I thought they were saying that gay marriage didn’t represent a threat to civil liberties? I suppose that basic freedom to exercise one’s conscience is soon to be no more.
In the State of Washington, a florist has been sued for refusing to provide flowers for a gay wedding. In response, that state’s legislature has before it SB5927 which would allow people, businesses or religious organizations to “deny services if providing those goods or services would be contrary to the individual’s or entity owner’s sincerely held religious beliefs, philosophical beliefs, or matters of conscience.”
Not surprisingly, this has prompted outrage from gay rights activists in the state who argue that gays living in rural areas might not be able to purchase staples such as fuel or food if businesses are allowed to discriminate
And this:
Is there a pattern developing here? Are gay activists deliberately targeting bed and breakfast owners to push the issue of civil unions and gay marriage? What other businesses will they target after these? Your church may not even be safe. There is a case going on in Hawaii, and now we learn about one in Illinois. From One News Now:
A bed and breakfast in Illinois that is currently under attack by a homosexual couple is now getting aid from Alliance Defense Fund.
Complaints were lodged with the state Human Rights Commission by two men who objected to the owners of the TimberCreek Bed and Breakfast refusing to allow their property to be used for same-gender civil union ceremonies, which are now legal in Illinois.
ADF attorney Bryan Beauman says about the owners of the bed and breakfast, “They’re willing to host weddings for marriages, but they decline to host any civil union ceremonies for both same-sex or opposite-sex couples. But we just believe this discrimination charge is baseless.”
The owners rejected the homosexual pair’s request on the basis of their strongly held religious beliefs.
“Constitutional, state law guarantees religious freedom for every American, including business owners, and that applies to owners of TimberCreek Bed and Breakfast,” says Beauman. “These complaints ignore those basic fundamental freedoms and they’re just further examples of the threat that the homosexual legal agenda poses to every American’s basic rights.”
The Human Rights Commission could rule in favor of either the business or the homosexual couple. If the couple wins the case, the business may have to pay fines and attorney fees, as well as having to permit use of their property for civil union ceremonies.