Do Businesses Have the Right to Refuse Service Based on Moral/Religious Objections?

[Miss Scarlett]

I voted yes as well. If you want to deny someone's right (we're NOT talking about government agencies here) to decide with whom they want to transact business because you do not agree with whatever their reason you best be willing to accept the same for yourself.

Every firm I have worked for has turned away clients for various reasons. We owe no one an explanation why they are turned away.

It's as simple as this - if you don't like what they stand for then don't patronize their establishment.

[Blade]

Well I think that is depends on the business. I think someone offering a service...like a florist should be able to decline service to anyone they wish. I don't think they owe anyone an explanation.

Now if they declined someone and told them their decision was based on a moral or religious issue then I'd say they were pretty shallow.

[Random]

Just to play devils advocate...


You have a flower shop...

You have someone wanting to order table pieces... 100 of them, let's say...

They want the center pieces to have icons that you find offensive(insert the confederate flag or the swastica or some other sybol) as the main feature...

Do you take the order or do you refuse on principle?

If you refuse the order because it offends your principle or your belief system, then how can you deny someone else that right?

For me....

If I want the right to live my principles, then I have to extend the same privilage to someone who doesn't believe the same as I do...

UNLESS...

You take goverment money.... If you receive goverment money for your business... If you have a contract with my goverment, then you don't get to live your principles...

[Toughy]

If the business, club, organization, not-for-profit, religious group receives ANY money from local, state or federal entities and/or ANY tax breaks from any government entity, they cannot refuse to provide services/goods to anyone for any reason (except for health/safety laws).

Religious groups are free to use 'against my religion' for whatever they want, however they cannot be a non-profit. Not-for-profit status is a tax break. I do not believe this is against the 1st Amendment as it does not infringe on religious freedom.

[Rockinonahigh]

I voted yes,because ive run a buisness before that had me or my employees going to diffrent farms to pick up horses for transport.If a farm had unrully dogs or horses that were hard to load,unmannered or the employees of the farm rude to my drivers not to mention unsafe,I wouldnt do buisness with them.I also told my drivers if they felt uncomfortable in anyway going anywhere or after they got to the place to get in the cab..call me or if needed (a judgement call for the driver)just dont stop or turn around and leave.I kept a record of every place I did buisness with,the good..bad & ugly of them all.I stated on my contract about my drivers safty comeing first.

[betenoire]

I feel like people are misunderstanding the question or something.

CLEARLY there is a pretty big difference between your physical safety in the workplace (IE - not working in an environment where you could be injured or killed) and just not feeling like providing service to someone because they are gay.

There are laws in place (at least in Canada, I don't know if the US has a workplace safety act or anything) that protect us from having to do things in the course of our jobs that will put us at personal physical risk.

But, again, nobody has ever lost an eye or broken an arm from selling flowers to a gay couple. I mean, seriously? Apples. Oranges.

[Arwen]

Absolutely a business owner has the right to refuse service.

This is why I can tell people no, I won't read for them because they are hateful, etc.

[DomnNC]

The question was NOT about refusing service to gay people exclusively. The question was:

Do you think a business has the right to refuse service based on moral/religious beliefs?

No where does it state it was exclusive to gay people, that was just the example provided!

[Soon]

Originally Posted by Arwen

Absolutely a business owner has the right to refuse service.

This is why I can tell people no, I won't read for them because they are hateful, etc.

It is not about denying someone service based on their bad behaviour.

We are talking about people being denied services for WHO and WHAT they are.

Being a bigot is a choice--being queer is not. For the most part, it is an immutable or ingrained characteristic.

The government does not make someone serve a customer because of poor behaviour; however, the government has decided that people must be served due to a host of other categories.

But some think that queer people should NOT be entitled to services based solely on an owner`s moral and religious objections...I just don`t see how it is different from any other already protected classes and I really can`t get on the same page as LGBT folks being compared to some customer`s shitty attitudes.

[Ebon]

Originally Posted by betenoire

Well, you know. Regardless of how I feel about it - this shop owner DID break the law. It's illegal in her province to refuse business based on race, religion, or sexual orientation. It just is.

This is VERY different from the Knights of Columbus refusing to rent out their hall. The whole point of the Knights of Columbus is that they are a religious organisation, so they are protected (just like a church is protected). A flower shop is not a church. A flower shop is not a religious organisation. Perhaps if she wants to run it like it is a church she needs to rename her shop to "Daisies for Jesus!" or something like that.

Daisies for Jesus. lol

I have nothing important to add except business owners should have the right to refuse people but for reasons based on the persons actions not based on anything else like sexual orientation, race, religion etc...

[betenoire]

Originally Posted by Ebon

Daisies for Jesus. lol

I have nothing important to add except business owners should have the right to refuse people but for reasons based on the persons actions not based on anything else like sexual orientation, race, religion etc...

Agreed. You show up drunk - you don't get served. You have bad credit - you don't get a loan. You have no shirt on - you're gross and no you cannot have fries.

But you show up gay - no flowers for you? That's wrong.

[suebee]

Moncton is in the Bible belt. The ABC - Atlantic Baptist College is located there. Even if they discriminate they won't run out of customers. HOWEVER, bottom line - if it's not okay to say "we won't serve Jews/blacks/Muslims/women/Indians/redheaded people/foreigners/French-speaking people/long-haired hippie-freaks", it's NOT okay to say you won't serve homosexuals. And besides - it's against the law here.
I hope somebody sues the crap out of the store owner. I live here, and I want my rights - entrenched in our Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and recognized by the Supreme Court of Canada, to be respected. MY God loves me just the way She made me thankyouverymuch.