DezNat “Founder” JPBellum Exposed As Logan Smith Of Fair Oaks, CA and Pocatello, Idaho

Meet Logan Starr Smith aka JPBellum, 40, of Pocatello, Idaho who is the so-called founder of the #DezNat hashtag as well as a homophobic, misogynistic, antisemitic bigot. Logan recently moved from Fair Oaks in Northern California to Pocatello in Southeastern Idaho. He is a return Mormon missionary, graduate of Brigham Young University-Idaho, a member of the Gwen Ward of the Pocatello Idaho Central Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and an original member of the Discord server where DezNat came to life. While Logan enjoys a stable job and marriage, he is also an unrelenting troll who actively targets marginalized people and uses white supremacist memes mingled with Mormon imagery. Additionally, he has targeted gay students and progressive professors in an effort to get them kicked out of Brigham Young University. Logan once said that the only way to be truly anonymous is to get rid of all one’s social media and chuck their smartphone–well he took his own advice too late because today let’s get to know the hateful troll behind the pseudonymous account of JPBellum.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

“True anonymity would be deleting all your social media and chucking your smartphone.” – Logan Smith as JPBellum

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

Images of DezNat user Logan Smith aka JPBellum and his wife, Antoinette Smith aka SisterBellum.

Content Warning: This article contains racist, queerphobic and misogynistic statements, antisemitism, as well as references to the Holocaust, neo-Nazism, and acts of violence, and other objectionable language. We feel it is important to show examples of this person’s hateful ideology in his own words, rather than merely describing or characterizing it. In all cases where slurs or other offensive words have letters replaced by asterisks, or have been redacted or obscured in images, those redaction’s have been added by the authors of this article, not by the person who is being quoted/screencapped.

Background – DezNat Origins

According to Logan Smith, he was first drawn to Deseret Nationalism after hearing about it from Mormon white nationalist and Identity Evropa member, Ayla Stewart. Logan claims reading an article on Stewart (aka Wife With A Purpose) is what “finally drove [him] to join twitter and start participating in the discussions to explore a movement [he] felt drawn to.”

In April 2018, Logan states that at first he was drawn to the alt-right and then to the “Deseret-right“, because the alt-right rejects “true religion” and is open towards gays. For Mormon or Deseretian Nationalists like Logan, religion, specifically the Latter-day Saint religion, is paramount to nationalist ideology and it is crucial to understanding DezNat. For Logan, the ultimate outcome of Deseret Nationalism or DezNat is the “return of the sovereign state of Deseret under church government.”

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

sources: [1, 2]

Although the hashtag #DeseretNationalism was used in 2017 by Matthias Cicotte aka @JReubenCiark and @_DNA_Mond (in August and September, respectively) the earliest known use of the #DezNat hashtag was by Logan Smith aka JPBellum, on 6 Aug 2018. Logan, who claims he started the hashtag, was an original member of the “Bunch of Latter-day Saints” Discord server which is well-known for its hateful, antisemitic, racist, and bigoted messages.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

sources: [3, 4]

Mormon Ethnonationalism

theocracy is inevitableLogan Smith as JPBellum

Logan Smith is a Mormon ethnonationalist. In the case of Mormon ethnonationalism, Logan describes DezNat or Deseret Nationalism as “the recognition that faithful [LDS or Mormon] members are a unique people and should be united spiritually, morally, economically, and politically behind Christ, the prophet, and the [LDS or Mormon] church.” Logan Smith believes that “if all [government] were gone tomorrow the [Mormon] church would fill that role.”

“I’m ok with being called a Deseret Nationalist. It’s like being called a Kingdom of God nationalist.” – Logan Smith as JPBellum

