Why was Anita Bryant pied in the face? 1977 incident explained as anti-gay rights singer dies aged 84 

Anita Bryant, a three-time Grammy nominee and anti-gay rights crusader, died in her home in Edmond, Oklahoma, on December 16, her family announced through an obituary on Thursday. She was 84. According to The New York Times, Anita's son, William Green, revealed the singer was battling cancer.

Despite a flourishing singing career initially, the former Miss Oklahoma was widely known for her anti-LGBTQ stances. Anita's staunch hostility to gay rights earned her public criticism, eventually leading her to get pied in the face in 1977.

On October 14, 1977, Anita spoke at her campaign in Des Moines, Iowa, against anti-discrimination laws that protected LGBTQ people. As Anita was answering the press about her crusade against homosexuality, Thomas Lawrence Higgins, a gay rights activist, approached her and smashed a pie on her face. Bryant had reportedly said:

"Well, at least it’s a fruit pie."

She eventually began praying for Higgins while shedding tears:

"Father...ask to be forgiven, and that we love him. We're praying for him to be delivered from his deviant lifestyle, Father."

Higgins is noted for coining the term 'Gay Pride.' It is also said that Anita Bryant was one of the first people to get pied in the face.

Anita Bryant addressed the incident in a 1990 interview, saying she did not regret her beliefs.

"I did the right thing. Sometimes you have to pay a price for what you believe is right."

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Anita Bryant gained notoriety in the late 1970s as an anti-LGBTQ rights crusader

Anita Bryant rose to prominence as a singer in the 1950s. Some of her popular tracks are Paper Rose, My Little Corner of the World, and Till There Was You. Anita also sang at political events, including the 1968 Republican and Democratic conventions.

She also sang the US national anthem at the 1971 Super Bowl. Anita delivered her rendition of late poet Julia Ward Howe's The Battle Hymn of the Republic at President Lyndon B. Johnson's funeral in 1973.

Anita was a prominent voice of the Florida Citrus Commission starting in 1969. She appeared in several televised commercials promoting Florida orange juice with her song Come to the Florida Sunshine Tree. She was also noted for her tagline for the commercials:

"Breakfast without orange juice is like a day without sunshine."

Citrus promoter and anti-gay activist Anita Bryant in an orange grove. (Photo by Lynn Pelham/Getty Images)

However, her public image faced a setback in 1977 when she began parading against LGBTQ rights. Her anti-gay organization, 'Save Our Children' aimed to overthrow a Miami ordinance that protected individuals with different sexual orientations against discrimination. Anita and her supporters opposed the ordinance.

"The ordinance condones immorality and discriminates against my children’s rights to grow up in a healthy, decent community," Bryant said.

Anita Bryant achieved her goal until 1998, when the ordinance was reinstated.

Anita Bryant's anti-gay rights preachings soon earned her a place in Christian conservatives' good books. She reportedly deemed homosexuality an "abomination." The singer claimed she loved homosexuals but called homosexuality a sin.

As Anita continued to campaign against homosexuality, citing religious preachings, she was dubbed a "Christian celebrity" by many. Due to her controversial public image, Anita soon began losing jobs at variety shows.

Anita later lost some of her Christian fanbase after she divorced her first husband, Bob Green, in 1980. She later married Charlie Dry in 1990.

Anita Bryant's granddaughter, Sarah Green, came out as gay in 2021 and revealed she was getting married to her girlfriend. Green said upon telling her grandmother about her sexuality, Bryant called homosexuality "a delusion invented by the devil." Anita reportedly told Sarah she would continue to pray for her until she realized she was heterosexual.