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Brooklynn Early
John Kubler
English 114A
17 September 2013
The Underdogs Become the Bullies: Members of the Gay community Harass Devout Christian
and Friend
The fight for gay couples to share the union of marriage and be recognized by the state has
not been an easy or ending fight, just as the struggle for individuals to exercise their religious
freedom has not been either. In recent years, even till today, the two have clashed. There have
been many controversies over religious freedom, like the Hobby Lobby case in which the judge
ruled in favor of the CEO of Hobby Lobby to not have to allow free access of contraceptives to
female employees through the health care offered because it burdens their religious beliefs as well
as the finances of the company. Barronelle Stutzman, the owner of Arlenes Flower Shop is
being sued professionally and personally for not providing services for a gay couples wedding.
Barronelle Stutzman believes that marriage is a sacred union ordained by God between a
man and a woman, despite her beliefs, she has been good friends with Rob Ingersoll (a member of
the gay community) for almost a decade and has provided services to him. When Rob was ready to
marry his spouse (a man), he of course wanted his good friend Barronelle to do the flowers for his
wedding, who had to politely decline. Soon after that, she was targeted by the Attorney General
and is being sued professionally and personally for not providing her services to Rob Ingersoll on
his special day. There are a lot of things that make this case unique, which is why the court has not
made a decision yet.
This case is no longer about expressing individuality or exercising religion, it has become
merely an opportunity for the Gay community to target and harass Barronelle in order to get the

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outcome they desire, which is not right. Denny Burk, a professor of biblical studies at Boyce
College and pastor of Kenwood Baptist Church puts his beliefs aside and reminds us that If she
loses, she could lose her shop and her livelihood, all of this for the crime of obeying her
conscience, the Attorney general has went to extreme measures to make an example out of
Barronelle ( Burk ). Speaking of the Attorney General, he has been unprofessional by harassing
Barronelle, which Dale Schowengerdt, the senior legal counsel of the Alliance Defending
Freedom commented on by asserting that the attorney general has acted inappropriately by trying
to intimidate Barronelle through his lawsuit, though she remains to stay strong in her faith
(Florist to Court Dismiss Wash.AGs attack on religious freedom).
I would recommend that the judges vote in favor of Barronelle because there are
alternatives for the couple to still be accompany on their wedding day and also because forcing
Barronelle to go against her religion is not the last restrictive means of solving this issue . There
are other florist that can accommodate Ingersoll and even Barronelles attorney, Kristen Waggoner
said that there are lots of florists in the Tri-City area, theres like three pages in the yellow pages
of florists that could have served the couple, so that goes to show that the couple is simply trying
to inconvenience Barronelle (The Barronelle Stutzman Story Video 5:04) .Im not implying that
the gay couple has to settle for less because of their sexual orientation, I am simply implying that
it is not worth a friend of nine years to lose everything she treasures and furthermore, if Ingersoll
was really the friend Barronelle thought he was, he would respect her decision to stay true to her
religion. You are probably wondering if it is legal to refuse services based on sexual orientation,
which the nations most supported news source regarding the LGBTQ community added that
under state law, its illegal for businesses to refuse to sell goods, and services to any person
because of their sexual orientation and in the same setting, the source asserted that Stutzman has
no problem with homosexual customers, so its her beliefs that restrict her from providing

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services to Ingersoll ( Judge Combines Lawsuit Against Florist Who Refused Flowers For Gay
Wedding). Although, gay marriage has been legalized in many states, everyone does not agree
with it and most importantly everyone cannot be forced to agree with it if they dont want to and
in America, the government is supposed to protect freedom, not use intolerance to intimidate
citizens to acting contrary to their faith because at that point it becomes a dictatorship if no one is
allowed to have contrary views (Florist to Court Dismiss Wash.AGs attack on religious
freedom). Just like the baker in Colorado that did not want to make a wedding cake for a gay
couple because it was against his beliefs the State is trying to coerce her (Barronelle) into
participating in gay weddings (Burk).
Lastly, it is not ok for the gay community to bully those that dont completely agree with
their lifestyle. I sympathize with Barronelle for being attacked as a tactic to suede her into
compromising her beliefs and on the other hand, I sympathize with Ingersoll who wanted his
friend to be a part of his special day. At the end of the video about Barronelles story, she tears up
and says that she has come to an understanding of what it really means to follow Christ. Both
parties beliefs should not be forced on the other and a nine year friendship should not have been
broken.

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Works Cited
Alliance Defending Freedom.The Barronelle Stutzman Story.Online video.youtube.Youtube,16
March.2014.Web.17 September.2014
Burk,Denny.The Barronelle Stutzman Story.dennyburk.com.13 March.2014.Web.17
September.2014
Florist to Court Dismiss Wash.AGs attack on religious freedom.adfmedia.org.28
October.2013.Web.17 September.2014
Judge Combines Lawsuits Against Florist Who Refused Flowers for Gay
Wedding.lgbtqnation.com.29 June.2013.Web.17 September.2014