ALBANY — County leaders are calling on a Coeymans legislator to apologize or resign after he made “wildly homophobic” comments at a “Return to Liberty under the Constitution” seminar at Camp Pinnacle in Voorheesville on March 27.
George Langdon, a first term Republican legislator elected in 2019, was one of a handful of speakers at the seminar that promoted and touted far right policies and platforms. It was hosted, in part, by William Tryon, who the FBI arrested on Tuesday for his role in the January riot at the U.S. Capitol.
The thrust of Langdon’s 10-minute speech centered around getting people involved in the political process either as a candidate or a volunteer. Towards the end of his speech, he spoke on the “whole gender issue.”
“Everything God does is sustainable. It is sustainable. It goes on and on and on. It’s perpetual,” he said. “Sorry, when you have homosexual relationships, it is not perpetual. Give them an island, and they will be gone after 40 years.”
Chairman of the Legislature Andrew Joyce called on Langdon to resign.
“Listening to someone laughingly share an ugly, nightmarish scenario of our loved ones being “gone after 40 years” shakes us all to our core, not only as public servants, but as human beings,” he said in a statement. “Albany County Legislator George Langdon is unfit to serve. I call on him to apologize and resign. Not for 40 years, but forever.”
County Executive Dan McCoy called Langdon’s comments “wildly homophobic and hurtful and represent outdates and backward thinking.”
“Every resident, no matter who they love or how they identify, deserves a place in Albany County, not to be relegated to some theoretical ‘island,’” he said. “Hate and bigotry have no place in Albany County, and I stand with the LGBTQ community. If this is a true reflection of his beliefs, he has no place as a policymaker in county government. Legislator Langdon needs to immediately apologize to the LGBTQ community as well as to all county residents.”
To the subject of Langdon’s resignation, Republican Minority Leader Legislator Frank Mauriello said “each elected official is responsible for their words and actions and is accountable to the constituents in his/her district.”
“Whatever your sexual orientation, we are all equal in God’s eyes and equal under the law,” he said. “Any statements that contradict that belief are unacceptable. Our community is strengthened by mutual respect and understanding and a shared belief that divisive comments will never move us forward.”
Other speakers at the event included Renee McIntyre, a candidate for Albany Common Council, Lewis County Sheriff Mike Carpinelli, who said he is running for governor in two years, and former Arizona Sheriff Richard Mack, who spoke for more than two hours.
Langdon, who was on the Coeymans Town Board, could not be immediately reached for comment.
