Growing up, my mom would always put on the show Full House for my sister and me. No matter what, the sitcom always found a way to cheer me up. Whether it was the neat freak father Danny Tanner, the quirky best friend Kimmy Gibler or the personable DJ Tanner, the Tanners felt like family friends. From a young age, I always looked up to the oldest daughter, DJ Tanner, played by actress Candace Cameron Bure. Bure’s character embodied everything I would want in a friend: reliable, loyal and accepting. Bure appeared to be relatable character in Full House, but in real life, she is not the standard we should aspire to be.

While on the screen, Bure appeared to be a welcoming older sister figure that I looked up to. Off screen she was far from that.

Bure is no stranger to participating in discriminatory behavior. Since her time on the show, Bure has been criticized for defending an Oregon bakery online that refused to create a cake for a same-sex wedding, failing to quarantine during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic and following controversial Republicans like Candace Owens and Donald Trump on social media.

Don’t get me wrong. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions; however, there is a fine line between freedom of thought and being downright homophobic. Bure has crossed that line.

Known for being a devout Christian, Bure is outspoken about her faith, which I commend. Religion can unite people together and give answers to some of life’s greatest questions. However, religion can also be used to weaponize others’ differences, which is exactly what Bure has done. Faith shouldn’t be an excuse for blatant homophobia.

The Bible never explicitly condemns same-sex marriage in any scripture. It’s possible to be both a good Christian and a believer of same-sex marriage.

Most recently, Bure has come under fire after becoming the chief creative officer for the faith based network, Great American Family. She described to CNN why she left the Hallmark channel, saying that she wanted to be involved in programming that centered around Christians who value their Lord and faith.

When describing the mission of the Christian network, Bure said, “I think that the Great American Family will keep traditional marriage at the core.” With Bure’s vision, we can expect that there will be no same-sex story lines on her network, which says everything we need to know. When Bure fails to acknowledge same-sex marriages as “traditional family” values, she is not only hurting her network, but she is excluding a demographic from being represented in her faith based entertainment.

So much has changed in our society in progressing the rights of same- sex couples, yet so much hasn’t.

At the Great American Family network, Bure has also surrounded herself with openly homophobic management like producer Bill Abbott, who is the chief executive of the Great American Media. While working for the Hallmark channel, Abbott refused to run a wedding commercial that depicted two women kissing. In response to keeping marriage “traditional” on the faith based network Abbott said, “It’s certainly the year 2022, so we’re aware of the trends. There’s no whiteboard that says, ‘Yes, this’ or ‘No, we’ll never go here.’” In simpler terms, that means no. Bure will continue to be homophobic and problematic so long as others around her do not call her out. There’s no doubt that you are who you surround yourself with.

I won’t be watching Bure’s new TV network, and neither should you.

While Bure’s outdated views are disappointing to say the least, they aren’t surprising. Bure represents a margin of the country that believes a Bible verse should dictate how all individuals live their lives. Turns out even our nation’s Supreme Court feels this way. One day they tell females that they do not have bodily autonomy, while the next day they allow for guns to be carried unconcealed. Individual protections are valued for guns but not for women. And it’s infuriating to say the least.

Religion should be intended to celebrate our differences, not criticize them. Bure has that all wrong. She needs to reevaluate herself and her discriminatory actions before she can truly call herself a devout Christian.

It’s intriguing to see how an actress can act accepting of genders and ethnicities on camera and act completely different off the screen. That’s Bure for you.