Using Irony and Religion to Avoid Criticism

Logan asserts that DezNat are just “faithful, unapologetic followers of the church, prophets, policies, and doctrines” and that “sometimes [they] use spicy memes to defend the faith.” This is the primary way DezNat avoids criticism from those that oppose the movement. In effect, DezNat is able to use the excuse of “defending the faith” as a cover of plausible deniability for racist, bigoted, and otherwise hateful rhetoric. “This is why #DezNat defends Brigham Young. Even when they call him all these horrible things he was still a prophet of God,” Logan explains, “If they can come for Brother Brigham they can come for any prophet they decide to disagree with.” Brother Brigham (Brigham Young) was the second prophet and president of the Mormon faith who is criticized as having taught racist theories as a part of early Mormonism. Logan has come to the defense of these critiques of Brigham Young several times saying, “Oh, I’m sure he said them or something very close to that. I am simply saying I don’t care that he did,” and “…we don’t care. Imagine that, a 19th-century man having a 19th century opinion. The horror,” and “Never said he wasn’t racist just that we don’t care.” According to the Mormon Church, “Over time, Church leaders and members advanced many theories to explain the priesthood and temple restrictions. None of these explanations is accepted today as the official doctrine of the Church,” (Further reading: LDS Church, Race and the Priesthood).

Logan tweets that he isn’t being serious when talking about Blood Atonement, a disputed doctrine that the Mormon church has disavowed. DezNat is known to use memes of Bowie knives and blood atonement to harass ex-Mormons and progressive Mormons. Using the defense of joking is a common tactic of extremists to avoid criticism (see NPR, How Extremists Use Irony to Weaponize Hate). That being said, Logan has plenty to say about blood atonement. He has stated, “Blood atonement is just another term for capital punishment in a theocratic government,” and in a follow-up tweet explains it by stating, “I know capital punishment isn’t linked to religion that’s why it was called blood atonement. Brutal is relative. England held its last drawing and quartering in the 1790’s so it wasn’t far removed. Your presentism is showing. Saudi Arabia still beheads people. Cultural bias.

Logan also effectively preys upon the fears of historical attacks on Latter-day Saints by attesting that anyone who is against Mormon nationalism, Deseret nationalism or DezNat must be anti-Mormon with an ulterior motive to destroy his religion. For example, after we released our research on Deseret Nationalist Jack Jerman, Logan tweeted, “Just remember that in the coming days no matter what you hear about #DezNat we aren’t the real target, the Church of Jesus Christ is.” He continues his tweet by stating he would “disavow the tag if instructed by church leadership” and then concludes by stating that his enemies “want the Church’s $$$ and destroying its online defenders is step 1.”

Additionally, Logan Smith has been accused by hard-line Deseret Nationalists of being a disloyal optics cuck.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

sources: [5, 6]

Attacks on LGBTQ at Brigham Young University

Logan Smith is a virulent homophobe and queerphobe. He has admitted to targeting a gay student to try to get them kicked out of Brigham Young University. He has also offered cash and gift cards for evidence that would result in the expulsion of so-called apostates, as well as progressive professors at BYU. On one occasion, he offered a $1,000 reward for evidence that would result in the expulsion of a gay student.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

source: [7, 8, 9]

In October 2019, Logan tweeted, “Thinking of offering $100 Chick-fil-A gift card as a bounty for information/proof leading to the expulsion of an apostate from BYU.” Several DezNat-associated accounts replied to the tweet with suggestions on how to implement the “bounty.” One account going by Janessa Taylor replied, “I would just send a letter to the president of BYU and Elder Holland with all of [REDACTED]’s tweets and other questionable doctrines pushed by the Maxwell Institute.” Two days later he increased the bounty, offering a $200 bounty on BYU professors they deemed “apostate.” Other DezNat accounts chimed in offering to contribute to the bounty.

In November 2020, Logan Smith significantly increased the financial incentive to $1,000 for “information or proof of an honor code violation” that resulted in “[the gay student] expelled from BYU.” When another Twitter user replied negatively to the bounty, Logan doubled down on his offer by mocking him, “If you have credible info that hypothetical $1000 can be yours.”

