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| Kirsten Powers |
In her acerbic commentary for USA Today, "Jim Crow laws for gays and
lesbians," Kirsten Powers rails against Kansans
considering a bill to prohibit coercing people into performing marriage
ceremonies or providing adoption or business services that are "contrary
to sincerely held religious beliefs" "regarding sex or gender."
Citing the Bible and several pastors, Powers argues that Christians should love
and serve everyone regardless of sexual preference, suggesting that unchristian
bigots who decline to bake cakes for or take photos of same-sex weddings
deserve no protection for contrary convictions.
Yet our 1st Amendment guarantees that even if your
beliefs do not comport with the Bible, even if your conscience goes against the
current of the culture, the government must not compel you to violate your
convictions. Americans' commitment to conscience is so strong that we do not
even force conscientious objectors to join the Army when the nation is at war.
Nor do we force Catholic physicians to participate in the death penalty, or
Jewish deli owners to serve pork barbecue, or commercial photographers who
support animal rights to supply shots for fur coat ads.
How ironic it would be to turn a wedding won through a
campaign for "equality and freedom" into an event of subjection and
coercion.
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