Michigan House
Former Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield, R-Levering.
His bigotry finally caught up with him.
Former Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield, who was an outspoken opponent of LGBTQ protections when he was in the Legislature, resigned Monday from his new six-figure job amid heavy criticism.
Chatfield, a Republican from Levering, was hired earlier this month as CEO of Southwest Michigan First, an economic development group. The announcement was met with strong backlash from community and business leaders.
In a letter of resignation posted on Twitter, Chatfield apologized for causing an “unfortunate controversy” but stood by his “Christian” beliefs.
"As a Christian, I believe the Bible. I don’t want to hide from that," Chatfield wrote. "Nor do I want to run from that. I don’t say that as a shield, and I certainly don’t say that to use as a weapon. I say it only because I want to be open and honest. And I don’t want to feel I have to be quiet about that within this community so I could collect a paycheck."
He added, "I can’t truthfully apologize for various conservative beliefs I espoused while in office, and I don’t think you wanted that. But many of my political opinions were causing an uproar. That much was obvious.”
For the betterment of the Kalamazoo community, the businesses that the board of directors represent, the staff at SWMF and for the sake of my conscience, please see the letter of resignation I offered this morning. I remain grateful for having had this incredible opportunity. pic.twitter.com/loS4v0kH3t
— Lee Chatfield (@LeeChatfield) February 22, 2021
While serving in the state House from 2015 to 2020, Chatfield opposed amending the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to ban discrimination based on gender identify and sexual orientation.
Soon after Southwest Michigan First announced it had hired Chatfield on Feb. 11, advocates of the civil rights act called for his resignation. The city of Kalamazoo and the Kalamazoo Promise also cut ties and funding to the group.
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