for the LGBTQ movement,” Blevins wrote in a June 20 Facebook post.

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Around the same time, Steven Greiert, chair of the Buchanan County Republican Central Committee, sent an email to City Council member Andy Trout, urging Trout to vote against Kirk’s reappointment. “This transgender and homosexual propaganda is pure evil,” Greiert wrote. “It is designed to destroy the family, to undercut traditional American values and our way of life, and ultimately institute governmental control that will undermine our city, county, state, and nation.”

Trout responded that he agreed and that St. Joseph Mayor John Josendale had “pulled the nomination.”

While it’s unclear from the emails whether Trout meant Kirk’s nomination or that of another board member who Greiert opposed, KCUR reported in July that Kirk and St. Joseph Public Library director Mary Beth Revels met with Josendale on June 20. Kirk and Revels said that Josendale told them he had decided not to approve Kirk’s nomination for another term.

“He said, ‘It’s just causing conflict in the city.’ And for my protection and my church’s protection, he was gonna go ahead and take me off the board,” Kirk said. “He then proceeded to talk about, ‘People are concerned about woke ideology spreading and too many Pride flags in our downtown.’”

“The mayor at that point was just like, ‘I’m sorry. I respect you. I think you’ve done a great job. I just don’t want this controversy. And I think that the best way to not hurt you, not hurt the library, not hurt the city, is to just stop right here,’” Revels said.

Josendale disputed Kirk and Revels’ account of the conversation.

On August 4, Greiert sent another email to Josendale and city council members, urging them to “make a judicious alteration in the composition of” the library board. “You could remove everyone from it and appoint all new people, who would equally represent both sides of the issue on transgenderism and drag-queen shows and literature in the library.”

Greiert noted that while the mayoral and city council positions are officially nonpartisan, Josendale, who identifies as an independent, and other city council members had “campaigned as proponents of traditional, conservative values,” and had sought support from Republicans.

“I assure you that you all will be held accountable for each of your votes on every issue – but especially on this one,” Greiert wrote. “If in the future, any of you ever seeks election to other offices on a partisan basis within this country or as state representatives from this district, you will have to meet our organization in a formal meeting for vetting purposes. Unless the BCRCC endorses you, you cannot – by law – file and run as Republicans for those partisan offices that you may seek. By state law – we do not have to accept your filing fees.”

“If you choose to renew the appointment of Pastor Kirk and the continuation of the left-leaning majority that has existed on that Board for a long time, then we will know whom to hold accountable and whom we can no longer trust to lead the city,” Greiert wrote.

According to KCUR, both Josendale and Deputy Mayor Randy Schultz ultimately supported Kirk’s nomination. Both praised Kirk’s work on the library board, a volunteer position which that does not influence materials of events at the library, and said that Greiert’s email had not influenced their decision. But the seven other city council members did not rank Kirk among their preferred nominees, so he will not be among those proceeding to a final approval vote on Monday.

Kirk’s supporters, as well as members of Grace Calvary Church who opposed his reappointment, plan to rally at St. Joseph City Hall during Monday night’s city council meeting.