Firefighters lose lawsuit over gay pride parade
The Rhode Island Supreme Court recently rejected arguments by two firefighters protesting their involvement in a gay pride parade.
The men claimed their religious rights were violated when they were expected to drive a truck during a parade that occurred in 2001. The firefighters filed suit in 2004, and sought punitive and compensatory damages.
The court found that Theodore Fabrizio and Stephen Deninno's rights were not violated because they were "relatively anonymous" while driving the parade vehicle.
"The respondents' appearance in the parade, solely as members of the Providence Fire Department, did not constitute a form of expression on their part," Justice William Robinson wrote in the court's unanimous decision. "Rather, it was simply the accomplishing of a task assigned to an engine company of the Providence Fire Department."
Fire trucks were also used in the city's Columbus Day parade, Purim parade, and other celebrations. According to their attorney, the men experienced sexual harassment from their co-workers and parade attendees during their shift. The suit named then-Mayor Buddy Cianci and former fire chief James Rattigan as defendants.
Fabrizio and Deninno, who are Catholic, were assigned to the gay pride parade because their engine company was near the parade route. They asked to be reassigned, but their request was denied.
A Christian in Kentucky who refused to support a gay pride event was found guilty of discrimination by the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Human Rights Commission in October.
In 2012, Hands on Originals owner Blaine Adamson was asked to produce gay pride t-shirts for the Gay and Lesbian Services Organisation of Lexington, Kentucky, but declined the order because he felt it conflicted with his religious beliefs.
An unspecified number Hands on Originals employees were ordered to undergo diversity training in the next 12 months, and Adamson was told to stop refusing LGBT t-shirt orders. The business owner retained the Liberty Institute to defend his case, and an appeal on the decision is pending.
