COURT TELLS NI BAKERS
THEY MUST PROMOTE
GAY MARRIAGE
Dear marriage supporter,
A judge ruled this week that the pro-marriage owners of Ashers Baking Co. in Northern Ireland broke equality law when they declined to decorate a cake with the campaign slogan “Support Gay Marriage”.
The case had been brought with £40,000 of public money by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland – a taxpayer-funded quango that proudly declares its support for gay marriage on its website.
This is not a case about refusing to serve a customer because he was gay – Ashers serves gay customers all the time. This case is about whether a family-run business should be compelled to say something which is in total opposition to its strong and sincerely held belief that marriage is between a man and a woman.
The press has been quick to highlight that the ruling opens up a Pandora’s Box of similar cases in the future and has suggested that Parliament or a higher court should weigh in.
- Icing on the cake, Daily Telegraph (20/05/15)
- Stirring up prejudice (scroll down), Daily Mail (20/05/15)
- What a half-baked ruling (scroll down), Daily Express (20/05/15)
- Ashers 'gay cake' decision is a threat to our freedom of conscience, Belfast Telegraph (20/05/15)
- The ‘gay cake’ case highlights a new intolerance developing in Ireland, The Spectator (20/05/15)
Redefining marriage has been coercive
Far from promoting freedom, the introduction of same-sex marriage at Westminster has led to businesses being disrupted, and people losing their jobs and their free speech. This has happened even in Northern Ireland where same-sex marriage is still unlawful.
The NI Equality Commission is totally out of step with ordinary people. Some 90% of NI adults say equality laws ‘should be used to protect people from discrimination and not to force people to say something they oppose’.
They also echo the legal opinion of leading human rights barrister Aidan O’Neill QC, who noted that were Ashers to lose its case there could well be legal actions taken against:
- A Muslim printer refusing a contract requiring the printing of cartoons of Mohammed
- An atheist web designer refusing to design a website presenting as scientific fact the claim that God made the world in six days
- A Christian film company refusing to produce pornography
- A Christian baker refusing to take an order to make a cake celebrating Satanism
- A T-shirt company owned by lesbians declining to print T-shirts with a message describing gay marriage as an “abomination”
- A printing company run by Roman Catholics declining an order to produce adverts calling for abortion on demand to be legalised.
We have always said that although redefining marriage was sold to the public as a permissive measure it would quickly become coercive – this ruling clearly shows that it already has.
Now, more than ever, we must stand up for the freedom to say that true marriage is only between a man and a woman.
Please consider making a donation to support the vital work of Coalition for Marriage in safeguarding those who hold to traditional marriage.
Your donations are secure and confidential.
Thank you for your continued support.
Yours sincerely,
Colin Hart
Campaign Director
Coalition for Marriage
Campaign Director
Coalition for Marriage
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