An engaged lesbian couple say they are shocked and humiliated after being denied a pre-booked room at a Whangarei lodge, where one of the owners said allowing them to share a bed would offend her religious beliefs.
In a case Green MP Kevin Hague describes as ‘appalling’, couple Jane and Paula had to travel another 50 kilometres to find somewhere else to stay.
While the bigots - the Pilgrim Planet Lodge in Whangarei - hid behind religion, freedom of religion is not freedom to discriminate. There is no exemption for religious belief from the legal requirement to provide goods and services without discrimination in the Human Rights Act. Hopefully their victims will complain to the Human Rights Commission so the bigots can be properly educated about the error of their ways.