Haley Carter: Who is she? Texas town's Fourth of July parade marshal resigned due to threats after being called a "gun-grabber"

Haley Carter, a former goalkeeper for the Houston Dash and a coach, was set to serve as the grand marshal of the Fourth of July parade in Friendswood, but she was forced to withdraw after an alt-right media figure initiated a harassment campaign against her. When a conservative Houston radio program host threatened her online with a Twitter post that included a picture of her son, the threats were a part of the mob attack.

Kelly was offended by Carter's political views

Jesse Kelly, a failed congressional candidate, former RV salesman, and host of a conservative talk show, attacked Carter on Twitter. Kelly claimed that Carter's political views offended him, and he even uploaded a picture of her child online in an effort to pressure Friendswood officials into removing her from the procession.


When Crater decided to walk out, Kelly announced his support for the New Right. He celebrated Crater leaving the campaign. Kelly claimed credit for his actions. He also lamented the fact that Carter was into trans activism in his appeal to his fans and drew attention to the fact that Carter had taken her ecstatic son to a drag event in Las Vegas to see his "idol Queen." After Kelly posted the picture of her son, Carter closed down her social media sites. It was unclear how serious the threats were at the time, and a Friendswood Police Department official was unsure whether detectives were looking into them.

While Kelly's solitary supporters cheered his action, Carter was supported by others. Turner referred to her as an "American hero" and a role model when he nominated her to the city of Houston commission in 2018.

Haley Carter's background

Carter played women's soccer professionally before retiring. She was also a former US Marine officer. After playing in NCAA Division I soccer, she earned a degree with honors from the US Naval Academy in 2006. She took part in two combat missions for Operation Iraqi Freedom after receiving her commission and worked as a Marine Corps Logistics Officer for almost 8 years. In addition to this, she also competed in various games in the Netherlands and France. In 2010, Haley was also recognized as the female athlete of the year.