We’ve heard it before. A vendor refuses service to a same-sex couple, quoting religion as the reason for their decision. But in a particular case of a Washington florist, it goes much deeper than that.
Robert Ingersoll and his fiance, Curt, had been coming to Arlene’s Flower Shop in Richland, Wash., for nearly a decade. The owner, Barronelle Stuzman, had helped them select flowers for birthdays and anniversaries for years. It was only natural to head to their go-to flower shop to decorate the most important day of their life: their wedding.
“He said he decided to get married, and before he got through I grabbed his hand and said, ‘I am sorry. I can’t do your wedding because of my relationship with Jesus Christ,’” Stutzman told KEPRTV. “We hugged each other and he left, and I assumed that was the end of the story,” she said.
But the rejection from Stutzman, who Ingersoll considered a friend, wore heavy on his heart. “It really hurt because it was somebody I knew,” he told the Tri-City Herald. “We laid awake all night Saturday. It was eating at our souls. There was never a question she’d be the one to do our flowers. She does amazing work.”
Devastated, Ingersoll posted about it online, where it instantly went viral in the tri-city area. “It hit Facebook and it exploded,” Stutzman said. Her company’s Facebook page, which had 166 likes, suddenly began receiving hundreds of comments and messages, some condemning and others applauding her decision.
She later posted:
“I believe, biblically, that marriage is between a man and a woman. That is my conviction, yours may be different. I have hired all walks of people in different circumstances, and had the privilege of working with some very talented people that happen to be gay. I’m sure there are many places you can purchase flowers, if you choose not to purchase them from Arlene’s, because of your beliefs, then I certainly understand.”
What she clearly doesn’t realize is that this decision goes beyond personal belief … it goes against the law. A spokeswoman for the state Attorney General’s office told the Herald that Washington law doesn’t allow discrimination based on sexual orientation, as long as the same service is provided to a straight couple.
“Washington’s anti-discrimination law would not allow the florist to discriminate against the same-sex couple,” the office said in a statement. “If they sell wedding flowers to any other opposite-sex couple, they must sell flowers to a same-sex couple.”
Regardless of her treatment of him and his fiance, Ingersoll still hates seeing the online storm that this story has brewed, for everyone involved. “I’m not a crusader. I’m not an activist. I’m not someone who wants to be in the limelight but it’s kind of pushed [me] there,” he said. “We’re both passionate about seeing people succeed and that nobdoy should be hurt or in pain. This is one of those things—it’s very hurtful. I probably haven’t felt this much pain since I was in high school and people called me names, and I’m 42.”
