Anti-Gay Pastor May Hand Out Christian Lit
Anti-Gay Pastor May Hand Out Christian Lit
(CN) - The city of Pensacola, Fla., has until July 12 to answer claims that it unlawfully prevented an an evangelical pastor and his congregants from distributing Christian literature at a June 2012 gay pride event.
Bill Adams, senior pastor of Smyrna Baptist Church in Pensacola, Fla., distributed religious-themed calendars and tracts with members of his congregation at the city's annual Pride Festival in the Park in June 2012.
The free event in the city's Seville Square is sponsored by Gay Grassroots of Northwest Florida, and celebrates the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community.
Although Adams gave the material to "anyone who was willing to take it" and tried "not to be obnoxious or annoying about it," members of the Gay-rights advocacy group told him to stop, since it had a rule that any festival literature-distributors had to reserve a booth and pay a $25 vendor's fee.
But Adams, who believed - after consulting with two attorneys - that "my constitutional right allows me on a public street to witness my faith," continued to pass out his materials until the police were called to the scene.
http://www.courthousenews.com/2013/06/25/58798.htm