Hank Smith Controversy

In April 2021, a Brigham Young University assistant teaching professor, Hank Smith, called a gay student “Korihor” in response to a tweet by Logan Smith (as JPBellum). Korihor is a Book of Mormon anti-Christ who was trampled to death for wickedness. Hank Smith had over 155,000 followers on Instagram and more than 30,000 followers on Twitter at the time of the hateful tweet [10].

hank smith korhor antichrist byu professor deznat

source: [11]

Hank Smith’s reply to Logan Smith’s account resulted in the mass harassment of the gay BYU student as well as several women. Logan also summoned the support of the Radical Orthodoxy community to “stand and be counted” in support of Hank Smith. “Despite claims that [Radical Orthodoxy] was created to help mitigate extremism,” Meg Conley writes, “@DanEllsworthVA one of the signers of of the [Radical Orthodoxy] manifesto, responded with ‘We’re here.'” referring to the Mormon radical orthodoxy (radox) community on Twitter to stand with the BYU professor. The ensuing fallout resulted in Hank later apologizing for calling the gay student “Korihor.” He excused his disparaging tweet by saying his “emotions got the better of me.” It is not known whether Hank Smith was professionally disciplined and he is still listed as an assistant teaching professor o BYU’s website.

The authors of this article were able to document two separate apologies made by Hank Smith as a result of his response to Logan Smith (JPBellum)–one of which was later deleted.

“I do need to apologize for calling [REDACTED] Korihor. That was unjustified and unfair. My emotions got the better of me. I am very sorry.” [https://archive.ph/1qWPH]

“I do need to apologize for calling [REDACTED] what I did. I deleted the reply. That was unjustified and unfair. My emotions got the better of me. I am very sorry.” [https://archive.ph/fig24] (deleted)

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

source: [12, 13]

Anti-LGBTQ Hate Rallies at BYU – Umbrella Hate Symbolism

In early March 2021, a rally in support of LGBTQ+ students and faculty was held at Brigham Young University. In response, DezNat organized anti-LGBTQ hate rallies disguised as “Family Proclamation readings.” The JPBellum account was one of the main DezNat accounts that promoted the anti-LGBTQ hate rally framing it as “lgbtq activists…protesting church teachings.” On February 25, 2021 he tweets, “On March 4th lgbt activists are protesting church teachings on BYU campus. Instead, faithful members will show support for the Family Proclamation by wearing BYU swag and *carrying or wearing* an umbrella. Join us.”

Logan Smith’s account, JPBellum, also appears to be one of the first DezNat accounts to use and promote umbrella emojis as a queerphobic hate symbol within the online Twitter Latter-day Saint movement. The day before the March 2021 LGBTQ rally took place at BYU, Logan tweeted, “If you don’t have an umbrella [emoji] in your Display Name I am just going to assume you’re against the Family Proclamation.” (see #FamProc)

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

source: [14]

14 Words and Other White Supremacist References

Logan Smith has used a variation of the white supremacist slogan “14 words” mingled with Latter-day Saint imagery. The “14 Words” (see ADL, Hate Symbols: 14 Words) was coined by neo-Nazi David Lane, a member of the white supremacist terror organization The Order. The text of Lane’s slogan reads, “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children” in comparison to Logan’s text “The greatest legacy one can have is securing the existence of your people and a future for your children.”

If there is any question as to whether Logan Smith is familiar with the “14 Words”, when failed racist Utah senatorial candidate Samuel Parker replies, “The 19 words? Whew boy!” Logan reprimands him for confirming the reference.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

source: [15, 16]

88” is the white supremacist numerical code for “Heil Hitler” where H is the eighth letter of the alphabet. It is one of the most common white supremacist symbols and is also used by neo-Nazis (see ADL, Hate Symbols, 88). On at least one occasion, Logan referenced this recognized hate symbol. In 2021 Logan Smith tweeted, “This tweet is 88 years too late,” in reference to another tweet about Germans. He later replies to the tweet stating the number was “purely coincidence.”

jpbellum deznat logan smith mormon norcal

sources: [17]

Antisemitism

Logan Smith is a well-known antisemite who pushes holocaust denial. He has stated regarding Jews, “Imagine your entire social, political, religious, and cultural identity is framed by an event that happened two generations ago. Everything that happens to them is viewed through that lens. They cling to the holocaust because it defines them. Without it they have no context.” In the “Bunch of Latter-day Saints” Discord server, he stated, “To borrow a line from JBP maybe it doesnt matter if the holocaust happened or not, it’s more true than truth at this point so our decisions should be how do we interact with it rather than resist it.” “JBP” is Jordan B. Peterson, a far-right Canadian psychology professor whose teachings have attracted the admiration of those on the so-called alt-light, i.e. white nationalist conspiracy theorist Mike Cernovich and Gavin McInnes, the founder of the violent neo-fascist street gang Proud Boys.

