ARKANSAS: Fayetteville Votes Today On Repeal Of LGBT Rights Ordinance

Back in August, we all watched into the wee hours of the morning as the Fayetteville City Council endured ten hours of vicious and ugly public comments before approving its LGBT rights ordinance by a 6-2 vote. Anti-gay groups and local churches immediately launched a petition campaign to put the issue to public vote, which is happening today.

Last month the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce issued a unanimous endorsement of the ordinance's repeal. As it turns out, that group is headed by former Arkansas Attorney General Steve Clark, who was driven from office after being convicted of fraud. Purely by coincidence, Clark's son-in-law is one of the two Fayetteville councilmen who voted against the ordinance. Also backing the repeal, of course, is the Alliance Defending Freedom.

"Passing laws that guarantee special protections for some but punish others is a reckless avoidance of this duty," said Kellie Fiedorek, ADF litigation staff counsel, in an email interview with BP. "If this ordinance is enacted, people of all backgrounds and beliefs would be forced to accept, endorse and even promote government-dictated messages, ideas and events, even if they violate their deepest convictions. "Fayetteville is already a diverse and tolerant place: the government should not use its power to coerce any Arkansan, under threat of punishment, to surrender his or her constitutionally protected freedoms," Fiedorek said. "Coercion is not an American value."

Fiedorek, you may recall, is the lying liar who started the lie that Christians were being threatened with prison for not baking gay wedding cakes. Yesterday a local church posted the below video in which the speaker declares that Fayetteville's LGBT rights ordinance was "conceived" by accused HRC co-founder Terry Bean. Seriously. According to the clip's description, several "Terrence Bean operatives" had infiltrated the meeting. Seriously.