The American Museum of Natural History
on Monday said that it would no longer host an event to honor
President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil.
The announcement comes after the museum
faced criticism for hosting the event by an outside organization.
The Brazilian-American Chamber of
Commerce had reserved the museum's Hall of Ocean Life for a planned
gala to honor Bolsonaro as its “Person of the Year.”
Bolsonaro has proposed environmental
deregulation and opening more of the Amazon rain forest to commercial
industry. Critics said honoring him at a museum dedicated to nature
was hypocritical.
GLAAD also called on the museum to
reverse course, pointing out Bolsonaro's opposition to LGBT rights. A
self-proclaimed “proud” homophobe, Bolsonaro has said that he'd
prefer to have a dead son to a gay son.
(Related: Speaking
next to Trump, Jair Bolsonaro reiterates opposition to LGBT rights.)
“The American Museum of Natural
History has done the right thing by declining to host an event that
features the anti-LGBTQ President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil,” Sarah
Kate Ellis, president and CEO of GLAAD, said in a statement. “His
extremist voice has no place at one of New York City's most beloved
institutions. At GLAAD, we hope the Brazilian-American Chamber of
Commerce will follow suit and withdraw their award for an elected
leader who is targeting LGBTQ Brazilians for unequal treatment under
the law.”