San Antonio, TX Paves the Way for Unemployed Homophobes
So how long until offenders are registered into a federal database and prohibited from ever working again? How long until a person can be accused of thinking a discriminatory thought?
Moreover, the ordinance certainly makes it possible for Christians who are unpopular in the workplace to be punished for remarks that may have been misinterpreted years prior. In other words, Christians can suffer the same fate as Paula Deen for comments deemed racist retroactively.
Hence, if a fun-loving Christian attended an office Halloween party 25 years prior dressed like the leather-clad biker from the Village People, they should expect a pink slip. The only scenario worse would be inviting a coworker to a church service and then losing your head and yelling “Amen” while the pastor reads from the 1st chapter of Romans.
Charles Flowers of Faith Outreach rightly observed that “[T]he proposed ordinance includes ‘words’ against sexual orientation or gender identity as discriminatory acts. It allows City Council to prohibit those that speak their religious beliefs regarding homosexuality from serving on city boards.”
Flowers contends that “This violates First Amendment freedom of speech and freedom of religion. … For example, if a person publicly expresses their religious belief that homosexual behavior is a sin — even if this expression is at a church service — that person could be frozen out of involvement with city government.” Precisely!
San Antonio City Councilman Diego Bernal described these proposed ordinances as just “the bare minimum,” suggesting that more changes are forthcoming.
What’s next? Suspension for wearing a crucifix? Being put on unpaid leave for having your car spotted in a church parking lot? Forced into early retirement for refusing to attend the wedding of a gay co-worker? How about staring too long when Sal, the guy in the next cubicle, becomes Sally and arrives for work in red Manolo Blahniks? Where does it end?
Jeannie hosts a blog at www.jeannie-ology.com