Some pigfucker in Tennessee is taking the anti-gay backlash in the wake of the marriage decision to a new level; he’s announced a no-fag policy in his shitty little business. To no one’s surprise, he invokes God to justify his homophobia:
“They gladly stand for what they believe in — why can’t I?” Amyx told WBLR. “They believe their way is right, I believe it’s wrong — but yet I’m going to take more persecution than them because I’m standing for what I believe in.”
So he placed a “no gays allowed” sign on the front door of his Washburn hardware store and said Monday that he would never take it down.
“A lot of people have called me and congratulated me,” Amyx told WATE-TV. “But other calls are on the other side of spectrum — people calling and threatening me, telling me I would regret this. No, I’ll never regret this.”
In lovely Tennessee, you see, it’s perfectly legal to refuse service based on sexual orientation. They and Arkansas are the only two states that ban nondiscrimination laws. Homosexuals have no specific rights to service at a place of business because so far we lack the courage to fold gay rights into Title II of the Civil Rights Act. It’s a shitty situation that needs attention, and it should remind us of the inherent wrongness of the lunch counter bans of the 60’s.
There is a small victory to be noted here. Even his paying customers were alarmed by the sign:
However, Amyx removed the sign Tuesday and replaced it with another one bearing a revised message at the urging of friends and customers who suggested he make it “a little nicer.”
The new sign reads: “We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone who would violate our rights of freedom of speech and freedom of religion.”
Sadly, he can do that. It’s not against the law to be a horrible person in Tennessee. Until the federal government addresses this issue, there is no limit to jerkoff behavior in the smelly groin area of the United States.
Marriage equality has been achieved. But so much more remains to be done. I’m confident the side of tolerance and acceptance will win in due time. For now, we must take joy in their cries of persecution as the bigots realize that their right to religious belief stops at being able to abridge the fundamental right of any person to achieve life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.