By Michael Nam
Republican state Rep. Randy Boehning of North Dakota found himself publicly outed as a frequenter of the gay dating app, Grindr, The Forum reported. While there are divisions within the gay community over forcibly outing even anti-LGBT lawmakers, this incident highlights the discrimination allowed under law in in the state of North Dakota, and the hypocrisy of a legislator like Boehning in particular.
The 21-year-old Bismark, N.D. resident, Dustin Smith, recognized Boehning from Grindr when seeing a photo of him. The exchange was amorous and sexually explicit in nature, but in an interview with the Washington Post, Smith explained why he went public with the representative’s identity.