Black Community News News and Commentary for Christians
Print shop owner Blaine Adamson of Kentucky serves all kinds of customers. One of the services he provides at Hands on Originals is printing messages on T-shirts. After he declined to print messages on shirts celebrating “gay pride,” a homosexual organization complained to a so-called human rights commission.
The case went to court, and Adamson won in the circuit court and on appeal. The plaintiffs sought a hearing before the Kentucky Supreme Court. That court heard arguments last Friday. Now, Adamson must wait to find out whether the state’s highest court will protect his freedom to conduct his business in accordance with his faith.
In the video below, Adamson said he referred the customers to a different print shop that would do the “gay pride” shirts at the same price, but the homosexual group complained anyway. The obvious point was to make an example of Adamson and get the government to punish him for disapproving of the homosexual lifestyle.
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), Adamson’s legal counsel, reported that Adamson received 13 amicus briefs, including one from Governor Matt Bevin.
“Blaine serves everyone; he just doesn’t print all messages. In fact, Blaine has printed materials for a lesbian musician who performed at Lexington’s 2012 Pride Festival. It’s all about the message that Blaine is asked to print; he’s not concerned with the person who requests it,” said [ADF Senior Counsel Jim] Campbell. “Upholding Blaine’s rights protects freedom of speech for everyone. That’s why he has received public support from lesbians who own a print shop in New Jersey and don’t want the government to force them to print messages they disagree with.”
Two lower courts ruled that Adamson didn’t discriminate against homosexuals for refusing to print a message he opposed and that the government can’t force him to print such messages. Will the Kentucky Supreme Court concur?
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