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Homophobic Email Sparks Public Outcry
A landscaping company in Texas recently refused to respond to a request for proposal for landscaping services made by a gay couple. One of the co-owners wrote an email to the couple saying “I need to tell you that we cannot meet with you because we choose not to work for homosexuals.” This email was forwarded by the potential customer with a request that the particular company be boycotted. This led many Internet users to make posts on an electronic forum on the landscaper’s website decrying this discriminatory policy. It would appear that this campaign has been effective, as the Association of Professional Landscape Designers has issued a public statement decrying this conduct.
Texas law does not prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. However, if this situation arose in Canada, a legitimate complaint could be made to the appropriate Human Rights Commission so that the matter could be investigated and a remedy potentially fashioned.
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