ACL wants legal right for businesses to discriminate against gay couples

More hate from the christians.....

Albeit an interesting turn of events. The Australian Christian Lobby (ie. Arch Nemesis) is crowdfunding an offshoot of itself, the seed money coming from the ACL itself. An organisation (from what I can see) mirrored on the US Alliance Defending Freedom which has lawyers funded by them to take on cases where businesses refuse services to same sex couple on religious grounds. BTW the Alliance Defending Freedom was the group that Abbott went over and spoke at as a guest, putting shit on teh gayz. The Australian version is called the Human Rights Law Alliance. Typical christian doublespeak of course.

Why have they coughed up money and are asking like minded christian maniacs to crowd fund the thing? Because if gay marriage happens. Very interesting that IMO. I'd consider that a sign that the ACL can see the writing on the wall and finally come to the realisation that marriage equality in Australia is inevitable.

I don't see particularly why a company in Australia would want to turn away business though. Australia is a much more secularist nation than the US. Mainstream Australia simply doesn't care about your sexuality and businesses are in business to do business, simple as that. It would be a very big business PR disaster in Australia to be publicly wanting to discriminate against gay people, and the business would find little support at all from the great majority of the community. Simply, it would make no business sense to do so. Quite the reverse.

“That could happen but to be quite honest, same-sex couples would want [their wedding] to be a happy time and smart business people will go after their trade. Personally, I don’t think they’d want to prove a point.” 

Cocks said it remained open to a “conservative-minded government” to pass a law to allow refusal on the grounds of opposition to marriage equality. 

Among the 12 or more cases currently funded by HRLA is the defence of Melbourne anti-abortion activist and mother of 13, Kathy Clubb, who was charged in August under new Victorian laws banning protests near abortion clinics. 

The HRLA is also involved in cases of “doctor’s conscience” before the Medical Board of Australia, as well as out-of-court negotiations over alleged cases of religious discrimination in workplaces and a university. 

Iles declined to say whether the HRLA had gained the assistance of prominent legal figures among the five or so lawyers working on its cases pro bono or cheaply. 

“Exactly who helps out will become clear because those cases will come to light,” he said. 

Iles has indicated the HRLA sees itself as filling a void left by the Australian Human Rights Commission and human rights legal centres, which it believes have neglected to uphold freedom of religion, speech, conscience and association. 

Its agenda has prompted scepticism from others in human rights advocacy, with lawyer Duncan Fine accusing the HRLA of believing “the worst discrimination imaginable is to curtail their right to discriminate”. The Guardian