On Saturday, people will gather for a South Florida rally against what they describe as an “attack” on the nation’s children. The event, dubbed the Worldwide Stop the War on Children Rally, will oppose several subjects that are on the frontlines of the right-wing culture war over LGBTQ acceptance, particularly as such relates to children. On Instagram, event organizer Fathers for Freedom lists its enemies as “radicalized sexual curriculum, gender ideology, child grooming, parental alienation, and ‘gender affirming care.’”
This event and the groups affiliated with it—which includes Moms for Liberty and Gays Against Groomers—are part of what many describe as an organized effort to falsely malign LGBTQ people, particularly drag queens and transgender people, as child predators.
Such groups insist they’re merely endeavoring to preserve children’s innocence and protect them from being introduced to information and content concerning human sexuality and gender identity before it’s age appropriate. Critics counter that this is a page out of the historic playbook on undermining acceptance of LGBTQ people.
The main organizer of the Stop the War on Children Rally in South Florida is Fathers for Freedom, which was founded by Elon Gerberg, a commercial realtor based in Boca Raton, Florida, per his LinkedIn page. Gerberg’s star has risen in right-wing circles over the last few years due to his opposition to masks and vaccine mandates and LGBTQ content in schools, causes which are at the core of Moms for Liberty’s mission.
The Daily Dot is first to report that Gerberg previously was a rapper who went by the moniker E.D.G. Gerberg’s body of work as E.D.G. includes extremely explicit lyrics promoting drug use and promiscuity—which some may find interesting in light of his current persona as a protector of wholesome family values. As E.D.G., Gerberg performed songs about taking drugs, selling drugs, and participating in group sex. He referred to himself as the “best white rapper ever” and “the voice of the suburbs.”
When the Daily Dot contacted him, Gerberg did not deny his past as a rapper of NSFW songs. In response to a request for comment sent via his website, he said that his history makes him “acutely aware of the impressionable nature of young minds.” He also insisted that he has changed for the better.
“My values have evolved significantly over the past seven years since becoming a parent, providing me with tremendous perspective and a profound understanding of the transformations individuals can undergo, even at a much later age,” he said.
Gerberg asserted that extremely young children are confused by “gender ideology,” a term that conservatives often substitute for being transgender or gender nonconforming. He said that introducing them to this subject matter can sometimes lead them to be “pushed down paths involving cross hormones or irreversible surgeries before they've had a chance to fully mature and make informed decisions.”
Fathers for Freedom describes itself as “a group of fathers, mothers, and concerned citizens dedicated to protecting parental rights and promoting fatherhood.” Its website says that every parent has the right to “raise [their children] in a safe and nurturing environment.”
Around the time he started showing up at school boards in “unmask our children” T-shirts, Gerberg appears to have changed his X handle from @EDG4FreedomInFL to @FloridaF4F, and rebranded as Fathers for Freedom. Posts on an archived version of the former match those on the latter. There are also posts on the Fathers for Freedom account from years ago promoting E.D.G.’s music. The E.D.G. account on ReverbNation links to a since-deleted Facebook account for Elon Gerberg.
In one song, Gerberg rapped about selling drugs in middle school.
"Used to make deliveries on bikes, I would ride on the pegs, that was middle school ... When they caught me in the lunchroom selling pills to little fools, all for the money yeah I admit it it was a little crude," he rapped. In another, he rapped about taking Vicodin, Percocet, and morphine, then going to an o**y during which the song says a woman did “a line” off his genitals. “I'm on a lot of drugs,” Gerberg crooned.
Many of the songs came out when Gerberg was in college in Ohio in the mid-aughts, per his LinkedIn. Records show that he promoted them on X as recently as 2015.
Gerberg has changed his tune regarding what constitutes acceptable lyrics since he was rapping about "hoes" and doing drugs.
In April, the Fathers for Freedom account complained that an album that didn’t include profanity and quoted the Bible was no longer available on YouTube.
“Yet @Eminem’s music is all up. No issue at all,” it added. “Rappers promoting violence, infidelity, and crime is also fine it seems. Is this the stance [you're] taking?”
The tone of the Stop the War on Children Rally will be far different than Gerberg’s album Money is Money. On its website, Fathers for Freedom says the former will be all about “protecting innocence and family values.” The latter was more about getting inebriated and living as a "gangsta."
The rally is endorsed by a coalition of far-right groups including Moms for Liberty and Gays Against Groomers. Neither Moms for Liberty nor Gays Against Groomers immediately responded to request for comment sent Friday afternoon.
Gerberg is slated to speak at the rally, as is conspiracy theorist Jimmy Levy, who has reportedly espoused belief that the earth is flat, and Angelique Contreras, whose attendance at the protest that became the Capitol riot surfaced during her unsuccessful run for a school board seat in South Florida.
Last December, there was a similar rally with the same messaging held in Fort Lauderdale. The event attracted a contingent of about two dozen people wearing clothing identifying them as members of the Proud Boys, the far-right group whose leaders were recently convicted of seditious conspiracy for their roles in the Capitol riot.
In response to the Daily Dot’s inquiry, Gerberg said he could not comment on the actions of the individuals and groups he has associated with. He further asserted that he has reformed from the wilder days of his youth.
“I use my experiences, both onstage and in commanding an audience, to spread positivity and protect the innocence of children,” Gerberg wrote. “I am deeply committed to ensuring that my own children do not follow the same path I once walked and are not influenced into a life marked by drugs, alcohol, or criminal behavior.”
He added that he has “distanced” himself from the music he used to create.
As of this writing, Gerberg’s songs as E.D.G. are still available on SoundClick and ReverbNation.
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