In addition to framing ex-Mormons, progressive Mormons, and LGBTQIA people as enemies to the Latter-day Saint faith, Logan Smith has also painted Jewish people as enemies to the Mormon faith and seems to think top LDS leadership does too. In the DezNat Discord server he states, “The Manhattan Temple was an F you to the Jews in White Plains who wouldn’t let it happen.”

Logan also has made statements repeating the white supremacist conspiracy theory that Jews are behind a secret globalist plot. In 2019 he tweeted that there is a “Globalist agenda to make everyone gay” that is “overseen by the Jews.”

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

source: [19, 20, 21]

Misogyny

Some of Logan Smith’s more disturbing statements are his beliefs about women. Logan supports repealing the 19th amendment to the U.S. constitution–the amendment that gave women the right to vote. Logan repeatedly uses the #Repealthe19th hashtag [22, 23, 24, 25] on social media and has tied it directly to his anti-feminist views, stating, “Feminism has only tried to homogenize the political power of women as a tool of progressives. Lump them in to [sic] the groupthink and harness their collective ballot power. #repealthe19th.” Additionally, Logan has stated “Nazis didn’t exist until after women got the vote.” He believes feminism is harmful to women. He has also made statements arguing that women destroy organizations when they are in leadership positions.

When Logan isn’t making thinly veiled jokes about women like this one about women’s menstrual cycles, he is proclaiming that women shouldn’t be allowed on the internet at all. In another tweet, Logan says, “Why they let women on Twitter I’ll never understand.” Logan’s wife, Antoinette Wright Smith, DezNat Twitter account was @SisterBellum.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

source: [26, 27, 28]

Logan has stated he believes that the “first duty” of young women is “to get married and have babies (1st duty) instead of serving a mission.” In the Latter-day Saint religion, Mormon women can serve a mission at 19 years of age, and Logan is essentially saying that women should be getting married and having babies at that age. In another tweet he again stated his belief that women should get married young tying it to “falling fertility” rates.

When several women on Twitter claimed they were being harassed by DezNat when voicing their opinions to BYU professor Hank Smith after he called a gay student “Korihor”, Logan insulted the validity of their arguments by stating, “The amount of cope on display because their emotional hostage taking isn’t working is astounding.”

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

sources: [29, 30]

Identifying Logan Smith aka JPBellum of Pocatello, Idaho

Logan Starr Smith left several clues that helped us connect him to his pseudonymous DezNat account, JPBellum, such as his age, where he went on mission, as well as details about college, his location, his marriage and employment background. The account also attempted to throw off researchers by providing false information about their identity, i.e. a fake LinkedIn account and claiming their real name was “John Paul Bellum.”

AGE

“JPBellum” left clues about his age. He states that he watched the movie, Titanic, on a date while he still lived at home as a teenager. Using Mormon cultural traditions about dating we were able to narrow his age range to 39-41 years of age. Logan Starr Smith is 40 years old.

MISSION

The JPBellum account stated that he served his Mormon mission stateside in the East and that it was a Spanish-speaking mission with a high Cuban population. He also mentioned that he was not allowed to hike in the woods because of ticks. This led us to the Morristown New Jersey Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

Images from Logan Smith’s now deleted Facebook profile showing images from when Logan was on his LDS mission.

COLLEGE

The JPBellum account revealed that he went to Ricks College while David Bednar was the president of the school. He also stated in another tweet that they went to Brigham Young University-Idaho where he met his wife. This tells us that he likely first attended Ricks College around 1999, left to go on a mission, and returned after the college had changed to a four year university and been renamed BYU-Idaho. We also had to account for time serving his LDS mission. This information aligns with Logan Smith’s archived LinkedIn and time at the school.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

Images from Logan Smith’s now deleted Facebook page showing he and his wife (Antoinette Wright Smith) at Brigham Young University-Idaho in Rexburg, ID.

