One day after 19 children and two adults were killed in a school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, Kentucky Liberty tweeted a meme that drew intense criticism before it was deleted.
The group, which advocated for Republican challengers against incumbent Northern Kentucky lawmakers in the May 17 primary, is a nonprofit that describes itself as pro-constitution and anti-corruption.
The tweet showed an image of a six-window meme. In the first window, a person asks, “How Many children have to die before you support gun control?” An angel then flies in with a note, and in the sixth frame, it reads, “All of them.”
The tweet drew ire from journalists, politicians, and others across the Commonwealth, including State Rep. Adam Koenig, the Erlanger Republican who was defeated on May 17 by challenger Steve Doan, an Erlanger city councilman. Kentucky Liberty backed Doan with campaign materials against Koenig.
Matthew Lehman, Congressman Thomas Massie’s Democratic opponent in the 4th Congressional District, condemned the meme and said it came from a “Massie-Groomed Hate Group.”
“The devastating loss of 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas, has broken the hearts of decent people everywhere,” Lehman said in a statement. “The cartoon posted by these fanatics is a sickening betrayal of American and human values, putting extremist ideology above the lives of children. All children. I call on Thomas Massie to withdraw his support for the so-called “liberty” candidates and their despicable acts. God have mercy on us.”
Massie has not yet responded to a request for comment.
T.J. Roberts, the group’s leader, said he posted the meme because the 2nd Amendment is something he’s passionate about, but ultimately he said it was in poor taste. In initial conversations with LINK nky, Roberts said he stood by the meme but later decided he was regretful for the post and took it down.
“I want to reiterate my apology,” Roberts said in a statement. “I also want to emphasize that I hope to learn from this mistake. I hope to be better. My intention was not to cause harm with this post. It clearly did. I am sorry. The post was tone-deaf and insensitive. I should have thought twice. Sadly, I didn’t. I regret that decision and hope my future actions reflect my regret for this misstep. I apologize for the post.”