Even Idaho bar owner Mark Fitzpatrick was surprised by the strong response to his Straight Awesomeness Month promotion, which he ran in response to Pride Month.
“I was thinking about how to celebrate the other side of sexuality, which is heterosexuality, as ordained by God, and that’s where I stand with people who support us and are like-minded. So we decided to create Heterosexual Awesomeness Month, and we launched it and it’s been really successful,” Fitzpatrick told Fox News Digital.
Ahead of June, Fitzpatrick’s bar, the Old State Saloon, announced its first tribute to heterosexuals by offering discounts and free beer to heterosexual men, women and couples for a month.
Mr Fitzpatrick acknowledged he had received “vulgar” or “rude” messages online and over the phone, but said the majority of public reaction had been “overwhelmingly positive”.
Old State Saloon offered special deals in celebration of Hetero Awesomeness Month in June. (Old State Saloon)
Idaho bar goes viral after declaring “Straight Awesomeness Month”
“We’ve had a lot of people come to our salon in person. Some have driven long distances to be here. We had a couple yesterday who drove 400 miles across the country to be here. Some even flew in from out of state. Some even said the next time they’re in the state they’ll want to stop by and support us,” Fitzpatrick said.
Since the bar announced the event, the Old State Saloon has been selling Heterosexual Awesomeness merchandise, Monday sales hit record high This past week.
Fitzpatrick said the idea was simply a backlash to the national promotion of LGBTQ Pride Month and was “fairly last minute, to be honest.”
“I’m a Christian. I follow what the Bible teaches. I love people. I love all types of people, I love everything. But loving people doesn’t necessarily mean I have to support every decision they make, especially with how things have been over the last few years, and June has tended to be extreme,” Fitzpatrick said.
Old State Saloon owner Mark Fitzpatrick spoke with Fox News Digital about “Straight Awesomeness Month.” (Old State Saloon | Fox News Digital)
He added, “I’m not going to just sit there and do nothing. I’m going to get involved. I’m going to rally people to get out there and do the right thing and celebrate what is sacred. And I think the rest of the country should do that too.”
Following his success, Fitzpatrick encouraged other companies to hold their own “Straight Awareness Month.”
“My sense from people’s reaction is that the country is ready to stand up and say, ‘Hey, what about this? This is a good thing to celebrate, let’s do it,'” he said.
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The Old State Saloon launched “Straight Awesomeness Month” in June. (Old State Saloon)
Fitzpatrick said he believes many companies don’t want to weigh in on the issue and expose themselves to potential controversy and backlash, saying he’s reached a stage in his life where he’s “just not going to be quiet about things anymore.”
“I want to know the truth,” he said, “I know there’s a lot of deception out there, and I want the truth to come out about a lot of things, and I want to give glory to God in all that I do.”
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