RELATIONSHIP/MARRIAGE

“JPBellum” gave us the timeline of his courtship and marriage, including his anniversary month which is November.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

Screen [31] showing JPBellum DezNat account’s courtship timeline to his wife; Image from Logan Smith’s now deleted Facebook page showing his wedding anniversary is in November.

LOCATION

“JPBellum” also gave us clues to his location. We know from his tweets that he is from North California, probably near the Sacramento Temple. We also know that he was having a major life change in 2020 and that he has talked about moving out of California [32, 33]. Logan Smith and his wife recently moved from Fair Oaks, CA to Pocatello, ID.

EMPLOYMENT

“JPBellum” has given several clues as to his employment background: worked for his father’s family business, farm or agriculture related. The JPBellum account also appears to know a lot about egg and chicken production. That led us to an egg production business located in Fair Oaks, California, the owner of the company, and then his son, Logan Starr Smith.

CROSS-POSTING

After comparing images and information from both Logan Starr Smith and “JPBellum” accounts, we were able to see that he cross-posted images across platforms. One of the most damning images he cross-posted on his pseudonymous Twitter account was an image of a necktie he took in a selfie which he also used as his profile image on his personal YouTube account (recently changed). Another image he cross-posted was a “Santa” image which he posted on both Twitter and Facebook.

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

source: [34, 35]

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

sources:[36, 37]

Recently, Logan’s Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn accounts were all deleted, but not before we archived and saved the accounts.

logan smith antoinette smith california idaho deznat jpbellum

Images of Logan and Antoinette Smith [38, 39]

Calls to Action

UPDATE: According to local news KPVI Logan Smith is no longer employed by ICCU after being connected to the JPBellum DezNat account.

1.) Logan Smith is currently employed as a Virtual Service Agent at Idaho Central Credit Union. Let Idaho Central Credit Union know they have an antisemtic, misogynistic, homophobic bigot who mingles white supremacy with Mormonism working for them:

TAG them on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Idaho_Central
Email: https://www.iccu.com/contact-us

2.) Logan Smith is an antisemite who mixes white supremacist and neo-Nazi symbolism with Mormonism. He is also a queerphobe and misogynist who has targeted a gay student and progressive professors at BYU by offering “bounties” (financial incentives) to get them kicked out of school.

Logan is a member of the Gwen Ward of the Pocatello Idaho Central Stake. Spread the word about Logan Smith to Logan’s bishop using the following information:

jpbellum deznat logan smith pocatello id fair oaks ca mormon

Tips

If you have additional information to share about Logan Smith or other Deseret Nationalists, email us at exposedeznat at riseup dot net. We do not share sources with anyone.

Email: exposedeznat at riseup dot net

######

Logan Smith’s social media accounts:

Twitter (DELETED):

  • Display Name: JPBellum, John Paul Bellum
  • User Name: JPBellum *NOTE* this handle is currently being used by an anti-DezNat
  • User Permalink: https://twitter.com/intent/user?user_id=4745389657
  • Twitter ID: 4745389657

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/logan.smith.5891 ID 1040662284 (DELETED)

Antoinette Wright Smith’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/antoinette.w.smith ID 1035900797

Mormonger Exposed As Cole Noorda of Salt Lake City, Utah

Meet Matthew Cole Noorda aka “Mormonger”, 32 years old, of Salt Lake City, Utah an unrelentless queerphobe who has defended discriminatory practices against LGBTQIA people. Although Cole Noorda rejects he is racist, he uses his Mormonger account as a cover to defend racism and to tell racist jokes. A popular tactic of internet trolls, Noorda uses irony and jokes as a cover for his bigoted beliefs. A longtime supporter of DezNat, he unironically thinks he is “defending the gospel” by using the hashtag (#DezNat). Although Noorda is a returned Mormon missionary, graduate of the University of Utah and has close family connections, this article isn’t the first time Noorda has come under fire for his DezNat Mormonger account. Today, let’s get to know the person behind “Mormonger.”

mormonger cole noorda lds deznat meme

Matthew “Cole” Norda of Salt Lake City, Utah, the person behind the DezNat account “Mormonger”

Content Warning: This article contains racist and queerphobic statements, and other objectionable language. We feel it is important to show examples of this person’s hateful ideology in his own words, rather than merely describing or characterizing it. In all cases where words have letters replaced by asterisks, or have been redacted or obscured in images, those redaction’s have been added by the authors of this article, not by the person who is being quoted/screencapped.

