Did the United Nations "chief" say if Christians "do not fully embrace the legalization of pedophilia, they will be excluded from participating in society"? No, that's not true: The man whose photo appears in an article under the headline "UN Chief" is actually an independent expert working with the U.N. on sexual orientation and gender issues. And there is no record of that man -- or anyone speaking on behalf of the U.N. -- ever expressing the positions stated in the headline and the opening of the article. The article originated on a site that has a history of fabricating claims, and Lead Stories found zero credible sources to corroborate these statements.
The story originated from an article (archived here) published by thepeoplesvoice.tv on August 6, 2023, under the title:
UN Chief: Christians Who Don't Accept MAPs Will Be Excluded From Society
It opened:
The United Nations has warned Christians that if they do not fully embrace the legalization of pedophilia, they will be excluded from participating in society.
Here is what it looked like at the time of writing:
(Source: ThePeoplesVoice.tv screenshot taken on Wed Aug 9 14:20:45 2023 UTC)
The title of The People's Voice article used the controversial term "MAPs," which stands for "Minor Attracted Person." According to KnowYouMeme.com, the term appeared on social media in 2016 and then resurfaced in June 2023.
The acronym is associated with B4U Act and The Global Prevention Project. Both are organizations that provide mental health services to people sexually attracted to minors in an attempt to prevent them from offending. They use the acronym as a clinical term.
A search for the word "MAPs" on the website of the United Nations only showed results that refer to a geographic map or as a synonym to the word "plan."
Another search on the U.N. site for the word "pedophilia" did not produce any results at all:
(Source: Un.org screenshot taken on Wed Aug 9 17:14:02 2023 UTC)
A Google search for the phrase "Christians Who Don't Accept MAPs Will Be Excluded From Society" used in the headline of the article only showed duplicates of the claim.
Independent expert is not 'UN Chief'
Contrary to the headline mentioning "UN Chief," the article did not cite U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres whose job, as the U.N. website explains, is to be the main representative of this international organization, "equal parts diplomat and advocate, civil servant and CEO."
The piece didn't quote anyone speaking on behalf of the U.N.'s main bodies, either.
Instead, The People's Voice article -- differing from the headline -- cited a "UN expert Victor Madrigal-Borloz." There are no credible reports or public records stating or implying that Madrigal-Borloz has ever spoken on or endorsed the societal acceptance of pedophilia. What he is mostly known for is LGBTQ+ advocacy.
As of this writing, the website of the UN Office of Human Rights Commissioner described Victor Madrigal-Borloz as a "UN Independent Expert on sexual orientation and gender identity":
In this capacity, he assesses the implementation of international human rights law, raises awareness, engages in dialogue with all relevant stakeholders, and provides advisory services, technical assistance, capacity-building to help address violence and discrimination against persons on the basis of the sexual orientation or gender identity.
He started a three-year term in 2018, which was further renewed through December 2023. As of this writing, Madrigal-Borloz is also a lecturer on law and a senior visiting researcher at the Harvard Law School's human rights program.
The only search result on Google News mentioning his name and the word "pedophilia" was an article published in 2019 by Washington Blade, a D.C.-based outlet focused on LGBTQ+ issues. In that piece, Madrigal-Borloz addressed false notions about this group:
Madrigal-Borloz did not specifically discuss the U.S. when he spoke with the Washington Blade, but he referenced anti-LGBTQ narratives in Ukraine and Georgia that promote the idea of lesbians being 'bad citizens' because they don't have children' and gay men 'are detrimental to society' because they are 'disordered and ... automatically associated with pedophilia.'
About the People's Voice
The People's Voice is one of the most prolific producers of false claims and has been debunked by Lead Stories numerous times.
It describes itself as a resource "comprised of various web pages operated by Fact Checked Limited," but has nothing to do with fact-checking.
Its website contains a liability disclaimer saying:
FACT CHECKED LIMITED AND/OR ITS SUPPLIERS MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS ABOUT THE SUITABILITY, RELIABILITY, AVAILABILITY, TIMELINESS, AND ACCURACY OF THE INFORMATION, SOFTWARE, PRODUCTS, SERVICES AND RELATED GRAPHICS CONTAINED ON THE SITE FOR ANY PURPOSE. TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ALL SUCH INFORMATION, SOFTWARE, PRODUCTS, SERVICES AND RELATED GRAPHICS ARE PROVIDED 'AS IS' WITHOUT WARRANTY OR CONDITION OF ANY KIND.
Pedophilia is one of the recurring themes in many debunked conspiracy theories. Lead Stories debunked such claims here.
