except in Salt Lake City and El Paso, Texas, and except if two men, or presumably two women, are doing the bussing.
In those situations, it is grounds for arrest.
Yesterday, I wrote about two men who were booted from a Taco restaurant in El Paso, Texas. Bouncers sought to eject them and three of their friends after one of them kissed the other. The men refused to leave, so police were called. The police threatened the men with arrest on a criminal charge of homosexual conduct. The police were apparently unaware that El Paso had an anti-discrimination ordinance, and that the U.S. Supreme Court had declared the Texas criminal statute unConstitutional in 2003.
Today's news includes a report that two men were cuffed and cited for trespass on Thursday after one of them kissed the other on the cheek on Main Street Plaza in Salt Lake City, Utah. The men were initially detained by security guards working for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. After Salt Lake City police arrived, the men were cited for trespassing on the Plaza, located at 50 East North Temple.
An LDS Church spokesperson, in a written statement, denied that the two were singled out for being gay. "Two individuals came on church property and were politely asked to stop engaging in inappropriate
More crime and traffic news behavior -- just as any other couple would have been."
The spokesperson declined to comment on what is considered inappropriate behavior, and on the rules governing the plaza.
Salt Lake City sold the property to the LDS Church in the late 1990s. It is a popular pedestrian thoroughfare, and reportedly a site where couples often pose affectionately for photos.
The Salt Lake Police Department on Friday denied a request by the Salt Lake Tribune for a full police report on the incident, citing Utah laws giving them five business days to respond to records requests.
Sgt. Robin Snyder of the SLC PD refused to name the reason security guards gave for alerting police, saying it is "irrelevant."
Matt Aune, 28, and his partner, Derek Jones, 25, crossed the plaza holding hands, according to Aune. About 20 feet from the edge of the plaza, Aune said he stopped, put his arm on Jones' back and kissed him on the cheek. Several security guards then arrived and asked the pair to leave, saying that public displays of affection are not allowed on the church property, Aune and Jones said. They protested, saying they often see other couples holding hands and kissing there. "We were kind of standing up for ourselves. It was obviously because we were gay."
Jones said that the guards put Jones on the ground and handcuffed him. Aune said he was also cuffed roughly, suffering bruises and a swollen wrist.
LDC Church spokesperson Kim Farah said the two men "became argumentative," refused to leave, and used profanity.
Aune said he felt "upset" and "affronted" during the approximately five-minute exchange.
"When I was handcuffed, I was very pissed and I unleashed a flurry of profanities," he said.
Police arrived about 10:30 p.m. They spoke with the couple and two security guards before issuing the citations, Snyder said. The pair was banned from the LDS Church Headquarters campus for six months, Farah confirmed.
As Time Goes By, made famous in the film classic, Casablanca, was originally written for the 1931 musical, Everybody's Welcome. The lyrics of the song, as performed in the film, are:
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[This day and age we're living in
Gives cause for apprehension
With speed and new invention
And things like fourth dimension.
Yet we get a trifle weary
With Mr. Einstein's theory.
So we must get down to earth at times
Relax relieve the tension
And no matter what the progress
Or what may yet be proved
The simple facts of life are such
They cannot be removed.]
You must remember this
A kiss is just a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh.
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by.
And when two lovers woo
They still say, "I love you."
On that you can rely
No matter what the future brings
As time goes by.
Moonlight and love songs
Never out of date.
Hearts full of passion
Jealousy and hate.
Woman needs man
And man must have his mate
That no one can deny.
It's still the same old story
A fight for love and glory
A case of do or die.
The world will always welcome lovers
As time goes by.
Oh yes, the world will always welcome lovers
As time goes by.
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Notwithstanding the song's sentiment, some parts of the world do not seem to always welcome lovers, if the lovers are of the same gender.