Background

Mormonger initially came to our attention due to the LEGO Joseph Smith avatar he uses on Twitter. One of the most well-known and longest running DezNat accounts, Mormonger is often confused with an original member of the DezNat Discord server, “Bunch of Latter-day Saints”, that inspired Deseret Nationalism. In screen caps of the DezNat Discord server another user can be seen using the same avatar [1] as the current “Mormonger” account–a LEGO version of Mormon founder and prophet, Joseph Smith, Jr. Incidentally, the original account using said profile image was Ben McLean of Missouri while the current LEGO Joseph Smith is Cole Noorda of Utah. One should be careful not to mix up the two accounts operated by entirely different people.

cole noorda mormonger lego joseph smith deznat mormon

[1] Screencap of the “Bunch of Latter-day Saints” Discord server membership list showing the LEGO Joseph Smith avatar that was first used by Ben McLean of Missouri.

Cole Noorda, the person behind the Mormonger account, would like readers of his account to see him as a comedian, who is just posting jokes. The “Mormonger” account is known for using jokes to deflect criticism, which is a tactic (whether known to Noorda or not) popular among domestic extremists: using irony and claims of “just joking” to spread their message, while deflecting criticism (see NPR, How Extremists Use Irony To Spread Hate).

Interestingly, according to Cole Noorda, the Mormonger DezNat account is followed by Utah Senator Mitt Romney’s sock account on Twitter. Although we have no evidence that Romney is aware of DezNat or Deseret Nationalism, it is concerning any time a politician follows–especially secretly–those who are aligned with politics that endorse hate.

Surprisingly, Cole Noorda tweeted in July 2020 that his Stake President (Mormon ecclesiastical leader) “called him to repentance” over how he shares the “gospel” online. He states, “Stake President called me to repentance. Here’s to defending the gospel in a more kind and loving way. Wish me luck.” When another user going by the name Zachary Thornton facetiously replied, “Be aware defending the Gospel in a loving way, for some is hate speech. Good luck,” Noorda replies with a “those are the facts” gif. Additionally, Mormonger has tweeted that his own mother is worried about the content of Noorda’s DezNat account.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

sources: [2, 3]

Homophobia, Transphobia, Queerphobia

Homophobia and queerphobia is nearly universal with supporters of DezNat. Cole Noorda believes that marriage should only be understood as being between a man and woman as it is a doctrinal concept. Noorda states being gay is sinful and that the only acceptable way for a gay person to participate in sexual relations is within a married heterosexual relationship. In a later tweet he stated, “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with gay man marrying a straight woman as long as he is fully transparent. And by transparent, I don’t mean a parent who is trans.” Noorda, who states he works with a married gay man, would “rather [his] gay co-worker not know [he] support[s] “traditional” marriage” because it might cause “drama in the workplace” or get him fired.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [4, 5]

Noorda describes being gay as a biological defect that will be cured during the afterlife. He states concerning homosexuality, “It is my opinion that every single person is born with an imperfection or ‘disability.'” Furthermore, Noorda compares homosexuality with evil impulses, i.e. “when I get upset I want to murder people” but I don’t.

Noorda, who uses the umbrella emoji as an anti-LGBTQIA hate symbol in his display name on Twitter, is opposed to showing support for or solidarity with queer people. He tweets, “I can’t help but notice that none of the brethren have gay pride flags or pronouns in their bios…” Additionally, in his bio on Twitter Noorda also uses a rainbow emoji with the words “Old Testament Ally.” An early DezNat anti-LGBTQ+ phenomena, “Old Testament Ally,” or #OldTestamentAlly is an attempt to reappropriate the rainbow from the LGBTQ community in order to “steal it back for God.” It refers to the rainbow shown to Noah after the Old Testament God destroyed the world in a flood because of wickedness. The DezNat user going by the psuedonym DeseretAussie is credited with starting the hashtag (see The Official DezNat Guide, Old Testament Ally). In December 2020, Noorda changed his Twitter header to include a European-associated neo-Nazi anti-LGBTQIA flyer customized for DezNat.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [6, 7]

Unsurprisingly, Noorda states that discrimination against LGBTQIA people is acceptable, for example one should be able to discriminate against having gay roommates. When others point out that Noorda’s argument is homophobic and discriminatory, Noorda rejects the notion.

