Sir Patrick Stewart Defends Irish Christian Bakers v. Gay Activists

Tyler McNally | June 8, 2015
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During an interview on BBC's Newsnight, actor Sir Patrick Stewart came to the defense of Irish Christian bakers who were fined £500 - approximately $763.97 in U.S. dollars - for refusing to bake a cake decorated with the words "Support Gay Marriage."

A long-time gay rights advocate, Stewart said that the owners of Ashers Bakery were within their rights to refuse service as the message the gay couple requested to be written on their cake was "offensive" to the bakers' religious beliefs. 

"Finally, I found myself on the side of the bakers," he said.

"It was not because it was a gay couple who objected. It was not because they were celebrating some kind of marriage, or agreement between them. It was the words on the cake that they objected to," Stewart explained.

"And because they found them offensive, I would support their right to say, ' no, this is personally offensive to my beliefs - I will not do it.'"

The X-Men star shocked his interviewer with his remarks, as well as several gay rights proponents who expressed their outrage via social media.

An Irish judge ruled that the bakers were guilty of "direct discrimination for which there can be no justification" regardless of their "genuinely-held religious beliefs. 

"My finding is that the defendants canceled this order as they oppose same-sex marriage for the reason that they regard it as sinful and contrary to their genuinely-held religious beliefs," the judge wrote.

"The defendants are not a religious organisation," the court reasoned. "They are conducting a business for profit and, notwithstanding their genuine religious beliefs, there are no exceptions available under the 2006 regulations which apply to this case."

Stewart defended his statement in support of the bakers on his Facebook page after many critics accused him of going back on his stance in favor of gay marriage. 

"Both equality and freedom of speech are fundamental rights," he said, "and this case underscores how we need to ensure one isn’t compromised in the pursuit of the other."

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The McArthur family who own Ashers Bakery are set to appeal the court's decision. 

"We don't want to be forced to promote a cause which is against our biblical beliefs," the bakery's general manager Daniel McArthur said

"We've had a lot of support from people who disagree with our stance on same-sex marriage. They think that we should have the freedom to decline an order that conflicts with our conscience."

H/T Uproxx

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