[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/minnesota-christian-couples-lawsuit-over-same-sex-wedding-videos-revived\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/minnesota-christian-couples-lawsuit-over-same-sex-wedding-videos-revived\/","headline":"Minnesota Christian couple\u2019s lawsuit over same-sex wedding videos revived\u00a0","name":"Minnesota Christian couple\u2019s lawsuit over same-sex wedding videos revived\u00a0","description":"A federal appeals court has reinstated a Minnesota couple\u2019s lawsuit seeking the right to deny filming same-sex weddings because it goes against their religious beliefs.","datePublished":"2019-08-27","dateModified":"2019-08-27","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/author\/dyanabagby\/#Person","name":"Dyana Bagby","url":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/author\/dyanabagby\/","identifier":6804,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6113dc70f8e9f2874f060d5614918858f6d7357006a1352bd763ab372ca336f9?s=96&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6113dc70f8e9f2874f060d5614918858f6d7357006a1352bd763ab372ca336f9?s=96&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Equally Wed","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"http:\/\/equallywed.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/equally-wed-lgbtq-weddings-logo.jpg","url":"http:\/\/equallywed.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/equally-wed-lgbtq-weddings-logo.jpg","width":218,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/christian-videographers-against-same-sex-weddings.jpg","url":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/christian-videographers-against-same-sex-weddings.jpg","height":1086,"width":1929},"url":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/minnesota-christian-couples-lawsuit-over-same-sex-wedding-videos-revived\/","about":["Marriage Equality News","News"],"wordCount":846,"keywords":[" homophobia","discrimination","laws","Minnesota","same-sex weddings"],"articleBody":"A federal appeals court has reinstated a Minnesota couple\u2019s lawsuit seeking the right to deny filming same-sex weddings because it goes against their religious beliefs. The couple is suing the state saying its human rights law that prohibits discrimination by public businesses from discriminating against various minority groups, including LGBTQ+ people, violates their First Amendment right to free speech.A three-judge panel of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in a split decision Aug. 23 overruled a lower court decision\u2019s that threw out the lawsuit two years ago. The lower court must now consider the First Amendment argument.Angel and Carl Larsen are suing their state because they don’t want to film same-sex weddings.Photo via Alliance for Defending FreedomCarl and Angel Larsen, who operate a Christian film and videography business, sued Minnesota Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero in 2016 saying they feared the \u201cstate\u2019s public accommodations law could hit them with steep fines or jail time if they offered services promoting only their vision of marriage\u201d between a man and a woman, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune newspaper.\u00a0Judge David Stras, writing for the 2-1 majority, stated in part that the First Amendment allows the Larsens \u201cto choose when to speak and what to say\u201d including when it comes to making the videos they want to make.\u00a0\u201cTheir videos of \u2018healthy stories of sacrificial love and commitment between a man and a woman,\u2019 depict marriage as a divinely ordained covenant, and oppose the \u2018current cultural narratives about marriage with which [the Larsens] disagree,\u201d Stras added. \u201cThe videos themselves are, in a word, speech.\u201d\u00a0Judge Jane Kelly in the dissent described the decision as a “major step backward” in “this country’s long and difficult journey to combat all forms of discrimination,\u201d according to the Star Tribune.\u00a0In her dissent, she wrote, \u201cWhat [the Larsens] cannot do is operate a public accommodation that serves customers of one sexual orientation but not others. And make no mistake, that is what [this] decision affords them license to do.\u00a0\u201cThe Larsens concede that they want to operate a public accommodation that serves only opposite-sex couples. Minnesota\u2019s law prohibits that conduct just as it would prohibit any hotel from denying its services to an individual based on race, any store from refusing to sell goods to a person based on religion, or any restaurant from charging higher prices to women than to men,\u201d Kelly stated.\u00a0\u00a0RELATED: Supreme Court Justice says marriage equality should be overturnedLucero issued a statement on the federal appeals court decision, saying the Minnesota Department of Human Rights is now working with the Minnesota Attorney General\u2019s Office to \u201cexplore all legal options.\u201d\u00a0\u201cMinnesota is not in the business of creating second-class community members in our state,\u201d Lucero said in the statement. \u201cTime and again, Minnesotans have chosen love and inclusion in our communities in order to build a state where our laws lift up our beautiful and complex identities, not hold them down.\u201dAttorney General Keith Ellison said in a statement that the federal appeals court\u2019s decision \u201cmarks a shocking reversal of Minnesota\u2019s evolution toward equality for LGBTQ people,\u201d according to Minnesota Public Radio.\u00a0\u201cWith this perversion of the First Amendment,\u00a0the majority sanctions a policy of \u2018No gays allowed,\u2019\u201d\u00a0Ellison said.\u00a0\u201cA ruling that lets a business discriminate against LGBTQ folks today would let it discriminate on the basis of religion,\u00a0race,\u00a0gender,\u00a0ability or any other category it chooses tomorrow.\u201d\u00a0The Larsens are represented by the anti-LGBTQ+ Alliance Defending Freedom nonprofit organization, a Christian legal group considered the largest in the nation and is well-known for challenging LGBTQ+ equality laws.In a statement through ADF, Carl Larsen praised the court of appeals decision.\u00a0\u201cAngel and I serve everyone. We just can\u2019t produce films promoting every message,\u201d Carl Larsen said.\u00a0\u201cWe are thankful the court recognized that government officials can\u2019t force religious believers to violate their beliefs to pursue their passion. This is a win for everyone, regardless of your beliefs,\u201d he added.The ADF has been labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. During ADF\u2019s approximate 25-year history the group has continuously fought against LGBTQ+ equality laws, including supporting and representing people and groups who seek to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people \u201cunder the guise of religious freedom,\u201d according to the Human Rights Campaign.\u00a0ADF also has support from the highest ranks of the White House administration. Vice President Mike Pence spoke Aug. 6 to the organization in Virginia, praising the legal organization\u2019s work in protecting so-called \u201creligious freedom.\u201d\u00a0\u201cAs you know well, we\u2019ve taken action to protect the freedom of speech in places of worship, and we\u2019ve restored federal enforcement of our nation\u2019s conscience laws,\u201d Pence said.\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019ve taken action to protect the conscience rights of doctors and nurses and health care providers. We\u2019ve also gone to court to protect the right to religious expression in the public square.\u00a0And the Alliance Defending Freedom has been there every step of the way,\u201d Pence said.\u00a0 "},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Minnesota Christian couple\u2019s lawsuit over same-sex wedding videos revived\u00a0","item":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/minnesota-christian-couples-lawsuit-over-same-sex-wedding-videos-revived\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]