Gay rights icon Larry Brinkin has been arrested on charges of child pornography, according to San Francisco police. Click below to read the rest of the story.
Brinkin, 66, best known for fighting for equal rights on behalf of the LGBT community, was booked into San Francisco County Jail on Friday night. He posted bail and was released Saturday, SF Weekly reports.
The San Francisco Police Department seized computers, videos, VHS tapes and a floppy disc from Brinkin and his husband’s home, according to a search warrant obtained by SF Weekly.
Police say Brinkin had exchanged emails that contained pornographic photographs involving children as young as 1-year-old being sodomized or performing oral sex on adult men, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The emails also contain graphic sexual and racist commentary, including, “I loved especially the n—er 2 year old getting nailed,” as well as a rant about white supremacy.
The disturbing messages were traced to Brinkin’s IP address, and his name and credit card information are registered with the AOL account, identified as [email protected], according to police.
The warrant also notes that the email address is linked to Yahoo discussion groups about the sexual exploitation of children.
Brinkin was a beloved employee of the Human Rights Commission before he retired in 2010 — the Board of Supervisors even once designated the week of Feb. 1 as “Larry Brinkin Week.â€
Theresa Sparks, executive director of the commission, said the allegation is “beyond hard to believe.â€
“It’s almost incredulous, there’s no way I could believe such a thing,†Sparks told SF Weekly. “He’s always been one of my heroes, and he’s the epitome of a human rights activist — this is [the] man who coined phrases we use in our daily language. I support Larry 100 percent, hopefully it will all come out in the investigation.â€
