Monday, August 20, 2012

FRC's Tony Perkins: 'We Will Not Waver'

On Wednesday, Family Research Council (FRC) was the target of what the FBI is calling an act of domestic terrorism. A gunman, identified as Floyd Corkins, invaded our headquarters in Washington, D.C., armed with a 9mm pistol, approximately 50 rounds of ammunition and 15 Chick-fil-A sandwiches.
The gunman was confronted by an unarmed member of the FRC staff, Leo Johnson. When the gunman pulled the gun from his backpack and aimed the weapon at Leo, Leo moved toward the gunman to disarm him. Despite being shot in the process, Leo was able to subdue the shooter and call for others on the staff, who helped admirably. One of the investigators, based on their preliminary findings, told me Leo's actions saved a lot of lives.
I was with Leo around midnight Wednesday night in the recovery room when he came out of surgery. I told him he was a hero—not just in the opinion of his FRC colleagues, but in the opinion of people all across the nation. Still a bit groggy from the anesthesia, he said, "This hero business is hard work!"
Obviously, Leo hasn't lost his sense of humor. It will take time and more surgeries, but he will be back with us soon, for which we are all grateful. In the meantime, let me say thank you on behalf of the FRC team for the outpouring of concern and support for our colleague and friend, as well as for the entire FRC team who have been affected by this attack.
This unfortunately changes the way FRC will do business, but not the business that we do. We'll enhance our security to ensure that each and every member of the FRC team, as well as our guests, are secure. What we will not do is allow the threats and actions of those who oppose us to intimidate or silence us.
After the shooting, I assembled most of our 80-member team, and we prayed together. We prayed for Leo, for each other, for our mission and for the assailant. We also discussed the new level of hostility that we now face because of the inflammatory rhetoric that has been used against us. But I want you to know that these increased obstacles and challenges do not change our calling or our mission. You can continue to count on the FRC team to credibly represent you and the millions of other Americans who share our concerns for the family and for our country.
Because I do not want to jeopardize the ongoing criminal investigation in any way, I will not go into great detail about the shooting. However, I will share with you what I said in front of the FRC headquarters yesterday afternoon to a crowd of reporters.

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