A black ultraconservative Mormon influencer who is often the target of DezNat was the subject of an offensive homophobic tweet by Noorda under his Mormonger account, “[REDACTED] is gay as AIDS.”

mormonger cole noorda lds deznat meme

source: [8]

In late August 2021, Noorda responded in favor of a speech given by Latter-day Saint top official, Jeffrey R. Holland, wherein Holland called for “musket fire” against pro-LGBTQ politics at Brigham Young University and their allies by stating “Elder Holland is #DezNat confirmed” and, “Jeffrey R Holland did nothing wrong,” the latter which is a common memetic phrase that DezNat supporters use and is a play on the memetic phrase “Hitler did nothing wrong.”

Noorda also changed his banner image on Twitter to reflect a man holding a musket with the text “A little more musket fire, coming right up…” a direct response to Holland’s speech. That same day he also tweeted, “Elder Holland woke up in the morning and chose metaphorical violence.” A few days earlier he had tweeted the same image while stating, “Elder Oaks: ‘I would like to hear a little more musket fire from this temple of learning.’ #DezNat: [image]” The same week of Holland’s speech, a BYU student and DezNat supporter, Conner Ray Murray of West Plains, Missouri, defaced a pro-LGBTQIA chalk mural at BYU. On September 10, 2021 it was revealed that Murray was no longer a student at the Mormon church owned university.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [9, 10, 11]

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [12, 13]

Racism and Religion

Although Cole Noorda rejects that he is racist and has stated he would call out others within DezNat for racist remarks, Noorda has no problem defending racism, making flippant remarks about racism or making racist jokes or comments.

In 1978, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially changed its position on prohibiting black male members from holding the priesthood (see LDS Church, Official Declaration 2). Noorda has apologized for the Mormon church’s historical practice of racial discrimination by reasoning that it’s plausible “God had morally legitimate reasons for excluding blacks from holding the priesthood.” According to the Mormon Church, “Over time, Church leaders and members advanced many theories to explain the priesthood and temple restrictions. None of these explanations is accepted today as the official doctrine of the Church,” — something Noorda seems to understand (Further reading: LDS Church, Race and the Priesthood).

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [14]

Noorda believes that people should only marry within their race and states that it is acceptable to discourage against interracial marriage. “I do believe (and I think psychologists would agree) that many difficulties arise when people of different nationalities / cultures get married,” Noorda states, “Statistically, your chances of divorce go up if you spouse is a different race.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [15, 16]

The argument that black people are inherently more violent than other races has been used to justify racial prejudices against black people for centuries. A loaded phrase, “black on black crime”, which Noorda uses here in yet another tasteless joke, has been used to defend this notion. Additionally, the phrase “all lives matter” which Noorda has used repeatedly has also been used to counter the phrase and movement Black Lives Matter. Noorda appears to understand this, yet continues to justify its use. Noorda has also used the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter.

As mentioned earlier, Cole Noorda makes racist jokes. Noorda tweets, “I have a joke about the Lamanites but it gets pretty dark.” According to the Book of Mormon, the Lamanites (along with the Nephites) are a group of people descended from ancient Israelites who settled in the Americas several hundred years before Christ was born and who are the ancestors of some American Indigenous peoples. The religious text states that the Lamanites, who were wicked, had a “skin of blackness” placed upon them to make them undesirable to the more righteous Nephites. In another racist joke directed at a black extreme anti-abortion activist who is also a DezNat associate and has made racial jokes referencing African American stereotypes herself, he states, “Let me get this straight @spinachtyrant99… A KFC employee asked for your hand in marriage – potentially providing you with free chicken for life. And you rejected his proposal. Are you even black?

mormonger cole noorda lds deznat meme

source: [17]

In another yet another tweet referencing race, Noorda jokes, “I’m a white male, so my DNA results from http://ancestry.com just say “Apologize.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [18, 19]

Identifying Cole Noorda of Salt Lake City, Utah as Mormonger

Cole Noorda left many clues that led us to and confirmed his identity as the person operating the Mormonger account on Twitter and Instagram. The biggest clue he left is that he previously linked to his “mormie” (aka normie) Twitter account bearing his real name. He has also used his DezNat account to amplify his mormie account.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [20] note the link in bio bearing his in real life name as Cole Noorda

Additionally, the authors of this article were able to use other details the Mormonger account revealed to confirm the ID including Noorda’s marriages, information about family members, his location, and where he went on his LDS mission, and the school he attended.

