Christian homophobe loses appeal

Lillian Ladele has lost her case before an employment appeals tribunal (EAT). Not a good day for her, but a good one for human rights and dignity.

She is the Islington, London, registrar who wouldn’t splice same-sex couples. See our last blog entry here, with links in it to others.

Basically, she’s a Christian – of the slightly nuttier end of Christianity – and has this notion that her god doesn’t like poofs. So she refused to do the job she was paid to do. Yes, the job description changed mid-tenure when civil partnerships were introduced into the UK, but things have a habit of changing, including the nature of one's job. Her job was to join people together in legal partnerships. All that changed was that another sort of partnership became legally recognised.

This is what Pink News has to say:

Lillian Ladele previously won a tribunal case against Islington Council, claiming religious discrimination after she refused to carry out civil partnerships as part of her duties as a registrar.

The council decided to go to the EAT, a decision supported by [the gay-rights group] Stonewall and human rights group Liberty.

The EAT said the original tribunal had erred in law. But get this: “We are absolutely delighted that our prayers have been answered,” said Ben Summerskill, chief executive of Stonewall.

Prayers? Were they actually praying? Here they are knocking the fact that someone has used religion to discriminate, and they’re talking of prayers to her god? Bizarre.

Ladele’s case had been bankrolled by the rabidly homophobic Christian Institute, whose director, Colin Hart, is quoted as saying, “Gay rights are not the only rights. If this decision is allowed to stand it will help squeeze out Christians from the public sphere because of their religious beliefs on ethical issues.”

No it won’t, you berk. It will mean Christians won’t be able to use their choice of superstition to avoid doing what’s right for all their clients and not just those they think are morally superior, that’s all. All they have to do is dump the superstition and grow up.