Reverend Franklin Graham says he is "being harassed" by New York elected officials and LGBTQ advocates, who've raised concerns about his Central Park field hospital barring medical workers who refuse to affirm an anti-gay statement of faith.
Samaritan's Purse, the fundamentalist evangelical group led by Graham, has garnered scrutiny since erecting a 68-bed medical unit in the park to handle spillover patients from Mount Sinai. The group explicitly recruits Christian doctors, demands all workers denounce gay marriage, and has allegedly turned away volunteers over their sexual orientation. Graham has previously said that homosexuals will burn in the "flames of hell," described Islam as "wicked and evil," and railed against the "transgender lie."
In a Facebook post and press release on Tuesday, Graham lamented the fact that some New Yorkers had "expressed concerns or outright opposition" to the group's presence in the city. He specifically called out the NYC Commission on Human Rights, the Reclaim Pride Coalition, and eight Democratic members of Congress who have demanded answers about the facility and their anti-discrimination policies.
Their request for documents, Graham alleged, means that his group is "being harassed into diverting precious resources of time and energy and personnel away from serving COVID-19 patients in New York City in order to respond to demands for documents and other information."
The congressional letter sent last week sought information about the process by which Samaritan's Purse was granted the use of public land, and raised the possibility that "as a result of potentially facing discrimination and cultural incompetence, LGBTQIA+ individuals may not seek needed medical attention at Samaritan's Purse Emergency Field Hospital."
It was addressed to Mount Sinai CEO Kenneth David, Governor Andrew Cuomo, and Mayor Bill de Blasio, whose office said they were still reviewing the letter. A spokesperson for City Hall added that all Samaritan's Purse employees would be asked to sign a pledge not to discriminate; Gothamist's requests to see that statement were not returned.
A spokesperson for SKDKnickerbocker, the public relations firm hired by Mount Sinai, added, "While our organizations may have differences of opinions, when it comes to COVID-19 we are fully united: we will care for everyone and no patients or staff will be discriminated against."
Workers assemble emergency field hospital tents in Central Park to treat coronavirus patients.
The facility had reportedly treated 130 patients as of Tuesday, five of whom have died. A plan to build another field hospital inside the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine was abandoned last week, due in part to concerns from the Manhattan cathedral's leadership about Samaritan's Purse and "how strict their tenets were."
The Reclaim Pride Coalition has also alleged that Graham, who is the son of the late televangelist Billy Graham, is using the highly-visible medical partnership for the sake of proselytizing and raising money for his organization.
"Historically, Samaritan's Purse has made clear that their first priority is as a religious organization and their aid comes second," Natalie James, an organizer with the group, told Gothamist on Wednesday.
"Franklin Graham is a talented media operative and I think his framing of this issue around his personal harassment is a media strategy," she added.
This past Sunday, Graham delivered a pre-recorded Easter sermon from inside Central Park, which was broadcast on Fox News.
"There's no other way to God except for Jesus Christ, and it's my hope and prayer that you have trusted him as your savior this Easter," Graham preached. "If you haven't done it, do it now. We don't know if we'll have another opportunity."
A spokesperson for the NYC Parks Department said the agency had approved "a small scale 'content' shoot."
"We were not aware that the Reverend’s sermon was the subject of the shoot," the spokesperson added. "We have no legal basis on which we can deny events with religious content, as long as they abide by our rules, which they did."
