The mayor of Arlington, Texas, has been accused of cursing out a controversial street preacher in a video published seven years ago.
Jim Ross, who has held the position of mayor in a Texas city since 2021, was identified in a Vice video from 2018. The footage shows him in a confrontation at the Southern Decadence festival in New Orleans, an annual LGBT gathering around Labor Day weekend.
This report by The Dallas Express indicated that Ross, whose face was blurred, was the individual shouting aggressive comments about anal sex at Christian street preacher Ruben Israel.
Israel, who died in 2023, was known for showing up to pride events with his supporters and holding anti-gay signs.
Ross has also been known to mock Muslims at various Islamic events nationwide, once claiming that the faith fosters ‘crime, murder, and destruction’ wherever it spreads.
Ross was seen holding a beer at the festival in New Orleans and decided to get up in Israel’s face to shout him down.
‘I believe in the right to free speech… But this is repulsive language and I am a heterosexual man,’ said Ross, who would later be elected mayor of Arlington three years post this incident.
Jim Ross, who was not yet Arlington’s mayor, is alleged to have been yelling at Christian street preacher Ruben Israel during a New Orleans LGBT pride event.
Israel, who died in 2023, was known for showing up to pride events with his supporters and holding anti-gay signs
‘You stand out here like you’re a bada** motherf***er, hoping somebody starts some s**t,’ Ross said, before calling Israel a ‘punk motherf***er’.
‘You don’t think anal sex is good, do you? Have you ever f***ed your old lady in the *ss?’ he added.
Israel retorted: ‘No, who would do that?’
‘I’d f*ck your old lady in the *ss,’ Ross replied.
Then someone handed Ross a megaphone so he could speak to all of Israel’s supporters at the same time.
‘Shut your mouth, shut your mouth, you little piece of rubbish. You want to talk trash, but these folks here are having a fantastic time. They don’t go to your backwoods church and spout off!’ he yelled.
His rant ended with him calling someone in Israel’s camp a ‘p***y motherf***er’. He then pushed through the crowd to confront that person.
Some Arlington and Tarrant County residents were disappointed or upset about Ross’s behavior at the event.
Elected Texas Republicans called for Ross to resign as they branded him ‘disgusting’ and ‘a disgrace’ for the outburst
‘This is unfortunate. I am not certain what prompted this altercation. He sounds inebriated,’ Arlington resident Kathi Arocha told The Express.
Elected Texas Republicans were significantly harsher in their condemnation of Ross.
‘This video is beyond shocking. What a disgusting piece of human garbage. Mayor Ross should resign immediately,’ said Tarrant County GOP Chairman Bo French.
‘The now Mayor of Arlington’s vile, profanity-laced rant at the late Ruben Israel, a Christian street preacher, is a disgrace. Perhaps the mayor was stressed out because of not being able to pay his taxes of late, but his unprofessional conduct mirrors the worst of today’s cursing Democrats. Leadership demands better,’ Tarrant County Republican Precinct Chair TK Campbell added.
Campbell was referring to Ross’s unpaid taxes, which has led the IRS to garnish his salary.
Records from the Tarrant County Tax Assessor-Collector show Ross owes $940.39 in penalties and interest, with a total outstanding debt of $174,945.93 as of June 2025.
Daily Mail approached Jim Ross’s office for comment.
