Gay business woman & man apologize to Christian owned pizzeria and donate $200+

[Lion Heart 15,041]

 

 

A gay woman in Indiana has created a stir by coming out in favor of religious liberty, showing public support for Christian-owned Memories Pizza and their decision not to cater gay weddings.

Courtney Hoffman’s $20 donation to the pizzeria was symbolic, but her public stand has been significant.

The pizzeria had to close its doors after receiving a barrage of online threats when the owners said that their religious convictions would prevent them from catering same-s-x weddings. One lesbian high school coach reportedly even tried to incite people to burn down the pizza shop.

As in similar cases, the owners said they gladly serve gay customers but would draw the line at catering a gay wedding.

“As a member of the gay community, I would like to apologize for the mean spirited attacks on you and your business,” Hoffman wrote in the note accompanying her donation.

 

In a remarkable show of popular support, the Christian-owned pizzeria in Walkerton, Indiana, received $842,442 in donations in only five days, sent in by 29,161 different donors. This avalanche of support blew past the initial fundraising goal of $200,000.

The campaign also allowed gay people to disassociate themselves from those attacking religious freedom. While holding a different opinion regarding same-s-x marriage, Hoffman said she supports people’s right to operate their business based on their beliefs.

 

“My girlfriend and I are small business owners, and we think there is a difference between operating in a public market space and then attaching the name of your business to a private event,” Hoffman said in a radio interview. “Like, if we were asked to set up at an anti-gay marriage rally, I mean, we would have to decline.”

Hoffman said the “horrible, hate-filled attacks” against the pizzeria and its Christian owners did not reflect the gay community that she has come to know and love.

“The gay community that we know knows full well what it’s like to be condemned for doing nothing but living your life according to your beliefs,” she added. “We know so many gay individuals that fully support the freedom of living your life according to your beliefs and feel that freedom extends to everyone, even the people that we don’t agree with.”

 

Hoffman’s donation with her accompanying message brought Memories co-owner Crystal O’Connor to tears.

Another gay man, Buz Smith, sent in a $250 donation to the Memories campaign as well, accusing the Democratic leadership of hijacking the gay community and promoting religious intolerance. Other members of the gay community wrote in applauding Hoffman’s gesture and backing up her stance.

http://media.breitbart.com/media/2015/04/Buz-Smith-Tweet.png

Hoffman said that the media attention made her nervous at first, but she was consoled that the responses to her donation were “so positive and amazing.”

“There’s this tendency to group people together — they are either one thing or they are another,” she said. “I just think there’s a lot of room for differences and similarities between all of these businesses, all of these communities, and if we can remember that differences don’t equal maliciousness.”

“Maybe we can move beyond threats of violence and have open discussions of the things that we don’t agree on,” she said.

After seeing how much money was raised by Memories Pizza, Jason Nguyen, an advocate for lesbian, gay, bis-xual and transgender rights, launched a counter-campaign called “Love Is Stronger than Hate.”

Accusing the Memories campaign of promoting “discrimination and intolerance,” Nguyen used the same GoFundMe site that had been so successful for the pizzeria for his own campaign. Nguyen wants to show that he can raise more money than the pizzeria, and posted a goal of $1 million to promote LGBT equality.

Nguyen kicked off the campaign last Friday, but as of Tuesday morning it had only brought in [$713] in donations from 2[4] people. [:rip:]

Follow Thomas D. Williams on Twitter @tdwilliamsrome

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/04/07/gay-woman-apologizes-to-christian-owned-indiana-pizzeria-sends-donation/

 

 

 

 

[Lady Palutena 3,147]

This whole pizzeria business just gets messier and messier

 

[aaronyoji 2,064]

pathetic. its not one's religious right to discriminate against others. 

[Lumi 3,512]

I wonder if black people would have done the same back then when interracial marriage was illegal or when restaurants could decide to not serve people based on their skin color.

This is just 

[Blue Jeans 3,815]

She's outraged at the level of hate and intolerence directed at them ? is this b---h serious

how about the hate and intolerence that lgbt people face everyday and now even more with laws like the indiana one passing.. the hypocrisy

[AM98GJ 3,086]

Is this b---h serious 

someone teach that slug a lesson 

[LoveandMagic 1,731]

Didn't people use religion to argue against interracial marriage or intergration in schools?

[xoxo cupcakke 4,781]

These civilians...

Supporting an overtly zealous Christian pizzeria who turns away people based on their s-xuallity, and a public business being allowed to be homophobic when businesses shouldn't be legally in the United States

[Redstreak 6,653]

Hoffman said she supports people’s right to operate their business based on their beliefs.

 

 

So are we, the common folk, not allowed to criticize that? Are we just supposed to be ok with businesses operating with more rights than we the people who actually put money into the market?

[HANZ 4,380]

mess, not even gays defend themselves, I mean the victims apologizing to homophobic religious freaks?

ok

 

 

 

[Emvee 8,831]

This shouldnt even be a ****ing question in 2015. That business is being homophobic and should face the repercussions just they would for turning away people based on race. 

Homophobes using religion as a shield needs to stop. It should not be legally acceptable. It should not even be optional as a defense. 

[Chic 20,830]

They'll either let the gays in or have their facility be burned down. Either way it'll soon be FLAAAAAAMING

[Dayman 6,251]

I've been silent on this story for quite some time, but I think now is a good time to finally put in my two cents. Everyone is entitled to their own beliefs - even if they go against yours. You can't have good without evil - everything has its equal but opposite force, that's what gives us balance. Her quote her is very pivotal in showing why she chose to support their business.

“My girlfriend and I are small business owners, and we think there is a difference between operating in a public market space and then attaching the name of your business to a private event,” Hoffman said in a radio interview. “Like, if we were asked to set up at an anti-gay marriage rally, I mean, we would have to decline.”

You can't win by attacking someones beliefs - you win by turning them to your way of thinking on their own accord. By attacking and berating them they just see hate directed towards them and it reaffirms their decision - but by seeing people like this actually supporting them, than maybe they will view things in a different light.

Reach out with compassion - not with hate.

[Vernier 3,786]

The worst people are the kind who fight against themselves  

[PoshLife 17,019]

I've been silent on this story for quite some time, but I think now is a good time to finally put in my two cents. Everyone is entitled to their own beliefs - even if they go against yours. You can't have good without evil - everything has its equal but opposite force, that's what gives us balance. Her quote her is very pivotal in showing why she chose to support their business.

“My girlfriend and I are small business owners, and we think there is a difference between operating in a public market space and then attaching the name of your business to a private event,” Hoffman said in a radio interview. “Like, if we were asked to set up at an anti-gay marriage rally, I mean, we would have to decline.”

You can't win by attacking someones beliefs - you win by turning them to your way of thinking on their own accord. By attacking and berating them they just see hate directed towards them and it reaffirms their decision - but by seeing people like this actually supporting them, than maybe they will view things in a different light.

Reach out with compassion - not with hate.

​how easy for you to express your opinion once someone else already did it for you. I have no reason to believe this is even what you think, you're just piggybacking off someone else's words. How very brave of you...