Secularist’s at the Freedom From Religion Foundation are reaping what they’ve sown

By Seth Richardson

It seems the FFRF has it’s panties in a twist because a bunch of Rhode Island florists refused to take their money to deliver flowers to Jessica Ahlquist, a teenage Secularist and First Amendment activist who succeeded in having a religious banner removed from her Rhode Island high school.

The Blaze reports on the controversy:

…According to FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor, Twins Florist, one of the businesses that refused to deliver, violated the Civil Rights Act when the business discriminated based on Ahlquist’s atheism. Gaylor released the receipt order from the florist, which reads, “I will not deliver to this person.”…

Gaylor goes on to claim:

“We have basic civil rights standards in our society. A business can‘t shun you because you’re an atheist,” the atheist leader said. “You do not have the right to refuse to do business with someone based on categories and that includes religion. It‘s as if they said ’I will not deliver to a black person.’”

Problem is, Ahlquist is not black, the florists didn’t refuse to deliver to her because she’s black or because she’s an atheist, they refused to trade with the FFRF because it’s an activist Secularist organization and they refused to deliver to Ahlquist because she is a Secularist political activist. It’s not illegal for a business to discriminate based on political categorization. It’s perfectly legal for a business to refuse to serve Democrats, or Progressives or Communists…or Secularists.

The Civil Rights Act says that everyone shall be entitled to “full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations of any place of public accommodation, without discrimination or segregation on the ground of race, color, religion, or national origin.” Nothing is said about political discrimination, however. Moreover, according to the definitions found in 42 U.S.C. §2000, a florist’s shop is not a “place of public accommodation” covered by federal law to begin with.

Ahlquist’s objection to the banner in her high school was based on constitutional First Amendment Establishment Clause legal principles, and therefor her claim was a secular political argument (and a fully-justifiable one) about the appropriateness of the clearly religious banner being displayed in a public school. Since secularism is not a religion and Ahlquist’s political Secularist activism does not fall under the protection of the Civil Rights Act, business owners are free to refuse to serve her, or the FFRF, which is equally a Secularist political activist organization, if they wish.

So, Ms. Gaylor is simply wrong and people have every right to discriminate against and shun Secularists, just like they can discriminate against and shun Progressives, Communists or Marxists based on any category they choose other than those specifically listed in the Civil Rights Act.

Such “category” discrimination is called “freedom of (dis)association” and it’s guaranteed by the First Amendment as a right to each and every individual, including Rhode Island florists.

© 2012 Altnews

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