Christian printer readies for court battle
OTTAWA, ON–Gay rights advocates and a coalition of conservative Christian groups are on another legal collision course, this time over the issue of whether business owners have a right to refuse work if it conflicts with their religious beliefs.
John Fisher, executive director of the Ottawa-based gay rights group Equality for Gays and Lesbians Everywhere (EGALE), says he will pull together a coalition of gay and lesbian groups, organizations advocating on behalf of racial minorities and others to counter the intervention of the Canadian Religious Freedom Alliance (CRFA) in the case of Christian printer Scott Brockie.
Brockie, president of Imaging Excellence Incorporated of Toronto, was found guilty by the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) for discriminating against gays and lesbians for refusing to print promotional material for the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives. Brockie argued the material promoted a lifestyle that conflicted with his evangelical beliefs and appealed the OHRC's $5,000 fine to the Ontario Divisional Court.
Fisher says that allowing an individual or company to refuse to provide services to gays and lesbians for any reason will render the entire Ontario Human Rights Code meaningless. He says his group is particularly concerned about the potential negative impact on gays and lesbians in smaller communities that have limited options for services.
EGALE's decision comes on the heels of the release by CRFA outlining its legal arguments in the case, which will be heard December 5-7. The alliance, which includes the Catholic Civil Rights League, Christian Legal Fellowship and the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, says business owners should not be required to provide services that support causes to which they conscientiously object, particularly for religious reasons.
The case originated in April 1996 when Ray Brillinger of the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives lodged a complaint with the OHRC after Brockie refused a printing job for the archives–which engages in public education of gay and lesbian issues–on the basis that it would promote a lifestyle in conflict with his religious views.
Brockie maintains he has other gay clients and accepts their business because their work does not actively promote homosexuality.
OHRC adjudicator Heather McNaughton ruled that what Brockie "is not free to do, when he enters the public marketplace and offers services to the public in Ontario, is to practice his beliefs in a manner that discriminates against lesbians and gays by denying them a service that is available to everyone else."
Ruth Ross, executive director of Christian Legal Fellowship, says the ruling suggested that Brockie should not be allowed to take his faith beyond home and church and contravenes his right to freedom of religion and conscience.
"This case takes the whole question of conscience one step further," says Ross. "Religious freedom was given a positive interpretation in the Trinity Western case and we hope the court [in the Brockie case] will see it that way, too."
The Supreme Court of Canada ruled in May that the British Columbia College of Teachers could not ban graduates from Trinity Western University, an evangelical university in Langley, B.C., from teaching in that province's public schools because the university asked students to agree to refrain from certain practices, including homosexual behaviour, while enrolled at TWU.
Brockie says that he will take his case to the Supreme Court if necessary to defend his right to freedom of religion and conscience. He says he has received tremendous moral and financial support from his church, Erindale Bible Chapel in Mississauga, Ontario, and from individuals across Canada.
"A lot of people who don't share my religious convictions have called and supported the cause," says Brockie. "This (case) impacts more than just faith groups."
Dear Readers:
ChristianWeek relies on your generous support. please take a minute and donate to help give voice to stories that inform, encourage and inspire.
Donations of $20 or more will receive a charitable receipt.Thank you, from Christianweek.
