[Screenshot from LifeSiteNews, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snfjjsiY_Uw]

Political conservatism, at its core, is about limited government and expansive liberty.

But one narrative says it’s just a club for straight white males.

Wilson Gavin begged to differ — the gay 21-year-old headed up a conservative college group.

Over the weekend, accompanied by 15 or 20 others, Wilson led a protest of Drag Queen Story Hour at Australia’s Brisbane Square Library.

Irrespective of the issue, personally, I’m not a fan of interrupting outbursts; some attendees had a similar disposition.

But online, eventually, things went way beyond a lack of appreciation.

From LGBTQNation:

“They entered the even chanting and scared the children,” said event organizers Rainbow Families Queensland last week. “Some parents got them outside the room where they continued to chant loudly.”

The protestors chanted “Drag queens are not for kids” and accused the event of “indoctrinating” children with “radical gender theories.”

Videos of the incident reached viral status.

As reported by The Australian, Wilson received “savage criticism.”

It wasn’t his first time in the hot seat.

In 2018, Wilson explained — on Sky News — that he was a “lover of all things traditional” and a “lover of all things beautiful.”

As relayed by LGBTQNation, he was concerned that gay marriage legislation “would force churches to perform same-sex marriages and children to learn about LGBTQ people in schools.”

More from The Daily Wire:

“They hate me because I’m a conservative, and they hate me more because I’m a gay conservative,” Gavin said…

“I’m not a homophobe,” he noted. “I love gay men. You can’t call me a homophobe just because I’m opposed to same-sex marriage.”

The Australian wrote, “His role in that campaign ­attracted vociferous criticism, but he insisted there were thousands of gay people like himself who ­opposed same-sex marriage.”

For Sunday’s protest, according to reports, the Twitter mob arose.

He was #Canceled.

Around 7 a.m. Monday morning — barely 12 hours after videos from the library took off online — Wilson threw himself in front of a train.

News.com.au commented on the tragedy:

The Twitter mob responded so quickly and with such intensity that pausing to consider some of those other factors, like his young age or potential frame of mind, didn’t happen.

“These types of mobs are just devastating for people and I don’t think those who participate in them fully understand just how destructive they can be,” [University of Newcastle lecturer, Dr. Russell Blackford] said.

“One of the things that worries me is the sheer glee and cruelty that can be shown by these mobs when they’re out to destroy people.”

The Australian described the social media attack on Wilson this way:

[S]ome (of the criticism) was vile. Pile-ons ­almost always are intensely ­personal. They go for individuals. It’s not about your argument. It’s about how disgusting you are. How ugly. How slovenly, how ­sluttish. How you should really kill yourself. And yes, people do ­actually say that.

Roman Quaedvlieg, the former Australian Border Force chief, describ­ed it this way: “Shout out to those Twitterati opening the app with gloves on, mouthguard in.”

Because that’s what it’s like: being pummelled. Or else you’re the one throwing the virtual punches, from behind the safety of your screen.

But it’s not just you. It’s millions of people all saying the same thing: gross pig, go and die! Mobs form online, just as they used to do in town squares, and they are just as unpredictable as they ever were. They can swerve in ways you can’t predict.

Pile-ons also aren’t concerned with political argument or nuance. It’s personal abuse. It’s broken. It’s unedited, unfiltered, it’s garbage. It’s doing untold harm to children, and young people, but also to anyone­ in the firing line.

Johnny Valkyrie — one of the drag queens Wilson confronted Sunday, wrote about his suicide on Facebook:

The Age of the Twitter Mob is indeed upon us. Globally.

We need a return to civility. Some in the world don’t want opposing views espoused; but I believe in a country where everyone is allowed to speak the truth as they see it, whatever that may be.

If we can’t listen to one another and allow for the liberty of true diversity — of thought — then we don’t have liberty.

As I said, it’s a foundational tenet of conservatism.

But more importantly, it’s a foundational tenet…of America.

-ALEX

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