LDS MISSION

Mormonger has tweeted a lot about Brazil and speaks Portuguese as a second language. He has rode a bus in Brazil, lived in “the Amazon”, and states at least twice [21, 22] that he served his Mormon mission in Brazil. He also said he once mistook the Portuguese word condom for small shirt while on his mission. Eventually, we were able to locate a tweet that gave the specific location of Mormonger’s mission as Manuas, Brazil which is also the same mission Cole Noorda served in according to his Facebook account.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [22, 23]

UNIVERSITY

The Mormonger account tweeted that he graduated from the University of Utah. Cole Noorda graduated from the University of Utah in 2015.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [24, 25]

FAMILY and MARRIAGES

The Mormonger account has stated that they’ve been married twice, the first marriage ending in divorce and the second wife being a returned missionary who he married in Arizona. They also state that they moved from Las Vegas to Salt Lake City in 2017. Comparatively, Cole Noorda has also been married twice, his second wife being a returned LDS missionary for the Mormon church; they were married in the Gilbert Arizona Temple and moved to Salt Lake City from Las Vegas.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [26, 27, 28]

For some reason, Cole also tweeted that his first wife watched porn because he is not very good at sex (the tweet has since been deleted).

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [29]

“Mormonger” has also stated that his father’s name is Matthew which matches the name of Cole Noorda’s father. Mormonger also stated that he has a sister with pink hair which matches an image on Instagram that Cole Noorda is tagged in.

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [30, 31]

LOCATION

The Mormonger account has stated that they have only lived in three areas: Salt Lake City, Utah, Las Vegas, Nevada, and Manuas, Brazil. Incidentally, these are the same places we were able to confirm that Cole Noorda has lived.

BONUS MATERIAL

If there is any doubt left to the identity of the person behind the Mormonger account, their friend was kind enough to name doxx them:

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [32]

And then confirm their date of birth:

mormonger deznat mormon lds

source: [33]

Cole Noorda aka Mormonger of Salt Lake City, Utah:

mormonger cole noorda lds deznat meme

 

Calls To Action

1.) Report the Mormonger account on Twitter for hate. @Mormonger

2.) UPDATE: Cole Noorda is no longer employed by Podium HQ after being connected to the Mormonger DezNat account. Cole Noorda works for Podium, a reputation management company based in Lehi, Utah. Kindly, but firmly, reach out to Podium and let them know their employee is a homophobe who makes queerphobic and racist jokes online with their Mormonger account.

Employer – Podium
https://twitter.com/PodiumHQ
https://twitter.com/ericwilliamrea Co-Founder and CEO

3.) Cole Noorda is a member of the Olympus Hills Ward of the Salt Lake Mount Olympus Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Let Cole Noorda’s bishop know that he is a homophobe who makes queerphobic and racist jokes with his Mormonger account. Use the information in the image below:

mormonger deznat mormon lds

Tips

If you have additional information to share regarding Cole Noorda , please email exposedeznat at riseup dot net. We do not share sources of tips with anyone.

Email: exposedeznat at riseup dot net

Cole Noorda’s social media accounts:

Twitter:

  • Display Name: LEGO Joseph Smith ☔️
  • User Name: Mormonger
  • Twitter ID: 1408886100
  • Created: 5/6/2013

Twitter:

  • Display Name: Cole Noorda
  • User Name: ColeNoorda
  • Twitter ID: 1071528222108446720
  • Created: 12/08/2018

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/mormonger/

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/mcnoorda

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/cole.noorda ID: 689358156

TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonger

LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/cole-noorda-91a7215b/