Former Miss California (and Trump Supporter) Pays Children To Go Maskless

A former Miss California who claims she lost the Miss USA crown in 2009 because she opposed same-sex marriage is currently paying children not to wear masks, the Independent reports. "Former�Miss USA�runner-up Carrie Prejean Boller is riding the conservative culture war back to semi-relevance after videos of her paying children money for not wearing coronavirus�masks�stirred outrage online."

The Independent continued: "Ms Prejean Boller is an outspoken Republican and Donald Trump supporter. She famously lost the Miss USA crown in 2009 after she said told judge�Perez Hilton�she believed marriage was only between a man and a woman."

In one video, Rolling Stone reports, which Prejean-Boller posted in her Instagram Stories, she said to a young girl: "Tomorrow when you go to school unmasked, your heart's gonna be racing and you're gonna be nervous. But I want you to know you're doing the right thing. Don't ever, ever question it."

She added: "You're a leader. You're the next Rosa Parks. You're the next Martin Luther King. This is so important that you stand."

The video, Rolling Stone reports, is part of series on her Instagram Stories account where she is encouraging people to defy indoor mask policies and go mask-free in big-box stores in exchange for money. "In this series, Prejean Boller and fellow anti-mask activist Patrice Reynolds, who identify themselves as the 'muzzle-free patrol,' stand in front of a Target sign mandating face coverings indoors before going up to people who are not wearing masks inside Target and giving them $1 bills."

In one video, that Rolling Stone says appears to be staged, a mother explains she and her children went maskless in Target because Gov. Gavin Newsom was recently photographed without one at a Rams-49ers game. Newsom said he only took the mask off for a photo.

"Prejean Boller and Reynolds then distribute 'muzzle-free thank yous' to the children in the form of $1 bills. 'We're empowering those who are brave and willing to stand for freedom,' Prejean Boller says in the video before referring to the children as 'little patriots.' She later gives a dollar bill to a little boy in a shopping cart who appears to be about two years old, 'for not wearing a muzzle.' "

Prejean-Boller previously made headlines during the 2009 Miss USA Pageant when asked by blogger Perez Hilton if same sex marriage should be legalized as it was in some states at the time. (Same sex marriage was made legal in 2015 by the Supreme Court.) "I think it's great that Americans are able to choose one or the other ... same sex marriage or opposite marriage," she said in response. "I believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman ... that's how I was raised."

She later said her answer is what cost her the crown. "Out of all the topics I studied up on, I dreaded that one. I prayed I would not be asked about gay marriage. If I had any other question, I know I would have won," she told Fox News.

Rolling Stone adds that she was later defended by Donald Trump (who then owned the Miss Universe system, which operated Miss USA). Newsom himself, despite his own pro-same-sex marriage views, also defended Prejean at the time,�saying�she "spoke her conscience."

"Prejean Boller later lost her crown after pageant organizers�investigated her for breach of contract, due to her failure to make required appearances on behalf of the Miss California USA organization," Rolling Stone writes. "The investigation also determined she had taken nude photos prior to the competition, though Trump at the time said he had determined the photos did not violate Prejean Boller's contract. She later�sued the pageant�for libel, slander and religious discrimination, alleging that the Miss USA organization had attempted to discourage her from speaking out about her religious views prior to making the same-sex marriage comments. The suit was later settled."

Her anti-COVID restrictions stance has put her back in the public eye, most notably last August when a�video�of her at a San Diego school board meeting ranting about masks went viral and was reposted by far-right pundit Dan Bongino. In the clip, Prejean Boller says, "I'm a mama bear and I know there's a lot of mama bears here tonight, and no one's gonna mess with our cubs... And tonight I'm simply here to tell you to unmask our children. We're done begging. In fact, we're done asking for permission. We are gonna be unmasking our children today." She threatened to campaign against school board members who were in favor of mandatory mask policies in schools, stating, "I will make sure that none of you ever serve in a public space ever again."

She later told Rolling Stone that they needed to present to her any statistically significant data showing the benefits of children wearing medical or cloth masks. She later said that the reporting of her actions was "fake news" and "factually wrong," stating that Rolling Stone characterized her as "paying people at department stores to take their masks off, rather than just rewarding people for going unmasked. On her Stories, there is a video of her offering a $5 bill to a woman who then takes her mask off.

According to her IG Stories account (which is private), Boller has been speaking at conservative rallies, hobnobbing with far-right influencers like Lauren Boebert and Madison Cawthorn at Mar-a-Lago, and, with Reynolds, actively campaigning for people to violate mask policies at big-box stores.

Rolling Stone adds that in a video from three weeks ago, "they went into a Home Goods in Encinitas, California, giving the 'muzzle-free' (adult) shoppers $5 bills with smiley faces on them and offering money to people to take off their masks. 'I love seeing all the normal people who do not comply with tyranny!' she said in a caption. She also regularly films herself harassing salespeople at Apple and Barnes and Noble who attempt to enforce mask policies, giving a staff member at the latter a copy of�'The Constitution for Dummies'."