In case you couldn't tell, the "Shocker" in the title is sarcastic. There is nothing at all shocking about this. But it is nice to get verification of the obvious.
Two Oregon bakeries have been in the news recently for refusing to bake cakes for gay weddings. Of course, each cites "religious beliefs" and "liberty" and "principles," even though Oregon law prohibits discrimination by businesses against customers based on sexual orientation.
Back in February, Sweet Cakes by Melissa in Gresham, Oregon, refused to bake a cake for a lesbian wedding. You know, because God and Jesus and stuff. They then found themselves the target of a protest action and an investigation by the Oregon Attorney General's civil enforcement officers. Then, just this month, another Oregon bakery--Fleur Cakes in Mt. Hood--turned away another lesbian couple seeking a cake for their wedding. Why? You guessed it...God, Jesus, and:
I believe I have the liberty to live by my principles.
Well, about those principles. Portland's
Willamette Week went undercover at both of these bakeries and made requests for cakes in celebration of a number of other "sins." Stuff that any good fundamentalist should be upset with. Stuff that should make any good Christianist stand by his or her "principles."
And, in the end, the anti-gay bakers are just...anti-gay. Surprise, surprise.
Willamette Week reporters called Sweet Cakes and Fleur Cakes and asked for a variety of cakes. For example, they asked for cakes celebrating divorce, unmarried parents, pagan solstice parties, and even stem-cell research (seriously).
Here's how it turned out for the baby-out-of-wedlock cake:
WW Asks - I’m shopping around for a nice baby shower cake for my friend. It’s her second baby with her boyfriend so I’m not looking for anything too big or fancy—probably enough to serve 15 to 20 people.
Sweet Cake says - “We have a sheet cake that will feed 30, or a 10-inch cake that would feed 30 people. The 10-inch cake is $50 and the sheet cake is $52. Or we have an 8-inch cake that would feed 15 for $40.”
Fleur says - Prices vary based on decoration and frosting, but a basic cake is $3 per serving.
The divorce party:
WW Asks - My friend is getting divorced and we’d like to throw her a little party to mark the start of her new life. Do you ever write messages on those—we’d want it to say “congratulations!”—and how much would it be for a cake that could serve about eight people?
Sweet Cake says - “A 10-inch is $29.99. That should probably do it....We can definitely do something like that.”
Fleur says - “The price for a 10-inch cheesecake is $36 and up. So it’ll be between $36 and $45, but you’re going to have to call in advance because my schedule for June and July is very busy.”
The stem-cell success:
WW Asks - I was wondering if you could do two little cakes. My friend is a researcher at OHSU and she just got a grant for cloning human stem cells, so I thought I’d get her two identical cakes—basically, two little clone cakes. How much would they cost?
Sweet Cake says - “Ha. All right. When are you looking to do it? It’ll be $25.99 each, so about $50 to start.”
Fleur says - Did not pick up phone or return messages. Acknowledged receiving requests by email but refused to comment.
And the pagan solstice party:
WW Asks - I was calling to get a quote on a cake for a midsummer solstice party. My coven is celebrating on Friday, June 21. The decoration would be very simple: just a green pentagram. We’d like to pick it up sometime that afternoon, before the bonfire. It’ll be for about 30 people.
Sweet Cake says - “For 30 poeople we have a couple options... We have two kind of cakes you could have. About the diagram you want on the cake, I’m not sure how much extra that would be.”
Fleur says - Did not pick up phone or return messages. Acknowledged receiving requests by email but refused to comment.
Well ain't that some shit. Anybody surprised?
The Willamette Week adds:
We later contacted both bakeries to ask about these inconsistencies. Regentin declined to comment beyond asking whether she had been taped (she had not).
Sweet Cakes owners Melissa and Aaron Klein were upset that we “would even try to entrap a business” and contacted conservative talk-show host Lars Larson.
Breaking: Anti-gay bakeries are anti-gay and don't give a shit about "principles." And they get pissed if they're called out on it.