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Judge rules Oregon bakery discriminated against gay couple in wedding cake rebuke
I just found an article about this posted on my FB page, did a search for it here on DU but didn't find anything about it. The news is dated Feb 2. Apologies if this is a duplicate post -- Don(Reuters) - An Oregon bakery that refused on religious grounds to bake a wedding cake for a gay couple violated the state's anti-discrimination laws because the shop is not a registered religious institution, state officials said on Monday.
Sweet Cakes by Melissa, in the Portland area, might have to pay fines of $75,000 or more to two women to whom it refused service in 2013, a Bureau of Labor and Industries administrative judge ruled last week. A hearing to determine the damages is set for March 10.
"The law provides an exemption for religious organizations and schools, but does not allow private businesses to discriminate based on sexual orientation, just as they cannot legally deny service based on race, sex, age, disability or religion," bureau spokesman Charlie Burr said in a statement.
"The bakery is not a religious institution under the law," Burr said.
Bakery owners Aaron and Melissa Klein, citing their religious beliefs, refused in 2013 to bake a wedding cake for the two women. The gay couple married in 2014 after a federal judge struck down the state's same-sex marriage ban.
more
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/03/us-usa-oregon-gaymarriage-idUSKBN0L703320150203
Sweet Cakes by Melissa, in the Portland area, might have to pay fines of $75,000 or more to two women to whom it refused service in 2013, a Bureau of Labor and Industries administrative judge ruled last week. A hearing to determine the damages is set for March 10.
"The law provides an exemption for religious organizations and schools, but does not allow private businesses to discriminate based on sexual orientation, just as they cannot legally deny service based on race, sex, age, disability or religion," bureau spokesman Charlie Burr said in a statement.
"The bakery is not a religious institution under the law," Burr said.
Bakery owners Aaron and Melissa Klein, citing their religious beliefs, refused in 2013 to bake a wedding cake for the two women. The gay couple married in 2014 after a federal judge struck down the state's same-sex marriage ban.
more
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/03/us-usa-oregon-gaymarriage-idUSKBN0L703320150203
Reactions to the ruling:
Reactions To Christian Bakery Owners Facing Discrimination Charges
Both political commenters and government officials voiced their opinions after an Oregon judge ruled that Christian bakery owners discriminated against a lesbian couple after refusing to bake them a wedding cake.
Aaron and Melissa Klein, the co-owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa, said they declined to accept the couple’s order because the wedding violated their Christian beliefs against same-sex marriage.
The couple could pay up to $200,000 in fines and damages.
In an investigation last year, state officials found that the bakery violated the couple’s right to equal treatment in places meant to serve the public. Oregon law prohibits discrimination in those places.
“You cannot discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation,” Paul Thompson, the couple’s legal counsel, told The Oregonian. “The entire time, I felt the law was very much on our side because the law is black and white.”
more
http://www.opposingviews.com/i/religion/reactions-christian-bakery-owners-facing-discrimination-charges
Both political commenters and government officials voiced their opinions after an Oregon judge ruled that Christian bakery owners discriminated against a lesbian couple after refusing to bake them a wedding cake.
Aaron and Melissa Klein, the co-owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa, said they declined to accept the couple’s order because the wedding violated their Christian beliefs against same-sex marriage.
The couple could pay up to $200,000 in fines and damages.
In an investigation last year, state officials found that the bakery violated the couple’s right to equal treatment in places meant to serve the public. Oregon law prohibits discrimination in those places.
“You cannot discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation,” Paul Thompson, the couple’s legal counsel, told The Oregonian. “The entire time, I felt the law was very much on our side because the law is black and white.”
more
http://www.opposingviews.com/i/religion/reactions-christian-bakery-owners-facing-discrimination-charges
6 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
...at the bank (I'm on call).
If the people who work at that bank branch are not Atheists, I refuse to configure their Computers or servers.
Yeah...Right.. 
