Justin Bieber’s father, Jeremy Bieber, has sparked backlash for sharing an offensive message about Pride Month.
The 29-year-old singer’s father took to Twitter on Wednesday (7 June) to share his thoughts about the ongoing Pride Month celebrations happening throughout June. Jeremy, who shares eldest son Justin with ex Pattie Mallette, posted a meme featuring the Pride flag with the test: “Don’t forget to thank a straight person this month for your existence.”
The post appeared to assume that LGBTQ+ are unable to have children, despite adoption, surrogacy or IVF treatments available for same-sex couples. In response, many Justin Bieber fans instantly called out Jeremy for the insensitive post.
“This is sadly the tweet that reminded me that I’m still following Justin Bieber’s dad,” tweeted one fan in response.
“Straight people are not the only people who reproduce. Your sexual orientation does not stop the function of your reproductive organs,” another user pointed out.
“Who said our parents are straight tho,” joked someone else.
Many users also replied to Jeremy’s post with a picture from 2006, in which Justin is seen at a Pride parade in Toronto with his mother. One fan simply captioned the post: “Thanks, Pattie!”
The “Baby” singer’s parents, Jeremy Bieber and Pattie Mallette, were just 18 when Justin was born in 1994. Though they were never married, Justin’s parents split up not long after he was born. Pattie worked a series of low-paying office jobs, raising Justin as a single mother in low-income housing before he rose to fame after being discovered on YouTube.
In addition to Justin, Jeremy is also father to daughter Jazmyn and son Jaxon, whom he shares with ex Erin Wagner. He shares daughter Bay with wife Chelsey Rebelo, and is the stepfather to Chelsey’s daughter from a previous relationship, Allie.
In 2018, a video surfaced of Justin comforting a queer fan who had opened up about their struggle to find a church that is inclusive towards LGBTQ+ people. In the clip, a fan asked Bieber whether his church was accepting of the gay community.
“Isn’t your church, like, really inclusive, like, of the gay community?” they asked in the video. Justin, who’s a member of the Hillsong Church, replied that his church was accepting and invited the queer fan to attend a church service.
“If you ever want to come to any of the services, any of them would love to have you. We’d love to have you in there, you’re more than welcome to come any time,” he said.
The Hillsong Church, which is popular among celebrities, has previously faced controversy for its “anti-LGBTQ” views. In 2015, Hillsong leader Carl Lentz, said that he believes homosexuality is a sin and that a gay member of the church could never hold a leadership position. Lentz was fired in 2020 for “moral failures” after admitting to infidelity.
The Independent has contacted representatives for Justin Bieber for comment.
